Africa-Press – Uganda. The Permanent Secretary and Secretary to the Treasury (PSST), Dr. Ramathan Ggoobi, has directed all Accounting Officers across Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) not to sign contracts or Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) with development partners on governance-related projects without prior authorisation from Cabinet.
The directive is contained in the Second Budget Call Circular on the finalisation of ministerial policy statements and detailed estimates of revenue and expenditure for Financial Year 2026/27, issued on 13 February 2026. Dr. Ggoobi noted that the directive aligns with Cabinet Minute 164 (CT 2025).
“As you finalize your budgets for FY2026/27, you are directed NOT to enter into agreements or Memoranda of Understanding with Development Partners on governance issues without prior clearance from Cabinet,” he said.
Ggoobi further emphasised that any financing proposals from development partners relating to governance must undergo a consultative process involving key stakeholders.
These include the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
“Strict adherence is required, and any deviations will be considered a breach of Cabinet directive,” he said.
In the same communication, the Ministry of Finance announced a revision of the projected national budget for FY2026/27. The resource envelope has been increased to Shs 78.249 trillion, reflecting an increment of Shs 8.85 trillion from the Shs 69.399 trillion initially communicated in the First Budget Call Circular.
Following the adjustments, all Accounting Officers have been instructed to revise their budget estimates in line with the current Indicative Planning Figures (IPFs).
“These are hard ceilings with no post-submission negotiations. You are required to exercise allocation efficiency to achieve maximum impact through efficient and strategic allocation of resources,” he said.
Ggoobi also revealed that since 1st July 2021, Government has sunk Shs 3.788 Trillion into the Parish Development Model (PDM) that has seen 10,589 eligible PDM SACCOs capitalized, thus asked all Local Government accounting officers to fully budget for PDM activities.
“Since 1st July 2021, Government has capitalized 10,589 eligible PDM SACCOs to a tune of Shs 3.788 trillion and is in the into the Sustainability and Acceleration Phase, to be undertaken on a village-by-village basis.
Accordingly, all Local Government Accounting Officers should fully budget for all activities under the Sustainability and Acceleration phase of the PDM under the Extension, Production and Marketing grants,” he said.
“The activities for the compilation of the SPEAR report and development of Parish Action Plans should be budgeted and funded through the Discretionary Development Equalization Grant (DDEG),” he added.
Ggoobi also asked all Accounting Officers to seek authorisation from the Ministry of ICT and National Guidance before purchase of any ICT related goods and services, saying the move is intended to ensure efficient digital governance and elimination of duplication in public digital infrastructure, that follows establishment of the Governmental Digital Registry (GDR) that is used by the Ministry of ICT to profile and maintain a comprehensive inventory of all Government digital assets.
“This registry enables real-time visibility of existing digital systems across Government and identifies areas of potential duplication or inefficiency. Accordingly, all MDAs and LGs are required to seek and obtain clearance and approval from the Ministry of ICT and National Guidance prior to including any budget provisions for new digital systems, ICT infrastructure upgrades, software applications, or digital transformation initiatives in their annual budget submissions,” he said.
The Ministry of Finance also revealed that in the coming 2026/27 budget particular attention will be on cleaning up and enforcing execution discipline and thus revealed plans to punish and reward Accounting Officers who fail to strengthen fiscal efficiency, strengthen budget execution discipline, and ensure increased productivity, to which Ggoobi outlined several budget efficiency reforms will be implemented.
“Introduction of the Accounting Officers’ Budget Discipline Charter for managing public funds. This demands fiscal discipline, adherence to work plans, timely budget submission, robust internal controls. It also emphasises personal accountability by Accounting Officers to Parliament for ensuring proper use of money, with penalties for non-compliance like failing to implement Auditor General’s recommendations or mismanaging funds,” the Budget Call Circular reads in part.
