A councilor is elected from every locality to solve the problems of people at local level.
COUNCILLORS have been given responsibility for specific areas within the Mackay Region.
Although the new Council in Community initiative is similar to the divisional system of local government, it is not the same.
While two councillors will take on responsibility for each of five localities, unlike the old system, no councillors are elected to represent a specific area.
Divisions were a major topic throughout this year's local government election in March.
A number of candidates wanted to bring back the old ward system, which had been in use for many years. It was dropped in 2008 when Mackay City, Mirani Shire and Sarina Shire councils amalgamated to form the regional council.
According to Mackay Regional Council, the new structure "aims to deliver improved representation and provide a vehicle for residents to know who to approach to discuss specific issues in their area".
Mayor Greg Williamson said the region had been split into five localities.
"With an area encompassing 7261sq km, it's important we share the workload and strive to be as effective and accessible as we can," he said.
The localities are the city area, northern suburbs, north coast beaches, southern region and western region.
Cr Williamson said councillors had a strong focus on engagement.
"We are here to serve the community and to do that we need to understand what residents need and also explain how we can help, or the limitations we have as an organisation," he said.
These localities will allow residents to discuss issues ranging from roads to rates, parking to playgrounds and festivals to footpaths.
Cr Williamson said the system was not designed to replace the current customer request system, which residents should use for any council-related matter