President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has expressed gratitude to the Catholic Church for their active role in combating poverty and promoting socio-economic development.
According to the President, it is important to integrate spiritual guidance with practical efforts to uplift communities economically.
“I’m happy to see that the priest is walking in the footsteps of Jesus Christ, whose mission had four dimensions: to preach the gospel, heal the sick, feed the hungry, and himself worked in the carpentry. I have seen the coffee, cows, and pigs, and also helped our people. I’m also going to help them,” H.E. Museveni said.
President Museveni, who is on a wealth creation regional tour of the Parish Development Model (PDM) in Greater Mubende, made the remarks on Tuesday, 15th April 2025, at Busunju Parish, Busunju Town Council, Mityana South constituency. This was after he visited the wealth creation projects of Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Kiyimba, an established Catholic priest and farmer.
He has several enterprises, which include seven dairy cows, four of them giving him 25 liters per day, of which three liters are consumed by the family, then 22 liters are sold at Shs 1600 per liter, giving him Shs 35,200, hence Shs 1,056,000 per month, translating to Shs. 12,672,000 per year.
The 12 pigs give him Shs. 5,000,000 per year, and a Robusta coffee cutting of 6.8 acres, which gives him Shs. 7,800,000 per harvest.
Through these engagements, President Museveni underscored the critical role of religious institutions in Uganda’s socio-economic transformation and enhancing the well-being of all citizens.
“I am also going to help them with Shs100 million. I’ll also add Shs500 million towards the completion of this church, and a tractor.” The President noted, adding that he is also going to send a school bus as a memorial to the President’s visit in the area.
President Museveni also supported the LC1 chairperson with shs9 million plus shs 5 million to upgrade the village stadium.
President Museveni will spend this week in the Greater Mubende region to assess the progress and impact of the Parish Development Model, Uganda’s flagship anti-poverty campaign, aimed at transforming Uganda’s economy from subsistence-based livelihoods to commercial agriculture.
Records from the PDM secretariat show that a total of Shs19,286,250,000 was sent to Mityana district between the 2021/2022 to 2024/2025 financial years, and so far, a total of Shs 15,496,250,000 has been disbursed among the 75 registered PDM SACCOs in the district, which accounts for 80 percent. Although about 15,560 households have been reached, a total of Shs3,790,000,000 is yet to be disbursed.
On the other hand, Mityana municipality, with 15 registered PDM SACCO, has so far received Shs3,857,250,000 between the 2021/2022 to 2024/2025 financial years, and Shs3,103,274,000 has been disbursed, which accounts for 80 percent, leaving a balance of Shs753,976,000 . Several 3,113 households have benefited in the Mityana municipality.
President Museveni was informed by the Prime Minister, Rt.Hon. Robinah Nabbanja of the challenge of school dropouts in the area, to which he promised to settle immediately.
“This problem is brought about by the confusion of the school administration and the Parent Teacher Association (PTA) committees. We already said that all children should study for free in government schools because we have been working on a lot of things, but we are now going to launch a campaign to handle that,” H.E. Museveni assured.
According to the 2024 National Housing and Population Census preliminary results, the subregion has a population of 1,701,147, with approximately 1,020,688 being of school-going age.
Earlier, Rt. Hon. Nabbanja urged the gathering to continue supporting the National Resistance Movement and President Museveni for continued prosperity for all.
The Minister of Lands, Housing, and Urban Development, Hon. Judith Nabakooba, informed the President that the PDM has been well embraced and more resources should be injected to benefit more people, owing to the higher demand.
“We thank you for monitoring this PDM program yourself. This shows the importance and the commitment you attach to this life-changing project,” Hon. Nabakooba said, adding that the district selected and emphasizes enterprises such as poultry, cows for dairy, and coffee for easy marketing since the district is close to the city center.
She informed the President of the need to tarmac key roads in the district, such as Mityana-Busunju, Manyi-Banda, and Bulera-Kalangalo to Bukuya, among others.
Greater Mubende is located in the central region of Uganda and comprises seven local governments: Kassanda, Kiboga, Kyankwanzi, Mityana, Mubende, Mityana Municipality, and Mubende Municipality.
The meeting was also attended by the government Chief Whip, Hon. Hamson Obua Denis; Minister of State for Investment and Privatisation,Hon. Evelyn Anite; Members of Parliament; and religious leaders from Busunju parish and beyond.
President Museveni earlier kicked off the Greater Mubende Wealth Creation Tour in Kyankwanzi, visiting Patrick Matovu, a Parish Development Model beneficiary, at Bugomolwa Central. Mr. Matovu invested his 1 million shillings package in poultry.
The President also visited Hon. Godfrey Kiwanda Suubi’s coffee farm and nursery bed in Busunju, Mityana District.
The Parish Development Model is a transformative initiative launched by the government to eradicate poverty by empowering communities at the grassroots level.
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