Minister Milly Babirye Babalanda explaining a point at Uganda Media Centre
By George Bukenya
Despite being gifted with fertile soils and better weather conditions which has with rainy seasons in most parts of the country, Uganda continue to committee substantial resources on the importation of food such as rice, maize and cereals.
According to the Uganda revenue Authority Annual Databook 2024/2025, Uganda’s agricultural imports were UGX 12.46 trillion mainly from neighboring Tanzania surpassing China as Uganda’s largest source of imports
These imports include; rice, worth between UGX 734.65 billion and UGX 820.81billion, maize worth UGZ 33 billion and groundnuts worth UGX 75.6 billion. During the same period Uganda exported commodities worth between 602.25 billion and UGX 675.25 billion to Tanzania, which indicates a significant trade imbalance.
The Minister for Presidency, Hon. Milly Babirye Babalanda attributed this trade challenge to lack of enough proper supervision of government projects leading to high corruption tendencies thus suffocating deliberate government interventions geared towards increasing production and alleviating poverty.
Its from this background that the Minister directed Resident District Commissioners (RDCs) and Resident City Commissioners (RCCs) to increase their vigilance in monitoring and supervision of government development projects especially the Parish Development Model (PDM).
Babalanda argued Ugandans who are note yet in the PDM system to start appreciating and embracing it because it has so far yielded positive results for those who embraced already and production in the agricultural sector has tremendously improved.
The PDM also termed as the Four Acre Model agitates for the maximum utilization of land which is four acres where literally land should be divided into parts, for cash crops for example coffee, food crops, fruits and pasture and behind the homestead poultry or piggery rearing can be done.
“ The President Directed us as Ministers to leave our comfortable offices and go to the ground to monitor how government programs and projects are being implemented i therefore also direct all RDCs and RCCs to strengthen monitoring and supervision of all government projects in their respective jurisdictions,” Hon.Babalanda said.
“ Every government funded project must receive close attention and un explained delays shoudn’t be ignored because it facilitates corruption tendencies, even compromise of quality, must be investigated and monthly reports must be by RDCs and RCCs to the relevant ministries as directed by the President,” She directed.
While addressing reporters at Uganda Media Centre in Kampala recently, she gave statistics concerning PDM results and she said that Banana production after the inception of PDM have increased by more than one hundred percent whereas root crops production increased by 67%, Serials by 34.5% and oil crops by 32%.