Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development of Uganda: Functions and Structure

The Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development (MoFPED) is a cabinet-level government ministry of Uganda.

Its mandate cuts across all sectors of Government.

Not only is it entrusted with the formulation of sound economic and fiscal policies, but it must also mobilise resources for the implementation of government programmes, and ensure that all public resources are disbursed as appropriated by Parliament and accounted for in accordance with national laws and international best practice.

The Ministry’s mandate is to formulate sound economic and fiscal policies, mobilize resources for the implementation of government programs, disburse public resources as appropriated by Parliament, and account for their use in accordance with national laws and international best practices.

The cabinet minister of finance is Matia Kasaija.

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MoFPED was created by the 1995 Constitution of Uganda and derives its power from the Constitution and related acts of parliament, including the 2001 Budget Act and the 2003 Public Finance and Accountability Act.

We anticipate that this site will be a one-stop Information Center for our esteemed patrons with in and outside the country.

Historical Context

MoFPED was created by the 1995 Constitution of Uganda, at the time, there were two departments: a Ministry of Finance (MoF) and a Ministry of Planning and Economic Development (MPED).

By 1995, the government launched the Poverty Eradication Action Plan (PEAP) in order to prioritise poverty eradication.

was formulated after a long consultative process with a wide range of stakeholders.

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In 1998, the MoF and MPED were merged into the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development (MoFPED), which the World Bank noted was "critical in establishing fiscal discipline, while building links between policy formulation, planning, and budgeting".

The merger led to an emphasis on coordinating the budget process and introducing output-oriented budgeting within a medium-term expenditure framework.

Many of these early reforms had a "cutting-edge dimension"; Uganda was one of the first countries in Africa to adopt a semi-autonomous revenue agency (the Uganda Revenue Authority) as well as introduce medium-term budgeting.

In 2010, MoFPED started receiving detailed project-by-project reports on budget allocations and quarterly expenditures from local governments through a digital budget reporting tool.

However, local stakeholders, including elected representatives whose mandate it is to monitor service provision, are largely unaware of this information.

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Key Functions and Objectives

Over the years, the Ministry has made great strides in fulfilling its mandate by providing policy guidance that has led to remarkable achievements in national economic growth.

We have strengthened consultative processes with other government ministries, local governments, agencies, development partners, the private sector, the media, the academia, and civil society organisations.

This is to ensure not only government wide but also country wide owned policies and programmes.

We believe in participatory processes, accountability and transparency.

We are committed good working relations with stakeholders and our development partners as well as mutual support and cooperation between the Ministry, Political leadership, Development Partners, and Stakeholders.

Programme Objective :

  1. Compilation and management of the accounts of votes;
  2. Custody and safety of public money;
  3. Manage resources of Government;
  4. Custody of all government certificates of all titles for investments;
  5. Maintenance of a register of government investments
  6. All external debt payments due were paid in time and domestic debt claims were also paid.

The Accountability Sector Annual Review 2017/18 was held.

In the FY 2019/20, the Program has been allocated UShs 94.97bn.

This is in comparison to an allocation of Ushs 110.97bn in the FY 2018/19.

Programme Responsible Officer: Director Debt and Cash Management

Under this Program, the Ministry provides policy guidance on the issuance and management of all Government debt and cash as well as development and implementation of debt policies in accordance with the Ministry‟s economic policies.

In the FY 2018/19, this Program received UShs 3.09bn by December 2018 against an appropriation of UShs 6.19bn.

Out of this, Ushs 2.79bn was spent representing 90.5% absorption.

With this allocation, the Ministry mobilized 20% of the required external resources to finance the budget deficit, rolled out the Aid Management System, collected 30% of contingent liability data of the State-Owned Enterprises and Extra Budgetary Units.

The Ministry further initiated reform and obtained Cabinet approval for trading government securities using mobile money.

In the FY 2019/20, the Program has been allocated UShs 9.874bn compared to Ushs 6.193bn in FY 2018/19.

During the period the Ministry prepared the Budget Framework Paper for FY 2019/20 and periodic performance reports including Government Annual Performance Reports (GAPR) and Quarterly reports for FY 2018/19.

Operationalized the Electronic Content Management System (ECMS) for online archiving of documents.

Conducted health week where all staff were sensitized on various health issues including communicable and non-communicable diseases.

In conclusion, during the FY 2019/20, the Ministry will execute its mandate through the above eight programs which is expected to significantly contribute towards achievement of the NDP II objectives, the vision 2040, Accountability Sector Strategic Investment Plan as well as the Ministry Strategic Plan.

In the FY 2019/20, the Program has been allocated UShs 56.977bn.

This is in comparison to FY 2018/19 allocation of UShs 55.902bn.

The Program is responsible for provision of strategic policy guidance and leadership to the Ministry; formulation of Ministerial policies, work plans and monitoring their implementation and managing the physical, financial and human resources of the Ministry.

In the FY 2018/19, this Program received UShs 29.25bn by end of December 2018 against an appropriation of UShs 43.95bn.

Under this program, the Ministry ensures effective financial management, accountability for public resources and assets, management and reporting on accounts of Government among other objectives.

In the FY 2018/19, this Program received UShs 57.24bn by end of December 2018 against an appropriation of UShs 110.97bn.

Out of this, Ushs 37.28bn was spent representing 65.1% absorption.

For the half year ending December 2018, the Ministry successfully supported over 4,505 IFMS users across 273 IFMS sites, over 504 E-cash users in 119 sites, over 1300 E-registration users in 310 sites, and over 2,300 Treasury Single Account tool users in 230 sites.

Finance Minister Matia Kasaija who officiated at the meeting said, enhanced collaboration with Parliament will ultimately improve the budget process, noting that the economy has remained resilient amidst various shocks.

What this means is that, there are no unspent cash balances at vote level at the end of the financial year, apart from residual balances from Missions abroad because of their unique financial operations when it comes to managing funds.

It should be noted that, the Treasury ensures that all payments in transit at the end of the financial year are cleared by the Bank of Uganda.

This interaction with Members of Parliament was very fruitful in bridging the communication gap between Parliament and the Ministry.

Challenges Faced by the Ministry

Although the Ministry has made great strides in fulfilling its mandate, we still face a number of challenges, including; budget deficit, a small tax base, budget pressures, sustaining macro economic stability while at the same time making adequate investments for poverty eradication among others.

I believe you will find the information listed very useful.

Robert Okudi - Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic De

Directorates and Departments

1. Assets Management Department (AMD)

This Department under the Directorate is headed by a Commissioner to specifically handle asset management related activities.

The Department Comprises of three (3) Units managed by 2 Assistant Commissioners, who support the Commissioner in charge of the Department.

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