Do not delay oil production

On February 10, President Yoweri Museveni addressed Parliament and clarified on a number of issues in regard to the management of Uganda’s oil.

The address came at the time when there were allegations of corruption, bribery and unfavourable Production Sharing Agreements. The President tabled verifiable data showing Uganda is among the top countries in the world with impressive oil agreements.

Owing to the President’s assurances, legislators should advocate more for policy framework that will ensure oil revenue is wellmanaged. Given the current economic challenges among Ugandans, there is optimism that oil production and sale will reduce on the poverty levels.

This calls for the fast tracking of oil production which will in turn increase the government income to address service delivery problems.

Fast-tracking shouldn’t compromise the quality, quantity and other safeguards in the oil agreements. The public should not also shun contributing to this debate. Their proposals are highly imperative and should be considered. Fortunately, the President maintains that revenue from oil will not be spent on luxuries but on infrastructure and human resource development.

Todd Moss the vice-president of Centre for Global Development advocates for ‘oil-tocash model’. He argues that a government that transfers some or all of its oil revenue to citizens in a universal, transparent, and regular taxable payment, could strengthen the social contract, fight corruption and lay the foundation for future prosperity.

To him, once payments begin, citizens experience the benefits firsthand and will demand information to ensure oil revenues are not lost to corruption. He contends that if the payments are taxed, citizens have an additional incentive to ensure their taxes are spent well.

Therefore, as Ugandans deliberate on oil revenue management, they should also suggest ways how government can balance off the much hyped ‘Dutch disease concept’.

To overcome such a scenario, the Government should make early planning so as not to abandon the other sectors of production.

The writer is the Member of Parliament for Jinja West Constituency.