No purchase of new vehicles for political leaders, public servants – govt
Government vehicles rot away in the parking yard at the Ministry of Public Service in Kampala. PHOTO/ FILE
What you need to know:
- The minister said government had spent Shs661 billion on domestic arrears during the 2022/2023 financial year ending June 30 as it projects to collect Shs 29.7 trillion domestic revenues in FY 2023/24.
In order to live within Uganda’s means, government has said it plans to reduce consumptive expenditure in the next financial year.
There will be no purchase of new vehicles for political leaders and public officers, except for hospital ambulances, medical supplies or distribution, agricultural extension services, security and revenue mobilization, government said as it seeks to ensure a 6 percent economic growth as projected by its experts.
“Travel abroad has also been restricted to statutory functions and for critical legal and resource mobilization functions. We will also regulate expenses on workshops and seminars,” Finance Minister, Mr Matia Kasaija said Thursday as he presented his Budget speech during a Parliament sitting at Kololo ceremonial grounds in Kampala.
The minister said government had spent Shs661 billion on domestic arrears during the 2022/2023 financial year ending June 30 as it projects to collect Shs 29.7 trillion domestic revenues in FY 2023/24.
Shs27.4 trillion will be tax revenue and Shs. 2.3 billion will be Non-Tax Revenue. This represents a revenue effort of 14.3 percent of GDP.
“Government is committed to paying verified suppliers, court awards and compensation for ranches. Next financial year, Shs 200 billion has been allocated to settle domestic arrears,” he added.
To improve absorption and utilization of external loans and grants, government will be asking accounting officers of Ministries, Departments and Agencies to provide quarterly physical performance briefs to Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development and Office of the Prime Minister, on performance of externally financed projects under their jurisdiction.
“Government will also be ensuring project selection, design, approval, and analysis is undertaken before the project is approved for funding; providing a dedicated fund for land acquisition and right of way instead of earmarking funds for particular projects to address delays in compensation; commencing project implementation only on sites where there are no ‘right of way’ and other physical encumbrances; requiring all environmental and social safeguards to be enforced by the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development and the National Environmental Management Authority during project design,” Mr Kasaija said.
The minister further said the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) which has been in power for the last 37 years under the stewardship of President Museveni will enhance dialogue with development partners to ensure smooth implementation of externally funded projects, in addition to placing all project coordinators on performance-based contracts to improve accountability for project performance.
Under the domestic revenue mobilization Strategy, the objective is to improve revenue collection to between 16 and 18 percent of GDP over the next five years from about 13.5 percent of GDP currently.
Next financial year priority has been placed on improving tax administration, including use of ICT to fight tax evasion, and rationalizing tax exemptions to improve their effectiveness and reduce revenue leakage, according to Mr Kasaija.
According to government, the new budget is dedicated to 39 percent of Ugandans who are currently not in the money economy.
“To those individuals and households whose income per year is below Shs20 million, they have now the opportunity to utilize the support that the NRM Government has provided under the Parish Development Model, Emyooga and other Government initiatives,” Mr Kasaija said.
