Officials fail to account for World Bank project cash

A photo montage of (L-R) Mr Keith Muhakanizi, Ms Evelyn Anite and Mr Patrick Ocailap

What you need to know:

  • Cabinet approved Shs1.6b to kick-start the project and in June 2015 UIA appointed a Norwegian consultant (Norway Registers Development (NRD) at Shs1b to develop the web-based solutions under the OSC project.
  • According to State House sources, during the Cabinet meeting last Wednesday, the President learnt of the fight over the World Bank money and reports that the OSC project had stalled.

Kampala: Ministry of Finance officials are looking for ways of accounting for $10 million ( about Shs36 billion) they received from the World Bank under the pretext of setting up a one-stop-centre for investors yet the Uganda Investment Authority (UIA) was already implementing a similar project.
The architects of the Competitiveness Enterprise Development Project (CEDP), which duplicates services of UIA’s One-Stop-Centre (OSC) project, convinced the World Bank that the government badly needed assistance to establish a One-Stop-Shop (OSS) through Uganda Services Registration Bureau (URSB).

Although the World Bank money was not spent on the OSC project, sources said URSB and Ministry of Finance officials led by the Deputy Secretary to the Treasury, Mr Patrick Ocailap, want to account to World Bank using the OSC project documents from UIA, contrary to the Cabinet resolution on the OSC project.
On January 23, Mr Ocailap chaired a joint meeting of the government agencies involved in the OSC project execution. The meeting reportedly resolved, amid protest from UIA, that the e-OSC project (e-biz web portal solution) be transferred to URSB.
In this meeting, sources told Daily Monitor that government officials heckled each other before the UIA team walked out in protest.

Resolution
After the stormy January 23 meeting, UIA boss Lawrence Byensi met the board which resolved to petition the minister for Investment and Privatisation, Ms Evelyn Anite and the President. Mr Byensi said the Finance ministry’s “overt and covert moves to hijack the project from UIA” would be resisted because it’s a duplication of projects.
“Overt and covert moves by URSB to take away management of the e-biz solution [under the One-Stop-Centre] project from UIA via a resolution of the Deputy PS/ST [Ocailap] chaired meeting of January 23 is tantamount to usurpation of one of UIA’s core mandates imbedded in the law,” Mr Byensi’s petition reads in part.
“These moves by URSB should be stopped if the implementation of the e-OSC project is to proceed without further interference,” he added.

He also stated that the move violates the project charter signed in 2014 by National Information Technology Authority (NITA-U), UIA and Ministry of Finance under the directive of cabinet.
The UIA’s refusal to surrender the project triggered the explosion of a simmering war of words that had gone on for months between Ministry of Finance and URSB team and World Bank.
Some Cabinet ministers and MPs on Parliament’s committee on Commissions Statutory Authorities and State Enterprises have described the incident as “a scandal”.

Meeting
Though the World Bank has not yet responded, Minister Anite on Monday convened a crisis meeting which resolved that UIA retains the project.
Daily Monitor was informed that President Museveni has on several occasions directed that UIA be turned into a One-Stop-Centre for investors and all investment projects be approved within two working days.
It’s not yet clear why some Finance ministry officials want UIA to surrender the project to URSB contrary to the decision of the President and Cabinet.

Cabinet approved Shs1.6b to kick-start the project and in June 2015 UIA appointed a Norwegian consultant (Norway Registers Development (NRD) at Shs1b to develop the web-based solutions under the OSC project. However, when the OSC was nearing completion, Mr Ocailap directed that the project be surrendered to URSB. The UIA and other agencies were so infuriated that some have threatened to quit the project.
According to State House sources, during the Cabinet meeting last Wednesday, the President learnt of the fight over the World Bank money and reports that the OSC project had stalled. The sources said he got furious and rejected the World Bank funded OSS under URSB. He also insisted that UIA implements the One-Stop-Centre funded by government money which Cabinet approved in 2014.

A technical committee comprising representatives of all the implementing agencies including UIA and URSB was set up to oversee the implementation of OSC project. NITA-U was accordingly appointed project manager, UIA as the project owner and Ministry of Finance, the sponsor.
All seemed okay, according to senior officials in the Ministry of finance, until the World Bank money became available. The people who negotiated the World Bank project supported URSB and asked UIA to surrender all the project documents. Although the Secretary to the Treasury Keith Muhakanizi, two weeks ago chaired one of the meetings which reviewed the implementation of UIA-led e-biz web-portal solution and put the project progress at 85 per cent, on January 23, his Deputy Ocailap chaired a follow-up meeting which instructed UIA to hand over the project to URSB when it is almost complete.

Mr Muhakanizi didn’t pick calls and Mr Ocailap was reported out of the country, but Ministry of finance spokesperson, Mr Jim Mugunga said: “I’m not aware of the fights. Both UIA and URSB closely work and relate with the ministry. We have mechanisms of resolving structural, coordination or administrative issues if they arise. And in case of any problems, we will see how to deal with them. The presidential directive is that we put in place a one stop centre to expedite investment decisions and this is what we are working on and those implementing the World Bank project, will provide the accountability as required.”
Daily Monitor has learnt that before World Bank released the $10m, they demanded a title deed in the names of URSB. They also earmarked $6m for easing business, $3m for building a permanent home for investors and $1b for processes. However, according to sources, URSB did not have a title nor a piece of land to its name. Since UIA under the leadership of Mr Frank Ssebowa had bought land in Kololo after selling their headquarters on Kampala Road, officials in Ministry of finance directed that URSB shares the title with URSB.

Although the Anite meeting on Monday last week had resolved that OSS and OSC are different ventures and therefore UIA should not surrender the project to URSB, some officials from URSB ran to Minister for Justice, Maj Gen Kahinda Otafiire and requested him to call another meeting this week.
Other government agencies including UIA have threatened to boycott the meeting.
The URSB Registrar General, Mr Bemanya Twebaze did not answer our calls and text messages. His deputy, Mr Alfred Mugisha, said he was not in position to speak to “outsiders” on the matter without permission from his boss. He suggested that URSB spokesperson, Ms Provia Nangobi explains the URSB position. However, Ms Nangobi said: “It’s only the Registrar General who can explain those accusations”. The World Bank’s communications officer, Ms Sheila C. Kulubya asked URSB to explain.

The issues at hand

Disagreement. Cabinet approved Shs1.6b to kick-start the project and in June 2015 UIA appointed a Norwegian consultant (Norway Registers Development (NRD) at Shs1b to develop the web-based solutions under the OSC project. However, when the OSC was nearing completion, Mr Ocailap directed that the project be surrendered to URSB. The UIA and other agencies were so infuriated that some have threatened to quit the project.
President’s directive. According to State House sources, during the Cabinet meeting last Wednesday, the President learnt of the fight over the World Bank money and reports that the OSC project had stalled. The sources said he got furious and rejected the World Bank funded OSS under URSB. He also insisted that UIA implements the One-Stop-Centre funded by government money which Cabinet approved in 2014.