CSOs Speak Out on the Proposed Parish Development Model

Government of Uganda is moving to introduce the Parish Development Model (PDM) as a strategy for organizing and delivering public and private sector interventions for wealth creation and employment generation at the parish level as the lowest economic planning unit. According to the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, Government plans to merge the existing seven wealth creation programmes.

On 28th April 2021, Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) including SEATINI Uganda, Food Rights Alliance, CSBAG, ESSAF and Uganda Debt Network organized a write-shop on the Parish Development Model. The purpose of this write-shop was to analyze and critique the proposed Parish Development Model.

While giving her remarks, Jane Nalunga, the Executive Director at SEATINI Uganda noted that there are some good ideas in the proposed Parish Development Model. She emphasized that the good ideas in the PDM should be mainstreamed in the respective Ministries, Departments and Agencies to ensure effective coordination to reduce on duplication and wastage of our meager resources.
Agnes Kirabo, the Executive Director at Food Rights Alliance noted that the Parish Development Model demonstrates the urge to create change for the people in the absence of a system to do it.

‘‘The PDM is a good idea but it will require policy, legal and institutional reforms and a shift in the mindsets among the implementers of the model as opposed to the beneficiaries,’’ Agnes Kirabo said.
Julius Kapwepwe, the Programs Director at Uganda Debt Network noted that the Parish Development Model is a welcome move.
‘‘It is one of government’s interventions for wealth creation alongside other interventions such as the Northern Uganda Social Action Fund (NUSAF) and Development Initiative for Northern Uganda (DINU). PDM is one of the strategies in giving financial muscle to decentralization, governance framework in Uganda,’’ Julius Kapwepwe said.

‘‘The Parish Development Model is a good idea through which the government is trying to bring services to the beneficiaries especially to the ordinary people. However, before it is rolled out, government should undertake preliminary consultations among the relevant stakeholders, Hakim Baliraine,’’ the Regional/National Chairperson at ESAFF said.
Kirabira George, Maize Farmer in Nakaseke District brought to light that government projects are usually initiated with good intentions but these good projects fail on implementation.

At the end of the write-shop, CSOs identified the emerging salient issues that will be consolidated into a Position Paper to be shared with the relevant government Ministries, Departments and Agencies.