MBARARA CITY, 5 November 2026 The Ministry of Local Government, in partnership with the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development under the REAP programme, has concluded a capacity-building programme involving 40 districts across Eastern, Central, Northern and Western Uganda to strengthen local revenue mobilisation.
The final workshop, held at Las Vegas Hotel in Mbarara City, brought together representatives from ten districts who developed draft Local Revenue Enhancement Plans (LREPs) by identifying revenue gaps and proposing strategies with realistic revenue projections to improve revenue collection and service delivery.
In remarks delivered on his behalf by Mr Joel Atim, the Permanent Secretary, Mr Ben Kumumanya, urged local governments to strengthen their own-source revenue mobilisation, reduce dependence on Central Government transfers and embrace digital revenue administration to improve accountability.
Speaking on behalf of the participating CAOs, Rukiga District CAO, Hajjat Sharifah Nakintu Rugasa, raised concerns about overlapping tax obligations and called for clearer policy guidance to address common revenue administration challenges.
Facilitator Patrick B. Kandole highlighted outdated taxpayer registers, revenue leakages, political interference and weak enforcement among the challenges affecting revenue mobilisation. He emphasised improved revenue administration, realistic targets and stronger taxpayer engagement to encourage voluntary compliance.
The draft plans were presented to the respective Chief Administrative Officers (CAOs) for review and feedback.
The draft plans will undergo technical review and evaluation before submission to the Ministry. They will subsequently be returned to the CAOs for presentation to their respective District Councils for consideration and approval.
The initiative contributes to the national ambition of increasing local government revenue mobilisation to UGX 1 trillion by 2032.
