NRM manifesto week: PM weighs in on govt progress

Prime Minister (PM) Robinah Nabbanja has said the National Resistance Movement (NRM) government has successfully implemented at least 11 per cent of the 2021 to 2026 manifesto in the last two years.

The PM also disclosed that 77 per cent of the government commitments are on track and are about to be achieved.

The leader of the government business made the remarks while launching the NRM manifesto week in Kampala last Friday.

Ms Nabbanja said the government is firm at maintaining peace and security as a core ingredient upon which the various social, and economic activities are hinged. 

The premier further noted that the first two years of the manifesto implementation have been largely for planning and transition with an overall achievement standing at 11 per cent in the five major sectors of education, health, ensuring justice and equity, protecting life and property, and achieving economic and political integration.

“In the implementation of the manifesto, we are guided by the 23 directives issued by the President at the first Cabinet meeting in June 2016 and later reissued again in June 2021. The 23 directives highlighted the critical priority areas that needed to be attended to, in order to achieve our goals,” Ms Nabbanja said. “I am confident that the next assessment will indicate a high rating,’’ she added.

PDM and industrialisation

Ms Nabbanja also noted that the government has managed to establish 10,594 Parish Development Model Saccos in the last two years. A total of Shs1.059.4 trillion was released by the government to capitalise the Saccos.

“This Financial Year, the government has so far released Shs794.55 billion for the revolving funds, out of which Shs221.975 billion has already been disbursed directly to the bank accounts of 8,879 ready PDM Saccos in 162 local governments,” she said.

In the last two years, the government has completed the construction of 20 zonal industrial hubs of which 14 hubs have been equipped with welding machines, carpentry machines, tailoring machines, baking machines, and stone cutting among others, according to the Prime Minister.  

“So far 2,000 youth have been skilled and passed out from these facilities,” Ms Nabbanja added. 

Agriculture

The agricultural sector has registered a steady growth from 2.8 to 4.3 per cent. The premier attributes the growth to the provision of agricultural inputs of seedlings in coffee, tea, sugar, cassava, and maize as well as value addition equipment in milk production.

Among other manifesto achievements listed by the prime minister; the national first satellite that was launched last year, the distribution of oxygen plants in all 17 regional referral hospitals, and 109 facilities have been upgraded from health centre II to health centre III.

At least 102 seed schools were commissioned and 50,000 laboratory materials have been distributed to 157 secondary schools in the last two years and Shs954.9b for salary enhancement of scientists was released last year. 

Other sectors, which have reaped big in the first two years of manifesto implementation include Judiciary, local government services, peace, and security.

Corruption

Ms Nabbanja expressed his concern about the slow progress in the implementation of various key government infrastructure projects and the increased cases of shoddy work done, especially at the local government level.

She noted that “Corruption is still with us and this undermines the different efforts invested to achieve our targets. However, the government is intensifying the fight against it by strengthening its investigative mechanisms within the various anti-corruption agencies to aid the successful prosecution of the suspects.”