Auditor General lists weak government departments

Project management

The AG notes that the government needs to supervise contractors to avoid wastage of funds. The report notes the case of Shs6billion that was borrowed for construction of 14 bridges in Northern Uganda but was not used and was instead returned to the lender – Islamic Development Bank.

The report also reported that NAADS paid Shs1.4trillion to two lead agencies in the districts of Kisoro and Kanungu to provide extension services to farmers but all the farmers interviewed indicated that no extension services were provided during the planning period.

The AG advises Uganda Electricity Generation Company Limited (UEGCL) to closely monitor and supervise the works on the 183MW Isimba dam after it emerged that the dam’s supervisors were not doing a good job. He said that failure to tame anomalies may lead to high maintenance costs for the projects. He also advised management of UEGCL to enforce compliance to the Concession and Assignment Agreement (CAA) for Nalubale and Kiira Hydro Power Complex which had non-repair works at two turbines, ASR cracks on Nalubale dam and the Power house.

Public service staff

The AG also noted and advised on a review of the approved staffing structures of seven government entities where he found a total of 38,572 vacant posts. These included key staffing posts like Deputy Solicitor General, Director Civil Litigation, Principal State Attorney in the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs. The biggest shortfall in the staffing out of the seven entities was in the Uganda Police Force (UPF) with a staff shortage of 28,791.

Standard Gauge Railway

On the construction of the Standard Gauge Railway, the AG noted that government should ensure that the land acquisition process – which had delayed by the time of compiling the report – is expedited so as to enhance progress of the project in line with the regional partners.

He also noted that 51 entities with a budget of Shs 4.4 trillion did not have strategic plans and so it was difficult to assess their performance. He said that must be fixed.

Ministry of Lands

The AG also noted that the Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development had a number of weaknesses that require redress and these include; delays in processing land registration documents ranging from 13 to 134 days contrary to the prescribed period of two to 20 days, low level of registration of land which is as low as 5% in rural areas, delay in completion of revision of land policies, laws and regulations and more.

Youth Livelihood Programme

He also reported that the Youth Livelihood Programme (YLP) had recorded a Shs150 billion funding gap, representing 56.7%. He warned that inadequate funding of the programme may constrain the achievement of the intended programme objectives of improving livelihoods of the poor and unemployed youth.

Improvements made

Commenting on the AG report, Henry Musasizi, the MP for Rubanda County East who has been a member of Public Accounts Committee (PAC) for seven years, described the 2017 AG report as “not worrying”.

He said there has, in fact, been a general improvement in adherence to laws and policies. He cited an increase in the number of entities now producing financial reports and government programs that are being implemented in line with the National Development Plan (NDP).

Musasizi attributed the poor performance of some sectors of government to lazy public servants who do not want to put in extra work to deliver “surplus” results. He also blamed it [poor performance] on poor planning and prioritisation.

He supported the AG’s recommendations on widening the tax base to collect more revenue, ensuring value for money for the YLP and Operation Wealth Creation (OWC).

He said the AG also needs to tailor their report to target outcomes by government agencies to ensure compliance and value for money.

“It is high time government started implementing the AG’s recommendations without even waiting for PAC to push for them,” Musasizi said.