The Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Thomas Tayebwa, has called on the Attorney General and the Minister for Finance, Planning, and Economic Development to expedite the amendment of the Public Finance Management Act, 2015 (PFMA) to align with programme-based budgeting.
Addressing Parliament on Thursday, January 30, 2025, during discussions on the 2025/2026 budget framework paper, Tayebwa emphasized the need to restructure Section 13(4) of the PFMA ahead of the 2026/2027 budget.
This section currently states that “The Speaker shall commit the proposed annual budget to the Budget Committee of Parliament and to each sectoral committee of Parliament the part of the annual budget that falls within the jurisdiction of that sectoral committee.”
Tayebwa pointed out the challenges created by the current structure, where ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs) are scattered across multiple sectoral committees, leading to inefficiencies. He cited an instance where the Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) had to appear before four different committees due to the misalignment of committees with the budgeting process.
“We need to realign our committees with the budgeting process. The Attorney General made a commitment to us here, and we want to make sure this is done before the next budget cycle. We cannot have MDAs scattered all over different committees,” Tayebwa stated.
He referenced a report tabled by the Committee on Rules, Privileges, and Discipline, which recommended amending the PFMA to streamline the process and support the transition to programme-based budgeting. This restructuring would involve adjusting the definitions of “sector” and “budget” in the PFMA to align with the proposed changes in Parliament’s Rules of Procedure.
“These amendments are critical for improving efficiency. They have no financial implications; they are purely about realignment,” Tayebwa added.
The Attorney General, Hon. Kiryowa Kiwanuka, responded positively, committing to preparing a draft proposal for amending the PFMA within one month. “We can draft the Bill and forward it to the Ministry of Finance for further processing,” Kiwanuka said.
In a previous plenary sitting on March 5, 2024, Parliament had adopted the Committee on Rules, Privileges, and Discipline’s report, which aligned the Rules of Procedure of Parliament with the Programme-Based Budgeting Framework. At the time, Hon. Henry Musasizi, the State Minister for Finance, Planning, and Economic Development (General Duties), had indicated that discussions on amending the PFMA to give legal effect to the programme-based budgeting framework were underway.
Deputy Speaker Tayebwa instructed the Minister for Finance to provide regular updates on the progress of consultations regarding the proposed amendments, urging that the draft amendments be submitted to the House within the next year.
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