Of Austerity and Excess: Uganda’s Budget in the Shadow of a Presidential Empire and a parliamentary Aristocracy

 

 

By Isaac Christopher Lubogo

 

Uganda today is a nation of profound contradictions. A country where a government school teacher earns less in a year than a single presidential gardener. Where a rural doctor improvises with candlelight while Parliament, nestled comfortably in Kampala’s grandeur, votes to acquire new fuel-guzzling SUVs. Where millions live in unspeakable poverty while a small ruling elite drowns in taxpayer-financed privilege.

 

The 2024/2025 national budget of UGX 72.136 trillion reveals a republic in fiscal distress—crippled by public debt, overwhelmed by statutory obligations, and increasingly dependent on the goodwill of external donors. Yet buried in this bleak fiscal picture is something even darker: the moral collapse of the state. It is not merely an economic dilemma—it is a spiritual and ethical betrayal of the social contract.

 

At the helm of this betrayal is the presidency—transformed from a public office into a sprawling empire. State House alone consumes over UGX 421.922 billion. The Office of the President takes UGX 281.233 billion. Combined, the presidency absorbs a staggering UGX 703.155 billion. This money fuels a baroque machine: over 996 State House staff, including more than 59 waitresses, 14 room attendants, 23 political mobilisers, 40 private secretaries, 9 launderers, 29 housekeepers, 129 drivers, 80 gardeners, 35 cooks, 12 professional chefs, and 50 compound cleaners. The President’s vehicle fleet—over 660 cars—eclipses the emergency ambulances available in the entire country.

 

But the legislative arm—Parliament—is no less complicit. Uganda’s 529 Members of Parliament, originally meant to represent the voices of the people, have become an aristocracy unto themselves. The Parliamentary Commission will receive UGX 944.745 billion in the coming financial year. Yet for the average Ugandan, this figure is distant and abstract until one understands its composition.

 

The MPs’ salaries alone—averaging UGX 25 million per month—swallow more than UGX 158 billion annually. Beyond salary, they rake in immense allowances for sitting, travel, fuel, accommodation, and foreign per diems, conservatively amounting to over UGX 180 billion. Added to this are opaque “constituency monitoring” funds—effectively unaccounted slush money—for which another UGX 200 billion is earmarked. Vehicle purchases and maintenance soak up another UGX 90 billion, while foreign trainings, benchmarking trips, and seminars abroad devour UGX 60 billion. Parliamentary staff wages and PR campaigns fill out the rest. These are not the expenditures of a struggling democracy—they are the entitlements of a ruling class.

 

To contextualize this, consider that the Ministry of Agriculture—on which over 70% of Ugandans depend—gets only UGX 628 billion. The entire Ministry of Education, catering to over 15 million learners, is allocated less than what the Executive and Parliament jointly enjoy. Indeed, the combined budget for the President and Parliament—UGX 1.648 trillion—is nearly double the Ministry of Health’s allocation of UGX 1.056 trillion.

 

These figures are not just bureaucratic numbers. They are a record of choices. A record of priorities. They tell a story of whose lives matter more in the Republic of Uganda. The President’s fleet is well-oiled, but the country’s ambulance system is dry. MPs travel to global conferences with per diems that could build classrooms in Nakapiripirit, Kitgum, and Buvuma. Parliamentarians demand new iPads while rural schools lack chalk.

 

Reimagining Uganda’s Budget: Transforming Excess into Empowerment

 

If Uganda were to reduce just 30% of these elite-centric expenditures—roughly UGX 494 billion could be freed and redirected towards critical sectors. Imagine what that could achieve.

 

Healthcare: Constructing and equipping 100 new health centers at UGX 2 billion each would cost UGX 200 billion. That’s one health center per district (Uganda has 135 districts plus Kampala), drastically improving access to essential medical services.

 

Education: Building 200 new primary schools at UGX 1 billion each would cost UGX 200 billion, enabling approximately 1.5 new schools per district. This would ease overcrowding and improve literacy and enrollment rates.

 

Agriculture: Allocating UGX 94.4 billion in subsidies and technical support to smallholder farmers would enhance productivity and food security, particularly in rural areas where farming is the backbone of livelihoods.

 

Impact on Uganda’s Districts and Poverty Reduction

 

Uganda is divided into 136 administrative units (135 districts plus Kampala). Strategic investments across all districts could transform human development indices and catalyze economic empowerment.

 

Certain regions bear disproportionate poverty burdens:

 

Karamoja: With poverty rates exceeding 70% in some districts, it is Uganda’s most impoverished region.

 

West Nile: Around 42% poverty incidence.

 

Lango and Acholi: Approximately 35% poverty levels.

 

Focusing the reallocated funds on these regions would yield significant returns:

 

Karamoja’s chronic underdevelopment could be mitigated through healthcare access, education infrastructure, and clean water projects.

 

Agricultural subsidies in West Nile, Lango, and Acholi could boost household incomes and food security.

 

Projected National Outcomes

 

Implementing such a reallocation of funds could:

 

Reduce the National Poverty Rate: Over 7 million Ugandans currently live below the poverty line. Direct investment in health, education, and agriculture would help millions escape this plight.

 

Improve Human Development Indicators: Better access to health and education services would improve life expectancy, literacy, and school completion rates.

 

Stimulate Economic Growth: Empowered farmers and educated youth would expand Uganda’s productive base and fiscal revenues, creating a virtuous cycle.

 

The Moral Reckoning

 

This is not just a fiscal critique but a call to conscience. Why should a single Member of Parliament, often absent from duty, earn more monthly than an entire rural health team? Why does Parliament approve lavish privileges while citizens suffer for basics? Why does the President require more chefs than Uganda has oncologists?

 

The budget as it stands preserves power and privilege, sacrificing millions to sustain an oligarchy. The solution is not more taxes or donor funds but radical budgetary justice: full transparency, drastic cuts to classified expenditures, elimination of wasteful allowances, and refocusing the state’s resources on public service delivery.

 

Until then, Uganda remains a nation where the rulers live like kings, and the people are reduced to begging—begging for medicine, for school fees, for jobs, for roads, for clean water, and for justice.

 

The time has come to disrupt this aristocracy of privilege and restore the republic to its rightful owners: the people.

 

About the author:

Isaac Christopher Lubogo is a Ugandan lawyer and lecturer