Of silent government clampdown on NGOs

It is no news that non-governmental organisations (NGOs) worldwide supplement government work as a trickle-down effect aimed at reaching marginalised communities regarding delivery of services.

Governance, information sharing, empowerment, philanthropy,  transparency and accountability works that would have taken ages to reach many of Uganda’s marginalised and vulnerable communities easily and widely reach there because of  efforts by NGOs.

It is important to note that NGOs empower communities through promoting citizen participation, equipping them with skills and knowledge for among others, resource mobilisation.

NGOs also participate in building capacities of communities through programmes on various aspects such as environment, advocacy, social, political, and human rights.

It is also evident that because of the civil society organisations’ or NGOs penetration and support in Uganda, we have increasingly seen many people, especially the marginalised groups such as youth, women and people living with disabilities come out to speak and defend themselves but also demand services from government.

However, the recent clampdown by the government on NGOs has not only worsened the situation but affected thousands of livelihoods.

Recently, government revoked licences of more than 50 NGOs and froze accounts of several others, forcing them to completely close shop.

This is in addition to the suspension for almost a year of the Democratic Governance Facility (DGF), a huge donor fund that supports good governance programmes.

The suspension halted DGF funded activities of more than 80 state and non-state implementing partners; and significantly impacted individuals, communities and institutions.

 Most of the affected NGOs tackle key areas of human rights, civic education and accountability, which respond to the daily concerns of the citizens.

Notably, these NGOs directly employ thousands of Ugandans which means there has been loss of jobs coupled with high rate of inflation and increasing poverty levels that the country is dealing with.

On the other hand, registering an NGO in Uganda today has turned a nightmare. The law and fees to have an NGO registered are clear.

Quoting the Non-governmental Organisations regulation (2017), the registration application for local NGO fees is Shs100,000 while foreigners pay  Shs520,000. In the same regulations, the duties and responsibilities of the NGO Board are very clear.

However, this seems not be the case anymore. Undercover operatives are fully involved in registering NGOs with a lot of scrutiny and corruption involved.

The racket involves lawyers, security operatives with some demanding above Shs5m to influence the registration and acquiring a certificate of operation. With this mafia penetration, one wonders whether the National NGO Board is fully aware of the racketeering going on.

The law is very clear on the role of the National NGO Board; regulates, monitors, inspects, coordinates and overseas the activities of NGOs in Uganda registered with a practicing certificate. 

We know that Uganda has the best laws and mechanism to mitigate such fraud with investigative bodies like the police and Financial Intelligence Authority, but it’s the political will that needs to commit and address such anomalies.

All in all, responsible authorities should come out strongly to condemn this anomaly given that it’s the marginalised groups being affected at the expense of a few egoistic individuals.

Mr Moses Karatunga is a human rights activist. [email protected]