President’s office demands action over fraud, missing millions in Lango and Teso
In Teso, the assessment found that PDM beneficiaries had repaid only sh86 million out of sh77 billion due to SACCOs, raising concerns about the sustainability and management of the Government’s flagship household-income programme.
Participants on the closing day of the assessment. Minister of State for Economic Monitoring Sandra Santa Alum said the Government would not tolerate diversion of programme funds, extortion, favouritism or political interference.
The Office of the President has called for practical corrective action to address gaps in the implementation of the Parish Development Model (PDM), Emyooga and cattle restocking programmes in Dokolo, Apac, Otuke and Lira districts.
The call was made on Friday following a four-day assessment of the programmes.
The assessment identified several gaps, including abuse of office, fraud and exploitation, weak SACCO governance and fund recovery, challenges in beneficiary targeting, inadequate sensitisation and political interference.
The findings have raised concerns that weaknesses in programme implementation could undermine service delivery and blunt the impact of the Government’s livelihood interventions.
PDM is the Government’s flagship strategy for rural development, organised around the parish as the primary hub for planning, budgeting and service delivery.
Emyooga, launched in 2019, targets informal sector workers and urban and semi-urban micro-entrepreneurs organised according to their occupations, including boda-boda riders, taxi operators, market vendors, tailors, salon operators, carpenters and produce dealers.
The cattle restocking programme is an affirmative-action intervention managed under the Office of the Prime Minister to rebuild livestock wealth and support socio-economic recovery in communities affected by past conflicts and cattle rustling.
PDM recovery concerns
In Teso, the assessment found that PDM beneficiaries had repaid only sh86 million out of sh77 billion due to SACCOs, raising concerns about the sustainability and management of the Government’s flagship household-income programme.
The figures, contained in a PDM Secretariat report, show that only a fraction of the money due for repayment has so far been recovered since the programme was launched by President Yoweri Museveni in 2022.
The report was presented by the PDM Director of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation, Violet Akurut Adome, during a validation meeting on wealth-creation programmes in Soroti City on Monday.
Akurut said the Government had injected sh347 billion into PDM in Teso, of which sh300 billion had been disbursed to about 300,000 beneficiaries.
Another sh47 billion remains on PDM SACCO accounts awaiting the selection of beneficiaries.
Academy land under threat
The assessment also found that the planned sh800 billion expansion of the East African Civil Aviation Academy (EACAA) in Soroti City is under threat following alleged encroachment and unauthorised sale of parts of the institution’s land.
The matter came to light during a four-day monitoring exercise in the Teso sub-region by the Minister of State for Economic Monitoring in the Office of the President, Sandra Santa Alum-Ogwang.
The minister was assessing Government wealth-creation programmes in Kapelebyong, Kalaki, Bukedea and Soroti City when she inspected the academy and was briefed on the land challenges affecting its expansion plans.
Chief Aircraft Maintenance Engineering Instructor Mackay Engwau said the academy was preparing to take legal action to evict people occupying its land illegally.
He said the matter was particularly serious because the academy is a regional institution whose assets are not solely Ugandan.
“The properties belong to the East African Community, not just the Government of Uganda."
Engwau warned that the alleged sale of the academy’s land could have implications beyond Uganda, particularly if regional assets were transferred without the necessary authority.
He added that the encroachment was also limiting the academy’s ability to expand its facilities.
Closing the exercise on Friday, Alum-Ogwang said the Government would not tolerate diversion of programme funds, extortion, favouritism or political interference.
Hajji Yunus Kakande, the Secretary to the Office of the President, urged implementing agencies to safeguard public resources, strengthen oversight and recovery mechanisms, and address confirmed gaps to ensure the programmes achieve their intended impact.