NRM deputy spokesperson Ofwono Opondo at a press conference at the Media Centre in Kampala recently. He says donor aid cuts may affect programmes in the short run but the economy would not collapse. PHOTO BY ISAAC KASAMANI.
Aid cuts hurting us – Minister
http://www.monitor.co.ug/News/National/Aid-cuts-hurting-us---Minister/-/688334/1627092/-/a1ltuy/-/index.html
By MERCY NALUGO
Posted Friday, November 23 2012 at 02:00
Posted Friday, November 23 2012 at 02:00
Mr Fred Omach, a junior finance minister, told the parliamentary Committee on Health that releases to line ministries have been affected as a result of the suspension.
He was responding to concerns about the failure of his ministry to release money Parliament appropriated in September for doctors’ salary enhancement and recruitment of an extra 6,000 health workers.
“The issue of development partners withdrawing their budget support has had an impact on the management of revenue inflows hence making it difficult for us to implement the planned budget,” said Mr Omach.
But the MPs indicated that at least Shs6.5 billion had been ring fenced in the 2012/13 budget and was appropriated by Parliament in September.
“The Ministry of Finance is the biggest problem because in our view they appear to be callous about the lives of Ugandans. Parliament directed that Shs49 billion be availed to the Ministry of Health,” the committee chairperson, Dr Sam Lyomoki, said.
Parliament in the budget passed in September grudgingly agreed with the government that Shs49.5 billion be se aside for the health workers’ recruitment and retention at HCIII and IVs.
Parliament went ahead to appropriate Shs6.5 billion on the understanding that Shs43 billion would later be released in form of a supplementary budget.
But the first quarter has elapsed without government availing the funds. Five donors, including Ireland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark and the UK suspended aid to Uganda over massive corruption at the Office of the Prime Minister. Sweden and Norway have been funding key initiatives in healthcare.
At least Shs50 billion intended for post-war reconstruction in northern Uganda and development of Karamoja is believed to have been stolen from OPM.
The committee yesterday resolved to write to the Speaker of Parliament regarding government’s defiance of a parliamentary resolution.
“You are raising [an issue about] money that was swindled by senior officials in the OPM’s office and that is why you are putting the lives of Ugandans at risk. This is illegal and the funds must be availed,” said Dr Medard Bitekyerezo (Mbarara Municipality).
Oyam South MP Betty Amongi said doctors’ salaries, increased to Shs2.5 million, must be paid as agreed to prevent likely strikes.
Mr Omach’s pleas that the government is looking for resources to ensure that the money is availed in the second quarter of the financial year were turned down.
The MPs gave the minister up to Tuesday next week to communicate whether the money has been released or else they move a vote of no confidence in the ministers.
Senior government officials recently expressed concern about the likely impact the donor aid cuts would although the ruling party deputy spokesperson, Mr Ofwono Opondo, said Uganda can do without the donor aid.
President Museveni this week also hosted ambassadors from at
least 20 of Uganda’s
development partner nations and renewed his oft-declared commitment to the
fight against corruption.
We can do without donor funding, Opondo hits out
http://www.monitor.co.ug/News/National/We-can-do-without-donor-funding--Opondo-hits-out/-/688334/1623510/-/jxnfre/-/index.html
By Mercy Nalugo
Posted Monday, November 19 2012 at 02:00
Posted Monday, November 19 2012 at 02:00
In Summary
Officials say it is too early to quantify the
impact of the aid cuts but government would ensure proactive and timely
measures are done to correct the mistakes in OPM scam as it also engages donors
in talks.Kampala
Senior government officials yesterday expressed concern over the freezing of aid even as a senior ruling party official said Uganda can do without the foreign donor assistance.
Just four months into the financial year 2012/2013, one of Uganda’s largest bilateral donors, the UK has suspended all direct financial aid to Uganda because of the massive theft of public funds in the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM).
Four other European Union nations, Norway, Sweden, Ireland, and Denmark have also withheld billions of shilling in foreign aid pending the outcome of investigations into the abuse of Shs50 billion which was meant for post-conflict recovery in northern Uganda and Karamoja.
The World Bank also announced it was reviewing its development assistance to Uganda.
Responding to the aid cuts, the ruling NRM party deputy spokesperson, Mr Ofwono Opondo, said Uganda can do without donor funding.
“Uganda has always lived without donor money and we shall live,” he said on phone yesterday.
Whereas he acknowledged some donor-supported programmes may be affected in the short run, he was quick to add that ”the economy would not collapse”.
Shrugging off suspicions that the government was under siege, Mr Opondo said: “This is not the first time the donors are cutting aid. The NRM is not faint-hearted about their aid.”
Donors contribute at least 25 per cent of Uganda’s more than Shs10 trillion budget, most of which goes towards development expenditure.
The bulk of government 75 per cent contribution goes towards administrative costs like salaries for Members of Parliaments and State functionaries.
Contrary to Mr Opondo’s views, the Minister for the Presidency, Mr Frank Tumwebaze, last evening said the government was concerned about the freezing of the aid.
“Engagement with the donors is ongoing for them to understand that corruption is not being condoned by the government. People should know that the process of prosecuting the culprits in the Office of the Prime Minister was initiated by the Executive and we hope they understand this. The government is also taking people to court,” Mr Tumwebaze said.
The Finance minister, Ms Maria Kiwanuka, last week told MPs on the House Finance committee that the government was in talks with donors to unfreeze aid.
Mr Jim Mugunga, the spokesperson for the Privatisation Unit at the Ministry of Finance, yesterday confirmed there are various interactions taking place. “In these times of economic depression, the freezing of the donor aid will have an impact on the economy. However, it is too early to quantify the level of impact. Our aim is to ensure proactive and timely measures are taken to correct the mistakes associated with the incident in the OPM’s office and to ensure this does not happen again,” Mr Mugunga said.
Shadow finance minister Godfrey Ekanya said since donors gave money in foreign currency, there would be a shortage of foreign currency. “Most of the programmed activities will not be implemented due to lack of money especially in the social sector hence leading to poverty,” he said.
Some contracts will not be met hence contractors are likely to sue government. Other donors will pull out,” he said yesterday. According to WB, Uganda receives between $350-400 million in foreign aid annually, of which $100 million is direct budget support.
Sweden and Norway have been funding key initiatives in health care, democratic governance, including peace and security, private sector development schemes, research, water and sanitation and energy.
President Yoweri Museveni says Uganda is capable of dealing with the
alleged corruption that has alarmed donors. Photograph: Isaac
Kasamani/AFP/Getty Images
Uganda vows to 'defeat these thieves' in bid to reassure aid donors
http://www.guardian.co.uk/global-development/2012/nov/20/uganda-defeat-thieves-aid-donors
President Yoweri Museveni
acknowledges 'rampant corruption' in meeting with donors concerned over misuse
of funds
The Ugandan government has promised to claw back misused aid money in a bid to regain
support from international donors that have suspended funding over allegations
of corruption.In a press release published on Monday, the government sought to assure donors that it was working hard to tackle corruption in state departments, after Britain, Sweden, Ireland, Norway and Denmark suspended portions of their aid budgets over allegations that money intended for peace recovery programmes in the north of Uganda had ended up in the private bank accounts of officials in the prime minister's office.
On Friday, Britain, Uganda's largest bilateral donor, halted all direct financial aid to Uganda after initial findings of an investigation into donor funding indicated some money had been misused. It is understood that no British money was involved. In August, when corruption allegations were first mooted, the Department for International Development suspended half of the £26.9m it channelled directly through the Ugandan government.
In a meeting with the EU, US, China, Japan, the World Bank and the IMF on Monday, the Ugandan president, Yoweri Museveni, acknowledged the "rampant corruption in the country" and vowed to clean up the civil service.
Museveni told donors that rooting out corruption in government was akin to a war. "Kindly inform your home constituencies that you are dealing with capable people who fought the dictatorship of Idi Amin; fought the dictatorship of UPC; defended Uganda from Sudanese-sponsored terrorism; destroyed the colonial army that was killing Ugandans; stopped the multiple crimes of that army against the people of Uganda; enabled the Ugandan economy to recover; contributed to regional peace, etc. The recent revelations have been made by people sympathetic to the revolution. They are the whistleblowers. We have the capacity to defeat these thieves as we defeated all the other enemies of Uganda."
The minister for finance, Maria Kiwanuka, assured donors that all misused funds would be returned, adding that the property of those accused of taking the money could be liquidated and their accounts frozen. "We feel that it is paramount that government and development partners move together. We have a legal system under which we operate and parliament is fully involved in this," she said.
Museveni and Kiwanuka's comments were in stark contrast to those of the deputy spokesman for the ruling NRM party, Ofwono Opondo, who on Sunday reportedly told Uganda reporters that the country could do without donor funding. "This is not the first time the donors are cutting aid. The NRM is not faint-hearted about their aid," the Daily Monitor reported him saying.
Uganda has the highest bribery levels in the region, according to the east African bribery index, published by Transparency International in August, and more than half of Ugandan respondents said they believed corruption would get worse over the next 12 months.
