Parish Development Model funds unused in districts as financial year ends

Hoima, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Billions of shillings disbursed to districts for the Parish Development Model (PDM) programme across the country are still lying idle just months to the end of the financial year.

In February this year, President Yoweri Museveni launched the Parish Development Model (PDM) at Kibuku Primary School, Kibuku District in Bukedi Sub-region.

The Parish Development Model (PDM) aims at helping people at the parish level to increase their household incomes and join the money economy.

Before the launching of the PDM, the districts had received funds to start off the implementation of the programme but they are yet to release them to parishes, raising fears that they may be returned to the consolidated fund at end of the financial year.

In Butebo district, the Parish Development Model Focal person Joseph Kalyebi told URN that the district formed 61 groups which were presented for launch by the President but only six groups have received 17.3 million shillings each. He said that they are training other groups to prepare them to get the money which is available at the district accounts.

In Hoima district, sh840 million were received to facilitate the operations of the parish development model but Charles Kajura, the district focal person for Programme, says they could not disburse it to the various parishes over a lack of implementation guidelines.

He says that they are still waiting for implementing guidelines from the ministries of Gender, Finance, Local government and the Office of the President on how to form the PDM SACCOs at the parish levels.

The situation is not different in Luwero, Kyotera and Kitgum among other districts.

Isaac Wampamba the Luwero District Secretary for Finance explained that recruitment of parish chiefs was done and now they are mobilizing parishes to form committees to kick start the programme. Wampamba however notes that the available money can’t be disbursed to Parishes till they receive the guidelines.

Ambrose Musasizi, the Kyotera District Communication Officer said that the Chief Administrative Officer is also still waiting for implementation guidelines.

In Kitgum, the district has so far received 646.3 million for the programme but Denis Ocira the Focal Person for the programme blamed the non-utilization on the lack of the same guidelines.

In Bukwo district, Resident District Commissioner Hashaka Mpimbaza says that Chief Administrative Officer has failed to disclose how much funds were disbursed for the programme.

In Amuru district, a total of 520.7 million Shillings has been received so far for the programme.

Out of the release, 346.4 million shillings was meant for the revolving fund, 29 million Shillings for Administrative cost, 79.5 million shillings for staff cost, and 65.7 million shillings for gadget and tools.

But the Chief Administrative Officer Thomson Obong says they are yet to come up with the groups that will benefit from the Parish Development Model (PDM) in all the 52 Parishes in the district.

Obong notes that the Finance Ministry also directed them not to spend funds meant for revolving funds and tools and equipment since there are no structures.

In Gulu District, a total of 140.6 million Shillings have been received of which, 64 million shillings are meant for staff costs, 15.2 million Shillings for administrative costs for Sub-county, 8.2 million shillings for district administrative costs and 52.6 million Shillings for tools and equipment.

Christopher Opiyo Ateker, the District Chairperson says that the government has promised send to funds for enterprises in the fourth quarter.

Recently the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Finance Ramathan Ggoobi halted release of PDM funds for the third quarter and asked the Ministry of Local Government to fast track the release of implementation guidelines, creation of enterprise groups and recruitment of parish chiefs among other issues.

Early this week the Minister of Gender, Labour and Social Development Betty Among said that her Ministry had completed developing operational manuals and trained specialists to support the rollout of the programme.

The government is supposed to send 17million Shillings per parish this financial year and 100 million Shillings are planned for the next financial year for the same parishes under Parish Development Model.

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URN