Why PDM is Museveni’s masterstroke

_____________

OPINION

By Jackson Mwesigye

When President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni unveiled the Parish Development Model (PDM) in 2021, few could foresee the scale of transformation it would spark.

Critics scoffed, opposition politicians dismissed it and pessimists shrugged it off as yet another grandiose plan that would gather dust in government archives. But four years later, PDM has emerged not just as a success story — but as a quiet revolution reshaping Uganda from the grassroots.

It is arguably the first government programme that has penetrated every parish, touched the lowest rung of society and planted seeds of hope among those previously excluded from the money economy — the youth, women, elderly and persons with disabilities.

The Government has injected sh3.3 trillion into PDM since its inception.

Each of the over 10,000 parishes receives sh100m per year, enabling at least 100 beneficiaries per parish to access sh1m each, payable after two years.

For some, sh1m may have seemed insignificant — barely enough to register on their radar. But to the marginalised in rural Uganda, this was not just money. It was a seed — and with the right mindset, that seed has yielded miracles. To date, over 2.6 million Ugandans have accessed PDM funds, with 93% investing in agriculture.

The result? A sharp rise in the production of milk, coffee, bananas, eggs, goats, pigs and other agricultural outputs — proof that Uganda’s economy is being rebuilt from the soil up.

As evidenced through the ongoing President's PDM Assessment tours across Uganda, PDM beneficiaries are rewriting their life stories.

In Mpigi district, Haji Mohammed Katanyoreka turned his sh1m into a thriving agribusiness. He now owns 2,000-layer chickens, dairy cows and an intercropped coffee-banana plantation. His poultry venture alone earns him sh550,000 daily — an income far surpassing many salaried professionals.

In Kasese, Pelucy Biira, a visually impaired woman, is redefining disability. She invested in poultry and made sh7m in profits. Her story is not one of charity, but of empowerment and resilience — proof that PDM is truly inclusive.

In Rubirizi, Deziranta Tumusiime, a 64-year-old woman, built a successful piggery and goat project now worth over sh5m.

In Bududa, Moses Kutosi used his initial sh1m to start piggery and later bought a dairy cow. Today, he sells milk daily and continues to reinvest his profits.

These stories are replicated in each corner of our country, and this is responsible for the reduction of poverty levels from 21% in 2020 to 16% in 2024.

What sets PDM apart is its bottom up approach. Unlike past programmes marred by bureaucracy and corruption, PDM is community-led, decentralised, and transparent. Everyone knows who received what, how it was used, and what it produced. This transparency ensures accountability while encouraging responsible use of funds.

President Museveni’s vision of building a “wananchi economy” — one driven by the efforts of ordinary citizens, not just the elite — is bearing fruit.

The President understood that true transformation would come not from handouts, but from empowering people to build their own prosperity.

The success of PDM cannot — and must not — be left to the President alone. All leaders across the country — Members of Parliament, RDCs, LC leaders, cultural and religious figures — must rally behind this visionary programme. This is not politics; this is progress. Ugandans don’t need empty promises — they need tools to create real change. PDM is that tool. Leaders must help communities understand the programme, guide them on how to access and utilise the funds and monitor impact.

Let no leader sit on the fence. Let no district lag behind. PDM is working, and leaders must amplify its impact.

PDM is not just a policy — it is a movement of transformation. President Museveni has delivered a tool that is not only putting money in people’s hands but putting dignity in their lives.

What many dismissed as ‘small money’ has proven to be a mighty seed. And in the hands of visionary citizens with the right mindset, it is producing miracles.

Let every Ugandan leader rise and embrace PDM as the magic bullet that can end poverty, build household wealth, and propel Uganda into a middle-income economy — parish by parish.

PDM is working. Let’s make it unstoppable.

The writer is a muzzukulu and an NRM cadre