Last week, Government disbursed Parish Development Model (PDM) funds amounting to 80.92 billion to be paid to the first 3,237 SACCOs across the country that have met the criterion and are ready to give out the money to the beneficiaries. The disbursement came as great news and a step in the right direction of injecting money where it is supposed to go and this unprecedented programme aimed at empowering the “active poor” Ugandans and introducing them to doing business in their own settings. This moment needs to be celebrated as it is essentially the last step in getting the model practically in motion.
With the arrival of this money at the grassroots, for the optimists, we see a brighter future for our people now that they are being ushered into the modern money economy. For the pessimists, be ready to be surprised. But also, do not interfere in the programme or try to fail it!
I saw how the media reported the story on the release of the funds; one newspaper said “7, 000 groups missed PDM funds” while another said “3, 000 SACCOs get PDM money”. There were different ways to observe and report the news but each media house relied on its own ideology and policy. What is true is that PDM is alive and at a critical stage of implementation which should be carefully executed.
PDM will leave no Ugandan behind. PDM had been in discussion and planning for some time. Its launch on the 26th of February by President Yoweri Museveni in Bukedi sub-region will remain etched in history.
PDM is a culmination of NRM’s “Securing Your Future” slogan as used in last year’s general elections as one big way for the party to fulfill the contract entered into with Ugandans in its Manifesto.
To say that we, the optimists, are all eager to see it implemented so as to quicken the pace of socio-economically transforming the lives of our people is an understatement. The model is structured to organise and boost wealth creation opportunities at the lowest economic planning unit and turn every parish in the country into a model “economic unit”. We should never forget that!
In PDM, we are going to see true compatriots who will contribute towards the success of Uganda’s Social economic transformation journey. PDM comes as a viable way to achieve this transformation as a strategic vehicle that is going to take our people to another level.
Past Governments made the mistake of failing to uplift Ugandans from poverty and keeping them out of the money economy due to poor policies and lack of direction. This was a perpetuation of the debilitating colonial system that locked out Ugandans/Africans from the economy, something I delved in more deeply in my writings marking this year’s Independence anniversary.
NRM has been systematic in its empowerment programmes-there have been others like Entandikwa and Bonna Baggagawale. They all achieved success but were let down by unpatriotic officials and leaders who did not care for the good of Ugandans who were/are the target beneficiaries.
However, NRM is a revolutionary force with a protracted view on how to win the war against poverty. At each stage, a new approach is unveiled to deal with challenges of the time. The final victory will be attained when every Ugandan understands what is at stake and what is expected of them.
Under PDM, we should generally avoid mistakes that affected earlier anti-poverty initiatives. Every parish must become a nucleus economy built by the people themselves. Government is only a custodian of the seed capital and financial literacy trainer to get the people ready for their big break. The idea was conceived, it was discussed broadly, it was introduced to the public; much effort, time and resources have been invested in explaining what it entails.
With money coming to the SACCOs, it is time to get underway. There have been some mistakes made during preparatory stages and some of the mistakes have landed some officials in trouble. I am made to understand that a good number of them did not act out of malice to fail the programme but had simply failed to follow guidelines or to consult before acting. For those who thought that it was business as usual or who saw the programme as an opportunity to cheat the ordinary Ugandans, thinking that they were not following what is going on, they were mistaken, but learnt a lesson.
PDM money is for the “active poor”-not Governments workers, professionals or established business people. It is a revolving fund which beneficiaries can borrow from, invest and pay back then apply for more. It is expected to boost small enterprises and help them grow, and feed into the larger national economy, thus making Uganda’s economy integrated with every parish making a notable contribution.
I wish to call upon my army of Resident District Commissioners (RDCs), Resident City Commissioners (RCCs) and their Deputies in their respective areas of jurisdiction to ensure that the right groups that are duly registered get the money so that we avoid doing postmortems after the funds have gone to the wrong hands or are diverted to personal gain. I also urge the groups that haven’t received the money yet to fully comply with the set criteria so that money id disbursed to them and they start their journey into the modern money economy.
For God and My Country!
The author is the Minister for the Presidency
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