Prime
Expect several populist economic policies in 2025, civil society projects
Mr Julius Mukunda says Ugandans should expect a flood of policy promises targeting, especially vulnerable groups such as women, youth, and the elderly. Photo / File
What you need to know:
- Civil Society Budget Advocacy Group says that towards every election populist policies are promised to electorates by several leaders in and outside government
Civil Society Budget Advocacy Group has said Ugandans should expect several populist economic policies next year as the country enters the 2026 electoral cycle.
Uganda will go to the presidential and parliamentary polls in 2026, whose activities are expected to peak in late 2025, before the eventual elections on January 12, 2026.
Speaking at a dialogue on the performance of the economy in 2024 and how 2025 is expected to perform, Mr Julius Mukunda, the Civil Society Budget Advocacy Group executive director, said there is expected to be a flood of policy promises targeting, especially vulnerable groups such as women, youth and the elderly.
“There is going to be an influx of election-related funds geared towards voter inducement and political monetisation for projects such as Shs1.7m youth beneficial new programmes and more supplementary budget,” he said.
Government has previously established several policies resulting from election promises such as Bonna Bagagawale, Operation Wealth Creation, and Parish Development Model, among others some of which have been abandoned after failing to deliver promised results.
Many of these policies target vulnerable groups with the promise of changing their livelihoods.
However, Mr Mukunda said, looking forward to 2025, even with such an influx, inflation will remain below the Bank of Uganda's 5 percent target, mainly due to favorable conditions.
Inflation currently stands at 2.9 percent but Bank of Uganda has projected that it will increase to 3.7 percent by June 2025, and to 4.2 percent by June 2026.
This, the Central Bank says, will be due to favorable weather conditions that still continue to support food production, easing of global inflationary pressure, and a strong monetary stance.
Mr Mukunda noted that while the country’s economy had demonstrated resilience amid challenges, there are still critical areas that require focused attention to ensure sustainable growth and inclusive development.
It is essential for government, he said, to prioritise strategic investments in key sectors such as education, infrastructure and energy, while addressing issues such as corruption and inefficiencies in public service delivery.
He commended finalisation of the audit recommendation tracking system which will provide a platform for enhancing transparency and accountability.
The system will strengthen governance and better resource management through identifying and rectifying inefficiencies and mismanagement of resources leading to more effective use of public funds.
