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Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Government has tabled a supplementary budget request of Shillings 217.2 billion for the 2018/2019 financial year before parliamentary for approval.
The request, tabled by Minister of state for Disaster preparedness, Musa Ecweru is from State House, Local Governments Ministry and Muni University.
Shillings 33.2 billion of the Shillings 217 billion is a request by the State House Comptroller to facilitate State House Operations and classified expenditure, Muni University Shillings 1 billion, Shillings 182 billion is needed as external financing to local governments from various donors.
Soroti Municipality will get Shillings 8.3 billion, Lwengo district Shillings 4 billion, Napak district Shillings 1 billion, Kagadi district Shillings 1.3 billion and Kwania district Shillings 800 million.
Fort Portal Municipal Council is expected to get an additional Shillings 68 million and Kira Municipal Council Shillings 280 million.
This request brings the total of supplementary budget requests this financial year to Shillings 1.8 trillion. Parliament approved a total Shillings 32.7 trillion for the 2018/2019 financial year.
Before laying the latest request, government tabled supplementary expenditures amounting to Shillings 1.6 trillion of which Shillings 866 billion had already been approved as expenditure within the 3 percent provision in the Public Finance Management Act, 2015.
The Act provides that the total supplementary expenditure that requires additional funds over and above what was approved by parliament should not exceed 3 percent of the approved budget for that financial year without parliamentary approval.
Supplementary budgets are supposed to cater for expenditures that cannot be postponed to the next financial year and expenditure that was not foreseeable at the time of preparing the budget. The public Finance Management Act, 2015 provides that any expenditure, which is not spent according to its provisions, is a loss of public funds.
Therefore the earlier supplementary request of Shillings 770.2 billion exceeded the 3 percent of the 2018/2019 approved budget of Shillings 32.7 trillion. However, in March, Parliament approved Shillings 292 billion of the Shillings 770.2 billion.
Shillings 280 billion was approved for the purchase of two aircrafts for Uganda National Airline Company and Shillings 12 billion to clear for ground rent arrears to Kampala Archdiocese under Uganda Land Commission.
Supplementary requests with pending approval include activities within State House and the Defense ministry among others.
State House requested for Shillings 1.9 billion to enable Uganda host Africa Now Conference and Kyankwanzi, pay salaries for the State House Anti-Corruption Unit at Shillings 597 billion and Shillings 760 million to meet the shortfalls under the donations Item.
Other requests include Shillings 3 billion for the Commission of inquiry into land matters, Ministry of defense wages for newly recruited Local Defence Unit (LDUs) personnel at Shillings 5.4 billion.
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