AG reveals glitches in govt ministries, districts, agencies  

 The lawmakers on Local Government Accounts Committee are expected to dig into this matter with a view of establishing the people involved and the whereabouts of the public funds.

 Dead people on payroll

 The AG revealed that 78 districts paid out a total of Shs1.12b to 635 staff who had either retired, transferred, absconded, or died hence paying for services that were not rendered and causing a loss to government.

 An additional 48 districts made unauthorised loans/ savings deductions totaling Shs11.1b from 6,835 employees that lacked letters of consent/undertaking.

 “I further noted that from  the above, 1,916 employees with deductions totaling Shs3.77b did not exist in the Payroll Deduction Management System (PDMS), hence making manual deductions out of the system,” Mr Muwanga said.

 The annual report presented to the Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Ms Anita Among, yesterday provides details on how key ministries, departments, agencies, and districts failed to utilise more than Shs3.1 trillion meant for programmes and activities that were planned for in the financial year under review.

 With exception of committed resources, all unutilised funds were supposed to be returned to the Consolidated Fund at the end of the financial year.

 Mr Muwanga, however, attributed poor absorption capacity in government ministries, department and agencies to the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic and preventive measures like the national lockdown that froze some sectors of the economy.

 “I noted that a sample of thirty-six (36) projects failed to absorb funds availed to them for implementation of activities and as a result a total of Shs431b and $30.2 million remained on projects accounts,” Mr Muwanga explained, adding that “Failure to absorb project funds was mainly attributed to the fact that disbursement of any project funds depends on the utilisation and full accountability of prior disbursements which was still a challenge  for most projects.”

  Delayed procurement

 The AG also revealed that a sample of 56 procurements worth Shs2.3 trillion had delays in completing the processes. In some cases, he said, the time taken between procurement initiations and contract signing was more than five months.

 Delays in procurements, according to the AG, were caused by numerous administrative reviews, inefficiencies within the Procurement Department Units, and Covid-19 which resulted in entities operating at 30 per cent.

 “Delayed procurements result in delayed commencement of works and loss of implementation time hence affecting service delivery,” he said.

  Abandoned works

 The AG noted 13 cases where works worth Shs 21.3b had been abandoned by contractors. This, according to Mr Muwanga, was attributed to weaknesses  in contract supervision, cash flow problems of contractors, and the limited capacity of contractors.

 “Abandoned works imply that the services that were anticipated from the completed works will not be achieved and more time will be  required if the works are to be retendered which results in further delays,” he notes in his report to parliament.

 Public debt increases

The reported total public debt as at  June 30, 2021 stood at Shs69.6 trillion, of which Domestic Debt Stock was Shs25.3trillion and the External Debt Stock was valued at Shs44.3 trillion.

A ccording to Mr Muwanga, this is an increase of Shs13.4trillion, equivalent to 23.9 per cent when compared to the debt stock of Shs56.9trillion reported as at  June 30,  2020.

 A review of the country’s debt to Gross domestic product  (GDP) revealed a 6 percent increase from 41 percent last year to 47 percent in financial year 2020/2021. 

Although Uganda’s GDP has been increasing over the years, its debt position has also increased. “The rate of increase of debt is higher than the rate of increment in the GDP levels, which creates a risk of reaching unsustainable levels sooner than later,” the report reads.

 Domestic arrears increase

According to AG report, the domestic arrears have increased from Shs3.83 trillion in 2020 to Shs4.65 trillion in 2021, representing a 21 percent increase. The amount represents 9 per cent of the revised budget for the financial year under review. The AG says it is an indication of the failed commitment control system.

 “The growth trend appears unsustainable and on the rise. This could also be as a result of approving supplementary budgets with no matching funding. These arrears are not part of the public debt of  government,” he said.

The reviewed Financial Year 2020/2021 comes off as the first year under the Third National Development Plan (NDPIII), a setup meant to steer Uganda to the realisation of it ambitious Vision2040.

 The distortions notwithstanding, the report indicated that 2020/2021 budget complied with the NDPIII at a rating of 54.8 percent.

The audit took note of the implementation of programmes that were not aligned to the NDPIII, low funds availed to local governments for programme implementation and duplication of government projects.

 And on account of financial constraints and Covid-19 induced logistical challenges, the AG had planned to review 4,165 entities but only managed to review 2,692 entities.

This accounts for more than 88 percent of the approved government budget for 2020/2021 Financial Year. A total of 1,473 audits, of which 50 per cent are schools and tertiary institutions, could not be undertaken.

 The report shows that a total of Shs45 trillion had been approved in national budget  but the supplementary budget sought by government and later approved by Parliament pushed the figure Shs51.6 trillion.

  After the tabling of the latest AG findings, the Deputy Speaker forwarded the three reports (Central Government, Local Government and Statutory Agencies/ bodies) to accountability committees of Parliament for scrutiny.

There is Public Accounts Committee which handles Central Government, and the Committee on Commissions, Statutory Authorities and State Enterprises (COSASE) which deals with statutory bodies and then the Local Government Accounts Committee which handles the districts.

Deputy Speaker Among promised to ensure that Parliament presses for accountability of taxpayers’ money.

“We shall ensure that recommendations are upheld so that we can have value for money,” she said.

Delayed road projects

By June  30, 2021, 35 road projects under UNRA with a total contract value of $398.4m and Shs149.74b had been delayed. These  35 projects that were to be completed during the year were behind schedule as per their work programme still ongoing by the close of the year.

 The delays were majorly attributed to abnormal rains, delayed acquisition of right of way and the effects of Covid-19.

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