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Key Public Service Reforms in Uganda and their Challenges
Uganda has been undertaking, public service reforms since 1989 following the
recommendations of the Public Service Review and Re-organisation Commission
(PSRRC) of that year, and those of an earlier commission that had been set up
in 1987 to review the structure and operations of the country’s local government
system. The reforms have essentially been driven by the need to improve efficiency
in service provision, and to provide a strong foundation for macro-economic sta-
bility and growth. Key features of the reform have included, devolution of power
to popularly elected local governments, restructuring government ministries and
departments, pay reform, introduction of results oriented management into the
service and improving public expenditure systems.
Decentralization of power to local governments
10
was undertaken to improve
service delivery by shifting responsibility for policy implementation to the benefi-
ciaries themselves; to promote good governance; to develop, broaden and deepen
political and administrative competence in public management; to democratize
society through inclusive, representative and gender-sensitive decision-making; and
to alleviate poverty through collaborative efforts between Government, develop-
6 Ministry of Education and Sports, Sector PEAP Revision Paper (Paper presented at the National
Stakeholder Conference on PEAP Revision, International Conference Centre, November 2003),
p. 1.
7 United Nations Development Programme, Uganda Human Development Report 2002, The Chal-
lenge of Maintaining the Momentum of Success, p.3, Ministry of Health, The Health Sector PEAP
Review Paper (October 22, 2003), p. 19.
8 Ministry of Water, Lands and Environment, PEAP Revision Document: Water and Sanitation Sector
Draft Final (10th November, 2003), pp2-3
9 Aide-Memoire, Fourth Poverty Reduction Support Credit (RSC4) – Uganda, (Pre-Appraisal Mission:
October 27-November 7, 2003), p.3; John Okidi and Sarah Ssewanyana (Economic Policy Research
Centre), Income Poverty In Uganda, 1992-2003, (Paper presented at the National Stakeholder
Conference on PEAP Revision, International Conference Center, Kampala, October 28, 2003).
10 There are six types of local governments in Uganda’s system of decentralized governance. These
are 56 districts, 930 sub-counties, 5 city divisions 13 municipal councils, 34 municipal divisions,
72 town councils. For functions that have been devolved to local governments, see- Republic of
Uganda, Local Governments Act, 1997 (Entebbe: Government Printer, March 1997) schedule 2.
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Leadership Challenges in Mainstreaming Performance Enhancement …
ment partners and other stakeholders.
11
Local governments were given powers
to make and implement their own development plans, approve and execute their
own budgets, raise and utilize resources according to their own priorities, appoint
statutory committees, boards and commissions
12
, make ordinances and bye-laws,
and hire and manage their personnel.
The other reforms were primarily efficiency driven. Restructuring and ratio-
nalisation of government ministries was undertaken to eliminate duplication of
functions and to get rid of excess staff. Ministries and departments were reduced
from 38 to 22 in 1992, and reduced further to 17 in 1998. The size of the public
service was reduced from 320,000 in 1990 to 191,324 by March 2001 (although it
rose to 218,417 by September 2003 – largely due to the Universal Primary Educa-
tion programme). Significant increases in pay were made, notwithstanding severe
budgetary constraints, in order to attract, retain and motivate public servants. Re-
sults oriented management was introduced to re-orient the public service towards
measurable outputs; a new staff performance appraisal instrument was developed
and applied; and an implementation strategy for the integrated personnel and
payroll system was developed.
Public expenditure reforms undertaken include enactment of the Public Fi-
nance and Accountability Act in July 2003; introduction of the Medium Term
Expenditure Framework (MTEF) to facilitate forward planning and budgeting;
development of an integrated financial management system for central and local
governments; introduction of new guidelines on procurement and enactment of
the Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets Act 2003; and development of a
new chart of accounts.
These reforms have not been without challenges. Some of the major challenges
that have been experienced relate to inadequate funding, lack of effective monitor-
ing and evaluation systems, and inadequate leadership capacities to ensure effective
and timely implementation of programmes.
Inadequate funds have been a major problem with key reforms. For instance,
government has not yet been able to pay public employees at rates that are close
to those in the private sector because, among other things, public revenue amounts
to only 12% of GDP, well below what is required. The weakness of government’s
monitoring and evaluation systems is recognized as well. In fact, efforts are under
way to strengthen the Office of the Prime Minister so that it can effectively carry
out this important function across the entire breadth of government. The weak
capacity of both the central and local governments in implementing the reforms is
also recognized widely, although the weakness is not uniform across government.
11 Republic of Uganda, Decentralisation in Uganda: The Policy and Its Philosophy, Booklet #
1(Kampala:Ministry of Local Government, May 1993); and, Republic of Uganda, Decentralisation
in Uganda: The Policy and its Implications Booklet # 2 (Kampala: Ministry of Local Government,
April 1994).
12 These comprise the District Tender Board, the Local Government Public Accounts Committee,
the District Service Commission and the District Land Board.
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