MBARARA– The State Minister for Animal Industry Lt.Col. Bright Rwamirama has advised leaders in Mbarara City to play their assigned roles in the implementation of the Parish Development Model [PDM] in the communities, saying the government is serious and wants to ensure that the programme succeeds.
The PDM is a multi-sectoral strategy aimed at moving the 39 percent of Ugandan households out of the subsistence economy into the money economy, using the parish as the epi-centre for development, with the government earmarking Shs100m revolving fund per parish for five years.
While speaking at the sensitisation workshop on Friday, Minister Rwamirama said the programme targets the poor people and not those who are well off.
Rwamirama was meeting Mbarara city leadership that included the mayor, speaker, town clerk, city division mayors, councilors and other technocrats both from the north and south constituencies.
Rwamirama was accompanied by Minister Francis Mwebesa, the Minister of Trade Industry and Cooperatives while extending the PDM gospel to Ankole sub-region districts of Mbarara, Isingiro, Rwampara, Ibanda, Kamwenge and Kiruhura.
Rwamirama warned extension workers to follow up on the PDM activities or else they are sacked from the civil service.
“We pay these extension workers using government funds and even provide them with means of transport and facilitation. So DVO [District Veterinary Officer] if you don’t visit farmers, what are you doing in office? As leaders you must supervise these people if not all we are doing will be a waste,” he said.
He urged leaders to read the PDM guidelines so that they are able to understand them, they, being agents of change in the implementation of the PDM.
He also appealed to leaders to exhibit financial discipline to make the new programme a success.
“If you don’t have financial discipline the PDM is going to be frustrated. We are targeting 39 percent of people who are badly off but you will find all the SACCOs are formed by the people who are well-off. If you make a mistake and the rich hijack this programme, I can assure you we shall witness its immediate death,” he said.
Using PDM, Rwamirama appealed to communities at the parish level to adopt technology for mechanized agriculture to increase production.
Challenges
Fred Turyakira Kabango, Chairman Boma Cell said “the programme is most likely to face collapse because of not involving LC I Chairpersons in the planning process.”
“We are the leaders on ground who understand the poor families but how then would you invite city mayors, speakers, CAOs, environment officers, DCOs and CDOs excluding LC I chairpersons?” He asked.
Jomo Mugabe, mayor Mbarara city north warned that some youth think the money is for free.
“The youths don’t want to work and when such programmes come, they think it is a matter of getting free government money to survive. We are likely to register nothing from it,” he said.
Rachael Kanyesigye, Parish Chief Rubaya Division said some people think the PDM might not do well just like other programmes such as Emyooga, initiated earlier to fight poverty in the country.
“People on the ground doubt PDM’s sustainability. They think it will also be like Emyooga because the Emyooga disappointed many. People would leave their jobs to register the groups but in the end, their expectations were not fulfilled because they thought the programme would uplift everyone from poverty which never happened.”
Moses Ampaire, Parish Chief of Kagarama Parish in Bukanga Constituency echoed that financing the PDM activities would require the government to put in more money, saying the planned disbursement is not enough to cover all employees and beneficiaries.
”Why didn’t the government first wait to get enough money to facilitate the programme? Now how do you send someone to the field to collect data without providing him with a smartphone yet what we are gathering has to be sent through an application? You again pay only Shs 12000 to facilitate data, transport and lunch expecting that work to be done with goodwill.”
He added that the project implementers were not trained properly to handle the PDM programme.
“For instance, the training on data collection was supposed to be for two days but in some districts, Parish Chiefs were engaged for just half a day. Do you think people understood what they are supposed to do? Another one was supposed to be for two weeks but we were called and trained for only one day,” Ampaire
“That money is very little compared to the work we are doing. Some haven’t been paid. People are working on empty promises,” Kanyesigye added.
Constance Kainobwisho, deputy speaker Mbarara city challenged the government to sensitise people on how to work rather than give them free money, which in some cases is not used for production.
“Some people think government money is simply free to enjoy and many are now warming up for PDM funds. It would be better to sensitize the youths to work instead of giving them money when they are not even prepared,” Kainobwisho said.
“Let’s give them knowledge rather than money. You need to empower them psychologically so that when they get that money it can be put to proper use,” she added.
While responding to the local leaders’ concerns such as the youth who don’t want to work, Rwamirama asked local leaders to make by-laws, which will catch up mostly the youths to misuse the PDM funds.
“You people in the city go to your councils, sit with your councillors and make bylaws for your new city and tell the technical people to enforce because this is a serious problem all over the country where people deliberately don’t want to work.”
https://thecooperator.news/pdm-success-alupo-urges-leaders-to-sensitise-communities/
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