Parliament has decided against allocating 200 billion Ugandan Shillings initially earmarked for compensating Uganda National Roads Authority (UNRA) staff affected by rationalization. Instead, the funds have been redirected towards debt repayment.
This decision was made during deliberations chaired by Hon. Dan Atwijukire, the Chairperson of the Committee on Physical Infrastructure, while reviewing the Budget Estimates and Ministerial Policy Statement for the ministries of Works and Transport and Lands Housing and Urban Development on April 12, 2024.
According to Atwijukire, the budget for the Project 1616 Retooling of UNRA saw an increase of 207.67 billion Ugandan Shillings, from 7.029 billion in the financial year 2023/2024 to 216.7 billion proposed for the financial year 2024/2025. This increase was primarily due to the addition of 200 billion Shillings to cover payment of terminal benefits for 1,560 staff as a result of the rationalization and merger of UNRA.
The Committee raised concerns that allocating these funds would constitute legislating in anticipation, a violation of Parliament Rules of Procedure, as the rationalization of government agencies has not been finalized.
As a result, Parliament opted to postpone the allocation of the 200 billion Shillings until further deliberation. The committee consequently reallocated the funds towards settling UNRA’s debts.
UNRA concluded the financial year 2022/2023 with a debt of 591.368 billion Shillings on projects financed by the Government of Uganda. The committee highlighted that these arrears, coupled with limited financing, hinder efforts to achieve the objectives outlined in the National Development Plan (NDP) III.
Additionally, Parliament earmarked funds for various projects under the Ministry of Works and Ministry of Lands. Notably, 2 billion Shillings were allocated for public water transport safety awareness programs as immediate interventions.
The Committee recommended reallocating 176 billion Shillings proposed for Local Governments’ road maintenance grants to the Uganda Road Fund (URF) budget to support road maintenance initiatives in Local Governments.
Recognizing the declining budgets for road maintenance, Parliament proposed allocating an additional 200 billion Shillings to the URF for the financial year 2024/2025.
Furthermore, the Committee highlighted the need for the Ministry of Lands Housing and Urban Development to relocate to make way for the construction of Parliament offices. It recommended allocating 24 billion Shillings for rent and providing 102 billion Shillings in the short to medium term for the construction of a permanent office space.
Hon. John Baptist Nambeshe, the Chief Opposition Whip, suggested that instead of building their own office space, the Ministry should allow the Parliamentary Commission to demolish Development House and construct a complex to accommodate both entities.
Speaker Anita Among mentioned that the government is planning to construct a one-stop center to house all government ministries and departments.
