Justice Dollo calls for tough laws to help national planning
Team. Left to Right: Ms Lydia Wanyoto, a member of the newly appointed National Planning Authority board, Prof Pamela Mbabazi, the chairperson, deputy Chief Justice Alfonse Owiny-Dollo and Prof Samuel Obwonya Kinyera, the deputy chairperson, at the High Court yesterday. PHOTO BY STEPHEN OTAGE
What you need to know:
- Effectiveness. The deputy Chief Justice says the environment conservation should be planned for during any developments.
Kampala. The deputy Chief Justice Alfonse Owiny-Dollo has asked the National Planning Authority (NPA) to revive issuance of ordinances which ensure environmental conservation and coordinated planning.
While inaugurating the new board of NPA yesterday, Justice Owiny-Dollo said in the absence of a planning law, the NPA should start issuing decrees like the colonial government used to in order to create a positive impact on society and environment.
“We have positive hard laws and negative soft laws. Uganda has a population of 40 million. If every Ugandan planted five trees that would mean 200 million trees. You can imagine the kind of impact 200 million trees would have on the environment,” he said.
Poorly planned
Justice Owiny-Dollo also cited the poorly planned residential places such as Muyenga. He said if the planning authority zoned had planned for it properly, the actual value of the land there would be much higher unlike now where utilities such as roads, water and electricity are not planned for.
The new NPA board, which was sworn in yesterday, is chaired by former Mbarara University deputy vice chancellor Prof Pamela Kasabiti Mbabazi, who is deputised by Prof Sam Kinyera Obwonya.
Other members are Ms Lydia Wanyoto, Dr Ivan Lule and Prof Enos Kiremire. The board serves a five-year term renewable once.
While delivering his speech, Prof Mbabazi said they were pleased to join NPA when the implementation of the second National Development Plan (NDP) is coming to its final year of execution.
She said the tasks ahead of the new board include ensuring citizen participation in developing the subsequent NDP and align it to sector budgets to attain Vision 2040.
“We shall continue to coordinate and harmonise development planning in our country, monitor and evaluate effectiveness and impact of development programmes and performance of the economy,” she said.
About the New NPA board chairperson
Career. Prof Mbabazi has previously worked in Mbarara University of Science and Technology for close to 20 years, where she rose through the ranks to become deputy Vice Chancellor. She later headed to Ethiopia as a consultant supporting the African Union in research and training. Her last posting was Head of Research at the African Union Institute of Peace and Security Studies in Ethiopia. She replaces Prof Kisamba Mugerwa whose two-year term expired in August 2018.
