KAMPALA, March 6, 2026 — The two-year grace period for repayment of loans issued under the Parish Development Model [PDM] will expire in March 2026, with beneficiaries across the country expected to begin repaying the funds within the next year.
This was revealed by the State Minister for Luwero Triangle and National Coordinator for the programme, Dennis Galabuzi, while appearing before the Public Accounts Committee [Central Government] on Tuesday.
Galabuzi explained that the first tranche of funds under the programme was largely disbursed in the 2022/2023 financial year.
“The first batch of money was disbursed in the financial year 2022/2023 because in 2021/2022 there were challenges with the release of the funds, so we more or less discounted that period. We are currently reminding parish chiefs and everyone involved in the supervision of PDM to sensitise the public about this,” he said.
His remarks followed concerns raised by Members of Parliament regarding the public’s interpretation of the funds under the programme.
Galabuzi urged legislators to support the ministry’s efforts to sensitise communities about how the programme operates and the importance of repaying the funds to sustain it as a revolving scheme.
“PDM is a game changer if it is well implemented. Repayment should be a concerted effort by government and Members of Parliament who carry out oversight. If beneficiaries pay back the money, others will also have the opportunity to benefit,” he noted.
However, Patrick Nsamba, the Member of Parliament for Kassanda County North, said many Ugandans who received the funds had misunderstood the initiative, treating it as a government handout that does not require repayment.
“Do you have a communication strategy that will ensure the realignment of public perception about the loans taken under PDM? Otherwise, people will be disappointed when they are required to pay back,” Nsamba said.
Joseph Ssewungu, MP for Kalungu West County, also noted that weak communication and limited functionality of PDM technical committees were undermining effective implementation of the programme.
He cited concerns raised by the Auditor General that the programme could face coordination challenges, delayed decision-making, and weaknesses in monitoring and evaluation.
“During campaigns, voters often accuse PDM coordinators of misusing the funds because there is little communication and committees are not providing reports. If this is corrected, public perception of the programme can improve,” Ssewungu said.
Meanwhile, Fredrick Angura, the Tororo South County legislator, raised concern about 127 parishes in the district that have not yet received PDM funding.
In response, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Local Government, Ben Kumumanya, clarified that these parishes have not received the funds because they lack elected leaders at the administrative unit level.
“When there are no elected leaders, the parish cannot be considered fully operational and therefore lacks a chairperson for the Parish Development Committee. However, elections for local councils are in the pipeline and we are awaiting funding to conduct them,” Kumumanya said.
According to the Auditor General’s report for financial year 2024/2025, communication guidelines for the payment of the Parish Revolving Fund [PRF] are still at the final draft stage and have yet to be disseminated.
“I advised the accounting officer to prioritise clarifying the roles and responsibilities of the high-level policy committee and the inter-institutional PDM technical committee, and to ensure proper documentation of resolutions and action points,” the report states.
The PDM, a financial inclusion programme, was launched in February 2022 by Yoweri Museveni with the aim of moving 3.5 million households from subsistence to the money economy. The government allocates more than Shs 1 trillion every financial year to the programme.
Under the initiative, beneficiaries receive soft loans of about Shs 1mln to invest in selected enterprises such as piggery, fish farming, coffee growing, dairy farming, banana growing, and poultry keeping, among others.
As of November 2025, approximately 3.27mln Ugandans have received money under the programme. The government has transferred Shs 3.216 trillion directly to 10,589 SACCOs in 10,589 parishes.
However, reports from various stakeholders indicate that some beneficiaries misused the funds as they spent on consumption, and others.
https://thecooperator.news/tororo-officials-urged-to-ensure-pdm-beneficiaries-repay-loans-as-agreed/
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