By Brian Mugenyi mugenyijj@gmail.com
KAMPALA, UGANDA — The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Local Government, Mr. Ben Kumumanya, has called on Ugandans across the country to embrace decentralisation, saying it has brought government closer to the people, strengthened participatory democracy, and created a framework through which communities can take part in decisions affecting their daily lives.
For Kumumanya, decentralisation is not simply an administrative arrangement drawn on paper—it is the bridge where state policy meets the ordinary citizen at the village, parish, town council, and district level.
He noted that decentralisation provides a broad spectrum of leadership, giving communities an opportunity to participate in governance while requiring leaders to demonstrate integrity, capacity, and the ability to deliver.
“It provides a spectrum of leadership,” Kumumanya said. He added that leaders should not be chosen merely because they have won elections, but because they have the commitment and capability to work for the people. “Government leaders should be selected based on decentralisation, capacity building, and capability to deliver.”
From 31 Districts to a Wider Local Government System
Drawing from over three decades of Uganda’s decentralisation journey, Kumumanya noted how the system evolved from a time when the country had far fewer districts. The expansion of lower local governments was driven by the necessity to bring services closer to citizens who previously traversed long distances to access basic administration.
Recalling field challenges, he said, “I used to go in the field, leave Mbale with impassable roads, and in Bundibugyo landslides were enormous.”
For communities facing difficult terrain, decentralisation was not a political slogan; it was a practical cure for geographical isolation. The underlying logic remains simple: if government is closer, service delivery should be too.
“People Must Shape Their Destiny”
At the core of Kumumanya’s philosophy is the conviction that citizens must not remain passive spectators in governance.
“People must shape their destiny,” he asserted.
Under this framework, a farmer should be able to highlight agricultural bottlenecks, a parent should raise flags over a collapsing school, and a community must question where public funds allocated for a local road have gone. The village council and parish structure become the state’s primary window.
Roads: Where Development Becomes Visible
Infrastructure serves as the ultimate litmus test for decentralisation. A road is far more than murram or tarmac; it is the thin line between a farmer selling produce or watching it rot, or a pregnant mother reaching a health facility in time.
While the central government invests in national and district road networks, local leadership must act as the watchdogs on the ground. LC leaders and technical officers must monitor civil works and report substandard execution.
As Kumumanya put it: “The LC leaders should be able to address the roads and schools constructed in their areas and report the wrong.”
Museveni, Political Stability, and Household Wealth
Kumumanya commended President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni for establishing the political stability necessary to drive long-term development programs.
“I want to appreciate President Museveni for 40 years of political stability for the country and for creating development programmes for households,” he said.
He highlighted interventions like Operation Wealth Creation (OWC), praising Gen. Salim Saleh, faith-based institutions, and civic organisations for driving agricultural mobilisation. Development, he emphasized, must move out of official policy documents and reflect in household balance sheets.
PDM: Taking Development to the Parish
The Parish Development Model (PDM), spanning 10,589 parishes, represents the latest frontier in shifting households from subsistence farming into the money economy.
Kumumanya described PDM as a direct “testimony of PDM for liberty and decentralisation,” pointing out that enterprise financing for coffee, food crops, and livestock empowers parishes to drive their own economic transformation.
Local Revenue: The Engine Within the Engine
A fully functional local government cannot rely entirely on central transfers; it must generate and account for local revenue. Kumumanya singled out Isingiro, Mukono, Ibanda, Kiruhura, Luweero, Nakaseke, and Kyenjojo as districts demonstrating strong local revenue collection.
However, revenue collection demands strict accountability. A trader paying a market fee expects a clean, secure workspace. Accountability and revenue generation must move hand in hand.
The Corruption Test
The primary threat to this decentralised architecture remains corruption, extortion, and public servants demanding bribes for free public services.
Kumumanya warned that public officials mismanaging resources—especially PDM funds—will face firm institutional sanctions. “It is not allowed, and wrong should be dealt with,” he warned, having previously described corruption as a cancer eating away at public trust.
He commended oversight bodies, including the State House Anti-Corruption Unit (SHACU) and the Criminal Investigations Directorate (CID), for checking impunity at the local level.
Digital Local Government and Grassroots Leadership
To modernize monitoring, the Ministry of Local Government is integrating digital dashboards, performance systems, and enhanced district communication networks. Modern tools make it seamless for LC leaders—the eyes and ears on the ground—to document projects, track expenditures, and report service delivery bottlenecks in real time.
The Road Ahead
Kumumanya stressed that the future of decentralisation rests on accountability, strong leadership, citizen participation, and institutional capacity.
For Uganda, decentralisation is far more than moving administrative offices out of Kampala. It is about placing responsibility, decision-making, and opportunity directly into the hands of the people.
The ultimate proof of decentralisation will not be found in glossy reports, but on the functional road connecting a farmer to the market, in a well-equipped health centre, and in the empowered citizen who knows their voice matters.
The village is not the end of government. It is government’s front door.
The post THE VILLAGE IS GOVERNMENT’S FRONT DOOR: Ben Kumumanya Calls on Ugandans to Embrace Decentralisation appeared first on Watchdog Uganda.