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Richard Tinkasiimire Baguma, Secretary General of the United Nations Association of Uganda (UNAU), has urged the Ugandan government to seek alternative financing for programs benefiting special groups, as donor support dwindles and budget constraints tighten. He warned against cutting allocations for these programs, emphasizing the potential negative impact on Uganda’s inclusive growth and progress toward the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The Government has been urged to work out mechanisms that can ensure alternative financing of programmes that prioritise special groups in the face of the shrinking resource envelope and declining donor support.

According to Richard Tinkasiimire Baguma, the secretary general of the United Nations Association of Uganda (UNAU), going for the ‘easier option’ of cutting allocations to programmes for these groups rather than finding alternative cash to finance them not only hurts efforts towards Uganda’s inclusive growth but could also hamper Uganda’s progress in implementing United Nations Sustainable development goals.

He said in the next financial year (2024/2025) programmes for people with disabilities are among those that have been affected by cuts, adding: “Also allocations for essential medicines and essential support that deals in sexual reproductive issues have not increased”.

He said while they understand that this is due to challenges the government is having with financing the sh72 trillion budget, failure to commit enough resources, especially for the youth programmes such as those that create job opportunities can have ramifications for social order that “can turn into a cancer that can eat us all”.

He was speaking at Forest Cottages Hotel in Kampala on Monday, June 17, 2024, during a side event preceding the 3rd Uganda Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) conference.

The conference, which is organised by the Office of the Prime Minister, will take place on Wednesday, June 19, 2024, and Thursday, June 20 at Speke Resort Convention Centre in Munyonyo under the theme, “Strengthening SDG localisation and service delivery mechanisms for national development.”

Speaking at the same event on Monday, George Muwanguzi, the UNAU president, said although the youth have a lot of challenges, they are not insurmountable even under the current circumstances.

He said the government has put in place an enabling environment in terms of policies and peace and those who have taken the personal initiative, especially towards self-employment are thriving.

Charity Ahimbisibwe, executive director of the Electoral Laws and Governance Institute, hailed the government for ensuring that it aligns its national development goals, especially National Development Plan IV to SDGs, but noted there is a need to do more in the implementation of SDGs.

She said despite getting off to a good start and attaining the overall ranking of 140 out of 162 countries, Uganda slipped to the 156 position a couple of years later.

She said although this is partly due to a lack of funds to fund vital sectors such as education and agriculture, there are areas the government would have done better but didn’t, especially in regard to SDG 16 (peace, justice, and strong institution).

She said the country’s regulatory institutions are weak which has resulted in selective application of the law and fighting corruption