Written By Prof Augustus Nuwagaba (PhD)
The foregoing evidence is in accord with what I have consistently explained that high macro-economic performance does not necessarily translate into improved wellbeing of the people unless government deliberately intervenes to ensure equitable and inclusive growth. We have on several occasions advised the government to put in place, structures that translate the highly acclaimed growth at the macro level, to micro benefits that are expressed and felt at the household level. This is where local governments become an important tool in ensuring that planning is bottom-up and project/program implementation is consistent with expressed needs of the population.Read full article here

Written By Anthony Mugeere (PhD)
Under the Third National Development Plan (NDPIII—2020/21 to 2024/25), the Government of Uganda approved the implementation of the Parish Development Model (PDM) for the 10,594 parishes countrywide as a strategy for organizing and delivering public and private sector interventions for wealth creation, employment generation and stimulate overall national development. To the government and other stakeholders, the model is one of the missing pawns on the socio-economic transformation chessboard and perhaps; a panacea to the quest for middle-income status. Read full article here

Written By Uganda Local Governments Association (ULGA)
As Local Governments were grappling with conceptualization of the new Program-Based Budgeting approach whose aim was to transform the budget from Output-based to a more result and performance-based approach (in line with the Third National Development Plan, at the beginning of this Financial Year 2021/22); Local Governments witnessed the rollout of the Parish Development Model (PDM). The PDM is given as a service delivery mechanism intended to facilitate the transformation of an estimated 69% of households by bringing them out of poverty into a money economy. The Model is presented as seeking to localize Vision 2040 as well as the National Development Plan III, for the effective measurement and management of government development programs. It is presented as one the strategies for accelerating wealth, jobs and improving service delivery in the 10,694 parishes in Uganda. Read full article here

The government of Uganda under the Third National Development Plan (NDPIII) adopted the Parish Development Model (PDM) as a conduit through which household incomes and the quality of life of Ugandans can further be improved with a specific focus on the total transformation of the subsistence households into the monetized economy, as well as eradication of poverty and vulnerability in Uganda. The PDM identifies Infrastructure and economic services is one of its pillars that serves 68.9 per cent of the population still trapped in the subsistence economy. In the local government setting, the parish is the lowest economic planning unit and if adequately supported, it can be pivotal in the transformation of local communities out of poverty. Read full article here

Written By Phoebe Atukunda
It’s important to note that citizen engagement is critical in the conceptualisation and implementation of such initiatives because it improves the quality of policy being developed, making it more practical and relevant, and helping to ensure that services are delivered more effectively and efficiently. Citizen engagement plays a key role in challenges faced by public officials in middle and low-income countries in improving the effectiveness of service delivery in terms of assessing the relevance and effectiveness of services. Strengthening accountability, transparency since lack of accountability and corruption in the public sector is perhaps the single most important factor for failures in service delivery.
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Written By Amumpiire Anna and Phoebe Atukunda
According to the World Bank, ending poverty and addressing climate change are the two defining issues of our time. Climate change exacerbates the effects of population growth, poverty, and rapid urbanisation. Without serious adaptation, climate change is likely to drive millions further into poverty and limit the opportunities for sustainable development and poverty alleviation yet both are essential to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and cannot be considered in isolation.
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Written By Rebecca Nalwoga Mukwaya
The government continues to improve the recognition and targeting of its programs towards improving the well-being of Persons with Disabilities (PWDs). The 2014 National Population Census noted that PWDs were at 12.4 per cent of the Ugandan population while the 2017 Functional Difficulties Survey noted that PWDs are 16.5 per cent of the Uganda population. Uganda Population and Housing Census 2014 showed that disability was more prevalent amongst women (15 per cent) than men (10 per cent); higher in rural areas (15 per cent) than in urban areas (12 per cent).
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Written By Fred Kasalirwe
Poverty remains a big challenge in Uganda with the proportion of poor persons being 20.3%. The absolute number of persons living in poverty in rural areas is 7 million compared 1.3 million persons in urban areas. Subsistence economy remains dominant with 39% of households in Uganda being in the subsistence economy constituting 3.5 million households of which 56% are in purely subsistence farming. Poverty prevalence is exacerbated by the unprecedented occurrence of the COVID-19 pandemic, with proportions of persons falling below the poverty line during COVID-19 being 21.9% from 18.7% before the COVID-19 pandemic.
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