UGANDA GOVERNMENT’S OVER 540BN LUWERO/RWENZORI DEVELOPMENT PLAN (LRDP)

A COMMENT ABOUT THE CHANCES OF THE LRDP
What is immediately noted when one reads the LRDP article is that it is over ambitious, yet having too many areas to cover and with the hope of directly reaching too many beneficiaries not forgetting that the district coverage is so big such that administrative expenses will greatly eat up the would be resources to benefit the disadvantaged. Rather Government should have targeted poles of growth in the two regions on the base of Agricultural Zones and support Agro-based industrialization such that the produce in a specific zone can be marketed to an outlet where the farmer would get a good return to his effort. 2ndly, the practice of agriculture together with animal husbandry by households with land resource has forwards and backwards linkages when it comes to animal waste feeding the garden and the garden products like planted grass feeding the animals together with backup of extension services as well as help in accessing necessary inputs into the production process such that the farmer pays when he makes sells are such efforts that can help the poor to get out of poverty.
It is not clear how the LRDP will work with the Local Governments in the areas of operation; whether some of the work plans will be within the district overall work plans and whether there will not be duplication more so where the LRDP is involved with Sectoral Interventions.
The LRDP is a 5 year Comprehensive Development Plan designed to improve the livelihoods of the communities of the Luwero Triangle and Rwenzori region having been affected by the National Resistance Movement (NRM) Liberation struggle (Luwero) of 1981 – 1986 as well as the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) insurgency (Rwenzori) of 1996 – 2003. What defeats many of the interventions the NRM Government has tried in the past including the NAADS programme is that there is an attempt to want to directly interact with the poor by giving them resources when available, unfortunately, the chain is not complete and a gap is left at the end of it all, the would be beneficiary actually does not benefit. I advocate for a comprehensive package where for example the starting point happens to be a demonstration garden to a village level, when the farmers learn technologies on this garden, they are then able to implement the same on own gardens however with facilitation of the necessary production inputs (seeds, pesticides, etc) as well as continued support on the farm and finally assisted in marketing where the produce is bought by the processor within the locality who would have to pay cash on delivery or at fixed time intervals and recovery made for inputs advanced. Such well connected programmes can work to improve the welfare of the targeted communities.
The programme is open to all community members actively engaged in economic activities. Special interest groups that include the youth, widows, civilian veterans and ex-combatants, orphans and people with disabilities are to be given priority consideration. Having the programme to include all the above mentioned categories is more political than practical in the setting of the LRDP. What is important is targeting those who can be productive on land as a group or those who have agricultural productive land; the balance can be helped when small industries are established in the area, and so on.
The LRDP targets 40 districts from Central and Western Uganda – what is interesting is that Kampala is focused on among the districts targeted. This is wrong. Kampala is not needy and if locally generated resources are well utilized plus the existing investment climate, there is no reason why Kampala eats into the funding for the LRDP which are disadvantaged. It should be excluded and funds sent to the needy districts.
The overall Goal of the LRDP is to redress the adverse socio-economic effects of the NRM liberation war (1981 – 1986) and the ADF insurgency of 1996 – 2003. The overall Goal should be broadened to include getting the areas set to meet the challenges of modernization and competition which is the driving force in the fight against poverty.
The LRDP Programme Objectives among others include improving the economic well being of 105 households per parish in 523 parishes by enabling them to earn at least shs 20 million a year by 2015. This objective makes the picture in which the people are simplistic which is not the case. Some of the poor in these areas are simply not using their time well. A case in point is a youth who decides to leave home and come to make chapati in an urban centre with a lot of unproductive land left behind, a drunkard who takes alcohol at the wrong time when he would be doing productive work; the sickly who need proper medication to be able to engage in productive work and those who need adult functional literacy training before they can engage in productive business ventures. This means that the earning should not be the 1st target, but re-orienting them so that they can eventually fit the situation where they will be able to sustainably earn income which could get anywhere to shs 20 million or more.
William Kituuka Kiwanuka

The LRDP is to benefit 40 districts (by 2010) and it’s a Community Empowerment Plan to Achieve Prosperity for All.
Source: The Premier Executive – A Quarterly News Letter of the Office of the Prime Minister, Vol. 4 of 2010.
Article by Frida Sengooba
The Five Year shs 540.9 billion Luwero/Rwenzori Development Plan (LRDP) coordinated by the Department of Luwero Affairs in the Office of Prime Minister, is a Community Empowerment Plan to Achieve Prosperity for All. It was launched on two separate occasions; one in Luwero and the other in kabarole district.
In Kabarole district, the third Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Internal Affairs, Alhaji Ali Kirunda Kivejinja launched the Plan on 22nd May 2010 at Rubona Primary School in Kisomoro sub-county. The launch in Luwero district was made on 28th May 2010 by the Minister of Local Government, Hon. Adolf Mwesigye; this was at a function held at Kalasa Primary School within Makulubita sub-county.

What is Luwero/Rwenzori Development Plan (LRDP)?
The LRDP is a 5 year Comprehensive Development Plan designed to improve the livelihoods of the communities of the Luwero Triangle and Rwenzori region having been affected by the National Resistance Movement (NRM) Liberation struggle (Luwero) of 1981 – 1986 as well as the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) insurgency (Rwenzori) of 1996 – 2003.

Target Districts
The LRDP targets 40 districts from Central and Western Uganda; they are: Buliisa, Bundibugyo, Ntoroko, Hoima, Ibanda, Isingiro, Kabarole, Kalangala, Kampala, Kamwenge, Kasese, Kayunga, Kibaale, Kiboga, Kyankwanzi, Kirihura, Kyenjojo, Kyegegwa, Luwero, Lyantonde, Masaka, Bukomansimbi, Kalungu, Lwengo, Masindi, Kiryandongo, others include: Mbarara, Mityana, Mpigi, Gombe, Mubende, Mukono, Buikwe, Buvuma, Nakaseke, Nakasongola, Wakiso, Rakai, Sembabule and Gomba.
The above districts were targeted because there was no comprehensive post war recovery programme drawn to address the war effects.

The Goal of LRDP
The overall Goal of the LRDP is to redress the adverse socio-economic effects of the NRM liberation war (1981 – 1986) and the ADF insurgency of 1996 – 2003.

The LRDP Programme Objectives
1. To improve the economic well being of 105 households per parish in 523 parishes by enabling them to earn at least shs 20 million a year by 2015,
2. To repair and improve the condition of 2,300 km district roads; 29,000 km community access roads and 30 km urban roads to motorable state by 2015,
3. To increase the safe water coverage of 11 districts which are below the national level coverage to 65% by 2015,
4. To protect and sustainably manage the environment,
5. To increase access to renewable energy to service delivery points and rural growth centres by 2015,
6. To ensure that there is a Government aided primary school and secondary school in all parishes,
7. To improve the health service delivery,
8. To increase access and use of Information and Communication Technology in the regions,
9. To promote peace, reconciliation and strengthen community based conflict mitigation and management within communities.

The LRDP Programme Time Frame
It is a 5 year Development Recovery intervention whose full scale implementation is effective July 2010 in all the 40 districts. A Pilot Programme was implemented in 15 districts; 60 sub – counties and 240 parishes in 2009/10 Financial Year.

Targeted beneficiaries
The programme is open to all community members actively engaged in economic activities. Special interest groups that include the youth, widows, civilian veterans and ex-combatants, orphans and people with disabilities are to be given priority consideration. Those benefiting from other Government programmes like NAADS, restocking and the like will not benefit directly.

Funding
The overall budget of the Programme is shs 540.9 billion to be contributed to by Uganda Government and Development Partners.
The LRDP has two broad intervention components namely; the Community and Sectoral.

The Community Intervention
This forms the foundation of the LRDP and shall be community led. It will be funded through community grants and directly implemented activities all aimed at enhancing household income and access to services. The interventions emphasize household income enhancement. This aims at enabling households to increase their incomes to a gross of at least shs 20 million a year.
Focus will be on promoting increased agricultural produce and productivity, value addition, processing and marketing, support to small and medium scale enterprises, social mobilization and empowerment of vulnerable groups.

Sectoral Interventions Component
This will address roads, water, environment, energy, education, health and ICT.
1) Roads: District roads, community access roads and urban road surfacing.
2) Water: Support construction of safe water points (boreholes, protected springs, shallow wells, gravity flow schemes and rain water harvesting tanks).
3) Environment: Support districts and sub – counties to produce environment action plans (DEAP, SEAP), mobilize and sensitize communities on environmental protection and management issues and support private individuals to establish tree nurseries in the programme areas.
4) Energy: Working with electricity distribution companies to select and install 85 step down transformers in rural townships along the main electricity grid, support biogas development and install 80 biogas units, provide 180 Government and Community institutions with solar power and support the construction of 375 kms of power lines (Mubende – Myanzi, Mubende – Kyenjojo, Wakyato – Ngoma).
5) Education: Support construction of 74 primary schools in parishes without Government aided primary school, construction of 10 high-rise classroom blocks in the 5 divisions of Kampala, construction of 50 secondary schools in sub-counties without a Government aided secondary school, construct 158 teachers’ houses in schools where attracting and retaining teachers is difficult, build boarding facilities in three existing girls’ secondary schools in Bulemezi, Bunyoro and Rwenzori and support rehabilitation of eight secondary schools destroyed during the war.
6) Health: Upgrade 10 Health centre IVs to General Hospital status and support 30 Health Centre VIs and 70 Health Centre IIIs with staff houses and other equipment.
7) Information and Communication Technology: Establish 36 Community Information Centres, equip 50 secondary schools and three girls’ boarding secondary schools with computer laboratories together with Internet, and support 10 hospitals, 30 health Centre IV’s and 70 Health Centre III’s with computers and Internet connectivity.

LRDP Implementation Modalities
Management, coordination and implementation of the LRDP will follow the existing Government structures. Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) will oversee and coordinate all the LRDP interventions under the auspices of the Minister of State for Luwero Triangle. Technical Management will be by the Permanent Secretary in the Office of the Prime Minister to provide policy direction, ensure standards, resource mobilization, guidelines, monitoring and evaluation.
A Programme Management Unit has been established to coordinate and facilitate the LRDP.
At the Local Government level, the Chief Administrative Officers (CAOs) working closely with the political and technical leadership in their respective districts will be responsible for programme implementation.

LUWERO - RWENZORI REGION
This is under the political leadership of the Minister of State for Luwero Triangle,

In the last financial year a number of achievements were registered:

Paid off gratuity in form of kasimo(gratitude spirit) close to two thousand veterans as verification of civilian veterans is ongoing.
Procured and distributed; 42, 757 hand hoes, 600 spray pumps, 500 bags op cement, 2000 iron sheets.
Contributed funding to the rehabilitation of roads of Bakijulula - Muyenje - Masibira roads in Kiboga district
Supported communities to get water for production (animals watering points) in Manyogaseka, Lutunku, Kamusenene, Kyabayima, and Ngoma.
funding the purchase of maize seeds in 7 districts and construction of teachers houses for Lake Mburo Secondary School in Kiruhura and Nakyensansa primary school in Wakiso Local governments.
Coordinated the consultative meetings for the leadership from the Luwero/Rwenzori region to be made periodic.
The Luwero Rwenzori Development Plan (LRDP) was finalized and launched.