Prime
Let’s sort PDM cash technology mess now
What you need to know:
The issue: PDM cash
Our view: Such decisions draw a lot of questions on the intentions of the implementing authorities. We seem to move five steps forward and seven backwards.
These, among a litany of questions, must be addressed if we really mean to benefit communities.
The news, largely reported by this newspaper last week and yesterday, that unscrupulous people are taking advantage of technology to siphon money meant to uplift the poor is unwelcome and must be addressed immediately.
First, it was reported last week that a group in Kaliro District in Busoga Sub-region, raised an alarm after Shs30 million disappeared after a glitch in the Wendi app, an e-money app. Then it has also been reported that a SACCO leader in Kampala reportedly diverted Shs70m to start a hardware business, while another in Kamuli District took off with SACCO money to Canada.
The government from late last month began releasing Shs50m per parish through the mobile wallet, which is now a subject of debate.
The three cases are a precursor to what might be a harrowing tale going into the future. And this is the point we must ask the hard questions and seek a way forward.
What was the compelling reason for the Cabinet to direct the Ministry of Finance that Parish Development Model (PDM) cash be disbursed to beneficiaries on the e-money app, and not directly through bank accounts as originally planned?
Did the government consider technological lapses before making such a directive? Were beneficiaries sensitized on the use of the mobile app?
Do many of the beneficiaries have smartphones and can easily install the app, let alone use it?
We have seen before that many Ugandans are losing money to online fraudsters, so we should have known better.
Equally so, while smartphone penetration stands at 30 percent, a staggering 70 percent of Ugandans use basic feature phones, according to the Uganda Communications Commission. This implies that many of them are not conversant with applications.
In February 2022, President Museveni launched the PDM, which seeks to propel the 39 percent of Uganda’s population still stuck in the subsistence economy, into the money economy.
The import here is that the money is meant for majority poor communities, and mobile applications among these groups are a far cry. Such decisions draw a lot of questions on the intentions of the implementing authorities. We seem to move five steps forward and seven backwards.
These, among a litany of questions, must be addressed if we really mean to benefit communities. Already, many have questioned why all poverty eradication programmes over the years have failed; and the latest move gives credence to these queries. Do we really mean well?
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