Mengo tables Shs30b budget

Kampala

Buganda Kingdom has tabled a Shs30b (2010/11) budget, the highest ever with majority of the revenue anticipated from leasing land and donations. The kingdom’s treasurer, Ms Nagawa Mukasa, said about Shs19b to facilitate the royal treasury, support special kingdom projects is expected from Buganda Land Board (BLB) in terms of land leases, premium, ground rent, extension and building rents.

“Almost 75 per cent of the budget is expected from BLB, Buganda certificates project and promoting tourism,” Ms Nagawa told the Lukiiko on Tuesday. She said about Shs300 million is expected from sale of certificates (donations), Sh180 million from the tourism ministry and Baganda in Diaspora.

Major source
The kingdom’s land agency, (BLB) also emerged the major source of revenue during the 2009/10 financial year after collecting Shs7.1b from ground rent, premium, penalties, legal fees, application, inspection and processing -- reflecting 87 percent performance compared to the projected Shs8.2b from land leases. According to Ms Nagawa, BLB was followed by the kingdom’s certificate project and tourism which collected Shs154m and Shs133m respectively.

Despite the anticipations, the kingdom failed to realise 60 percent of its anticipated revenue amounting to Shs19b during the previous financial year. The kingdom blamed the shortfall on the closure of CBS radio and government’s failure to remit the accumulated Shs9 billion in rent arrears among others.

Mengo, the kingdom’s seat, struggled to muster financing for last year’s Shs19.2b budget.
Ms Nagawa, said the kingdom run a ‘deficit budget’. The premier, Eng. JB Walusimbi, said atleast Shs425m has been raised towards the construction of the Kasubi tombs.