State Minister for Finance in charge General Duties, Henry Musasizi.
Uganda’s economy is projected to grow at a rate of 6% in the Financial Year 2023/2024.
The State Minister of Finance in Charge of General Duties made the revelation Tuesday while officiating at the first Public Finance Management Annual Conference at Imperial Resort Beach Hotel in Entebbe.
”The economy has remained resilient and is now steadily recovering from the impact of COVID-19 pandemic. In the first quarter of this financial year, the economy expanded by 7.5% and is projected to grow at 5.3% this FY (2022/23)and 6% in the FY 2023/2024. Uganda Annual Inflation eased to 9% in March 2023 down from a peak of 10.7% in October 2022,” Musasizi said.
He added: ”Plans are underway to widen Uganda’s tax base through efficience gains in tax administration and bringing on board more of the informal sector in the money economy.”
According to Musasizi, ”This is being achieved by the government interventions such as emyooga, Youth Livelihood and Women Entrepreneurship programmes and the Parish Development Model.”
Musasizi underscored the need for Public Finance Management.
He said that the government has taken a deliberate measure to ensure the efficient, effective and accountable use of public resources.
”Strong Public Finance Management systems promote transparency, accountability and good governance which are essential for effective service delivery and sustainable economic development,” he said.
Speaking at the same event, the President of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Uganda, Othieno Mayende described PFM as the backbone of national development.
”The world’s fastest growing economies have placed PFM at the forefront with substantial investments in education, health and information communications technology infrastructure to improve the management of information, foster integration of systems, enhance transparency and eliminate fraud,” Mayende said, adding that PFM reforms take centre stage world over.’
Mayende commended the government for the efforts in the PFM space.
”Government accounting officers have attested to improved revenue management, faster payment processing, and improvement in controls, among other benefits of the integrated financial management system, commonly referred to as IFMS. Efficiency resulting from automation has contributed to faster service delivery to the citizens of Uganda,” said Mayende.
The 3-day PFM conference ends tomorrow, Friday.
