New districts are granted to fulfil public demands
THE debate on creation of new districts in Uganda is not a new one. When the 1995 Constitution was made, there were 39 districts in Uganda. Since then, more districts have been created in accordance with Article 179 of the Constitution.
By Godfrey Ahabwe Perez
THE debate on creation of new districts in Uganda is not a new one. When the 1995 Constitution was made, there were 39 districts in Uganda. Since then, more districts have been created in accordance with Article 179 of the Constitution.
The recent motion by the Government in Parliament to increase the number of districts to 111 certified the increment. Out of the 151 counties in Uganda, about 111 are now districts. It is apparent that the basic unit for creation of districts is a county.
But what is the case for this demand for creation of new districts?
I must make it clear from the onset that the craze for the creation of new districts has no political boundary. The Hansard and proceedings of the parliamentary committee on public service and local government are authentic testimonies. Why? First of all, Article 179 (4) of the 1995 Constitution states;
“Any measure for the alteration of the boundaries on the creation of districts or administrative units shall be based on the necessity for effective administration and the need to bring services closer to the people, and it may take into account the means of communication, geographical features, population density , economic viability and the wishes of the people â€.
The Local Governments Act, Caption 243, Section 7(2) states: “Boundaries of a district unit may be altered or new district units formed, in accordance with article 179 of the Constitution. But why is Article 179 a pull factor in the demand for creation of districts?
Parliament is the only institution authorised to alter the boundaries of districts and to create new district under Article 179 (1) (a) and (b).
When pressure mounts on Parliament to create new districts, Parliament has no choice, but to respect the will of the people they represent.
While Article 179 (4) is clear on the parametres to be considered in order to create new districts, these parametres have to be evaluated by the local government ministry and the Cabinet.
Necessity for effective administration and the need to bring services closer to the people are the principal considerations.
Both the Government and Parliament in the process under (a) and (b) may take into account the means of communication, geographical features, population density, economic viability, and the wishes of the people.
Note, however, should be taken that the above parametres are secondary considerations. It is optional for the Government and Parliament to consider all of them simultaneously, or some of them, or even none of them at all.
The other reason people demand for the creation of new districts is the existing policy. One such policy is the district quota for entry to a public university.
The more districts there are in a certain geographical area, the more opportunities for qualified students to access public university.
While policy changes are not easy in the short-run, they attract spontaneous demand for services associated with them, like employment creation.
On average, a small one county district such as Ibanda employs about 250 staff. This certainly is a pull factor for the demand for creation of a district. Besides salaries and allowances for both civil and political staff, the districts enjoy central Government grants in form of direct transfers or projects. For instance, since 2005, when Ibanda district was created, it has received sh362.3 m in 2006/07 and sh1.53b in 2009/10 in development funds.
You only need to go to Ibanda, Kyenjojo or Kanungu to testify to this.
The argument about professional and experienced capacity to handle such funds is a challenge that only calls for the country to have a manpower development strategy, a challenge that must involve everybody without exception.
How then is the process done?
It could be a resolution by a district council, a letter from a member of Parliament or even a proposal by the Government. Whichever direction a request is expressed, the local government ministry does a technical feasibility assessment based on Article 179 (4) of the Constitution.
Once the report is favourable, a cabinet paper is presented by the ministry, debated and passed by Cabinet. A motion seeking for creation, and/or alter the boundaries is prepared by the ministry, presented to Parliament for scrutiny and public hearings.
The Parliament committee for the public sService and local government may visit the proposed areas if they wish. Where there are disagreements like in the case of Mpigi, Masaka, and Bushenyi, consultations by the local government ministry are done at sub-county and council level. Resolutions are made and the committee is informed. This procedure, though not provided for under any law, helps the ministry to generate consensus.
Once the committee presents its report to the House (Plenary) and the report is adopted, the proposed districts are voted on one by one by majority of all MPs to satisfy the constitutional requirement under Article 179 (2) of the Constitution which states; “Any measure to alter the boundary of a district or to create a new district shall be supported by a majority of all the members of Parliament.â€
What if each county was made a district?
The country may not afford the attendant cost of running the districts in the current legal and policy framework. This would call for rationalisation of service delivery centres especially now that regional governments, provided for under Article 5 and 178 as well as the first and fifth schedules of the Constitution are operationalised.
Certain services would be delivered at the region up from the districts.
This would necessitate amendments, both in the Constitution and the Local Governments Act.
The writer is the Minister of State for Local Government
THE debate on creation of new districts in Uganda is not a new one. When the 1995 Constitution was made, there were 39 districts in Uganda. Since then, more districts have been created in accordance with Article 179 of the Constitution.
The recent motion by the Government in Parliament to increase the number of districts to 111 certified the increment. Out of the 151 counties in Uganda, about 111 are now districts. It is apparent that the basic unit for creation of districts is a county.
But what is the case for this demand for creation of new districts?
I must make it clear from the onset that the craze for the creation of new districts has no political boundary. The Hansard and proceedings of the parliamentary committee on public service and local government are authentic testimonies. Why? First of all, Article 179 (4) of the 1995 Constitution states;
“Any measure for the alteration of the boundaries on the creation of districts or administrative units shall be based on the necessity for effective administration and the need to bring services closer to the people, and it may take into account the means of communication, geographical features, population density , economic viability and the wishes of the people â€.
The Local Governments Act, Caption 243, Section 7(2) states: “Boundaries of a district unit may be altered or new district units formed, in accordance with article 179 of the Constitution. But why is Article 179 a pull factor in the demand for creation of districts?
When pressure mounts on Parliament to create new districts, Parliament has no choice, but to respect the will of the people they represent.
Necessity for effective administration and the need to bring services closer to the people are the principal considerations.
Note, however, should be taken that the above parametres are secondary considerations. It is optional for the Government and Parliament to consider all of them simultaneously, or some of them, or even none of them at all.
The other reason people demand for the creation of new districts is the existing policy. One such policy is the district quota for entry to a public university.
The more districts there are in a certain geographical area, the more opportunities for qualified students to access public university.
While policy changes are not easy in the short-run, they attract spontaneous demand for services associated with them, like employment creation.
On average, a small one county district such as Ibanda employs about 250 staff. This certainly is a pull factor for the demand for creation of a district. Besides salaries and allowances for both civil and political staff, the districts enjoy central Government grants in form of direct transfers or projects. For instance, since 2005, when Ibanda district was created, it has received sh362.3 m in 2006/07 and sh1.53b in 2009/10 in development funds.
You only need to go to Ibanda, Kyenjojo or Kanungu to testify to this.
The argument about professional and experienced capacity to handle such funds is a challenge that only calls for the country to have a manpower development strategy, a challenge that must involve everybody without exception.
How then is the process done?
It could be a resolution by a district council, a letter from a member of Parliament or even a proposal by the Government. Whichever direction a request is expressed, the local government ministry does a technical feasibility assessment based on Article 179 (4) of the Constitution.
Once the report is favourable, a cabinet paper is presented by the ministry, debated and passed by Cabinet. A motion seeking for creation, and/or alter the boundaries is prepared by the ministry, presented to Parliament for scrutiny and public hearings.
The Parliament committee for the public sService and local government may visit the proposed areas if they wish. Where there are disagreements like in the case of Mpigi, Masaka, and Bushenyi, consultations by the local government ministry are done at sub-county and council level. Resolutions are made and the committee is informed. This procedure, though not provided for under any law, helps the ministry to generate consensus.
Once the committee presents its report to the House (Plenary) and the report is adopted, the proposed districts are voted on one by one by majority of all MPs to satisfy the constitutional requirement under Article 179 (2) of the Constitution which states; “Any measure to alter the boundary of a district or to create a new district shall be supported by a majority of all the members of Parliament.â€
What if each county was made a district?
Certain services would be delivered at the region up from the districts.
The writer is the Minister of State for Local Government