KAMPALA – After celebrating the country’s top-performing districts in the 2024 Local Government Performance Assessment, attention is now turning to the other end of the ranking — the districts that registered the weakest service delivery and governance performance.
According to the 2024 Local Government Management of Service Delivery (LGMSD) Assessment Report released by the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM), several districts and municipal councils posted extremely low scores in critical governance indicators such as financial management, infrastructure planning, service delivery, and accountability.
The findings place Kamuli Municipal Council at the very bottom of the national ranking with a score of 24.0 percent, making it the worst-performing local government in the country for the year under review.
Other poorly performing local governments include Kibuku District (27.88%), Tororo Municipal Council (29.75%), and Bugweri District (30.2%), all of which recorded severe performance gaps in planning, budgeting, and project implementation.
Bottom 10 Worst Performing Local Governments in 2024
Kamuli Municipal Council – 24.0%
Kibuku District – 27.88%
Tororo Municipal Council – 29.75%
Bugweri District – 30.2%
Butebo District – 31.8%
Luuka District – 31.92%
Kaliro District – 32.9%
Sironko District – 34.68%
Iganga Municipal Council – 35.63%
Masaka District – 36.12%
A striking pattern in the report is the dominance of districts from Eastern Uganda among the worst performers, highlighting persistent governance and service delivery challenges in the region.
Key Areas of Poor Performance
The assessment evaluated local governments across several key performance areas, including:
Infrastructure development and asset management
Planning and budgeting systems
Procurement and contract management
Financial resource mobilization
Transparency and oversight mechanisms
Environmental and social safeguards
Districts that ranked poorly often failed to demonstrate effective project management systems, infrastructure maintenance, and financial accountability, according to the report.
Service Delivery Gaps
Experts say weak performance in local governments often translates directly into poor public services, including deteriorating roads, inadequate health facilities, poor school infrastructure, and delayed government projects.
The Office of the Prime Minister uses the assessment to determine eligibility for performance-based grants, meaning districts that consistently score poorly risk losing access to key development funding streams.
Regional Imbalances
The 2024 assessment also revealed a stark regional divide.
While districts from Western Uganda dominated the top rankings, many local governments in the Eastern region appeared repeatedly among the lowest performers, pointing to systemic development and governance gaps.
This disparity raises questions about capacity gaps, staffing levels, and institutional weaknesses in some districts.
Call for Urgent Reforms
Governance analysts say the findings should serve as a wake-up call for local leaders.
Poor-performing districts are expected to implement corrective measures such as strengthening planning units, improving financial management, and enhancing monitoring of government projects. Officials from the Office of the Prime Minister have previously warned that continued poor performance could trigger administrative interventions and increased oversight.
Accountability at the Local Level
Uganda currently has more than 170 local governments, including districts, cities, and municipalities, all responsible for delivering essential services such as health, education, roads, water, and agriculture extension.
The annual performance assessment is designed to measure how effectively these local governments utilize public resources to improve citizens’ livelihoods.
While top-performing districts have been celebrated for strong leadership and efficient service delivery, the lowest-ranking districts now face mounting pressure to reform.
For residents living in these areas, the stakes are high: the quality of local governance often determines whether roads are built, health centers are staffed, and schools function effectively.
As the government pushes forward with decentralization and service delivery reforms, the spotlight will remain firmly on districts struggling to meet national standards.
Watchdog Uganda will continue tracking how these districts respond to the findings in the coming months.
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