A team from the Ministry of Local Government (MoLG) led by Ms. Jackie Kemigisha Kiiza held a fruitful and insightful engagement with technical staff of Otuke District Local Government on strategies for improving performance in the National Assessment of Lower Local Governments.
In his opening remarks, the Deputy Chief Administrative Officer (DCAO) welcomed and appreciated the team for the timely intervention, noting that the engagement would help the Lower Local Governments identify areas of weakness and strength for improvement. He emphasized that poor performance in national assessments has negative financial implications. He further noted that while Otuke District Local Government ranked 51st nationally among Higher Local Governments in the previous assessment, its Lower Local Governments performed poorly, ranking 161st out of 176.
The District Planner, Ms. Ajok Sharon, attributed the poor performance to several factors, including the absence of health facilities in some Lower Local Governments despite their inclusion in assessment indicators, low staffing levels in Town Councils, poor record keeping and documentation, inadequate teamwork, and weak supervision. To address these challenges, the meeting developed comprehensive Performance Improvement Plans aimed at enhancing future assessment outcomes.