The Presidential Affairs Committee has supported a request for increased funding to facilitate Resident District Commissioners (RDCs) in monitoring government projects and for the phased construction of RDC offices nationwide.
Alex Byarugaba, Chairperson of the Presidential Affairs Committee, made the plea while presenting the Committee’s report on the 2025/26 budget for the Office of the President before Parliament’s Budget Committee. Byarugaba revealed the importance of the Office of the President in mobilizing the population towards socio-economic development, transformation, and prosperity.
Byarugaba revealed that the Office of the President requires Shs21Bn to provide adequate facilitation for RDCs. However, only Shs14.8Bn is included in the 2025/26 indicative budget, leaving a funding gap of Shs6.2Bn. The Committee recommended that the additional Shs6.2Bn be allocated, taking into account the size and nature of districts to ensure equitable facilitation for RDCs.
“The Office of the President needs Shs21Bn to facilitate RDCs, but only Shs14.8Bn has been provided in the budget, creating a gap of Shs6.2Bn,” Byarugaba noted.
He added : “We recommend that Shs6.2Bn be availed and that district size and nature be considered in allocating these funds.”
On the issue of office accommodation for RDCs, Byarugaba stated that with only Shs700M allocated to construct one office per year, it would take over 100 years to address the shortage. He proposed an additional Shs2.8Bn annually to enable the construction of five offices each financial year, mitigating the accommodation challenge in the medium term.
“With only Shs700M allocated annually, addressing the office accommodation challenge for RDCs would take more than a century. We recommend allocating Shs2.8Bn annually to construct five offices per year,” argued Byarugaba.
However, Ibrahim Ssemujju Nganda (Kira Municipality) raised concerns over the growing financial burden of facilitating RDCs, questioning the continuous expansion of their numbers through new appointments by the President. Ssemujju criticized what he described as the creation of non-essential portfolios, which he believes have bloated the budget.
“You recently appointed another 500 RDCs, and now you want offices for them. When will this end?” Ssemujju asked.
He further stated: “As you construct offices for the existing ones, the President is appointing new RDCs, creating unnecessary portfolios. Would it be unreasonable to recommend reducing their numbers? When the President came, there were 39 districts. We could go back to having 39 RDCs.”
Resident District Commissioners (RDCs), Deputy RDCs, and Assistant RDCs play pivotal roles in overseeing the implementation of government policies and maintaining security at the district level.
Appointed by the President, RDCs monitor the execution of central and local government services within their districts. They chair the district security committee and perform other duties as assigned by the President or stipulated by law.
In addition to their salaries, RDCs and Deputy RDCs are entitled to vehicles, each RDC and Deputy RDC is provided with a vehicle. They receive allowances such as fuel and imprest. Provision of an escort is also part of their benefits.
Assistant RDCs are expected to receive transport means, starting with motorcycles, in the next financial year.
