Africa-Press – Uganda. The Permanent Secretary and Secretary to the Treasury (PSST) at the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, Ramathan Ggoobi, on Wednesday hosted a high-level delegation from Botswana’s Ministry of Finance, who are in Uganda on a peer learning mission focused on strengthening Public Investment Management (PIM) systems.
Ggoobi was joined by Acting Director Budget, Hannington Ashaba, and a technical team from the Projects Analysis and Public Investment Department.
The engagement centered on sharing Uganda’s experience in planning, appraising, selecting, and managing public investment projects.
The Botswana delegation includes Deputy Director Development Budget Edwin Tebangwa, Chief Economist Moemodi Max Sebudubudu, and Principal Economist Dimpho Baleseng.
They are particularly interested in Uganda’s framework for identifying, assessing, and selecting new projects, as well as fiscal management practices that ensure projects remain within approved expenditure ceilings.
Discussions focused on rationalizing project portfolios amid constrained fiscal space, strengthening appraisal and implementation systems, and maintaining a comprehensive and reliable project database.
In his remarks, Ggoobi welcomed the delegation and highlighted critical elements for effective public investment management, stressing the need for strong political and administrative support to ensure discipline and adherence to established frameworks.
“Projects must undergo rigorous technical, financial, and economic evaluation to deliver value for money and achieve their intended development outcomes,” he said.
Ggoobi also emphasized continuous capacity building within government institutions, urging technical officers to strengthen their competencies in project appraisal methodologies and PIM processes, and to extend training to other ministries, departments, and agencies.
He outlined additional measures Uganda has adopted to enhance public investment efficiency, including co-investment arrangements with the private sector and operationalizing institutional frameworks such as the Integrated Bank of Projects and the Development Committee to streamline project preparation and approval.
