By Mulengera Reporters
As part of the preparations to produce a document called National Development Plan (NDP) III, the National Planning Authority (NPA) has intensified consultations by reaching to different stakeholders. Only recently, the NPA Executive Board members and top management met the media partners. And yet prior to that there had been another stakeholder engagement on the steel sub sector where the development of Uganda’s vast iron ore resources was discussed.
Then last Thursday, the NPA team had a high-level engagement with UNDP and other development partner agencies at Serena Hotel where the policy dialogue series were launched all aimed at feeding into the NDP III thinking process.
Preceded by a similar two-day engagement with the leadership of the health sector, the Serena engagement reflected on how human capital development issues can be mainstreamed into the NDP III to ensure that especially the Ugandan labor force becomes more productive and practically skilled.
Consensus at the meeting, at which officials from KIU and Mubs were among major speakers, was that despite heavy government investment in the skilling programs, the quality of labor we have in Uganda isn’t the one that was envisaged under Uganda Vision 2040 which comprises of the different NDPs. “That’s why we are here to get your views on what must be done to enhance skilling of our population and quality of life of Ugandans. These are going to be prioritized in NDP III,” said NPA Chairperson Prof Pamela Mbabazi in her opening remarks during the Serena meeting.
Referring to marathon activities that are upcoming, Prof Mbabazi said they had a range of stakeholders to consult between now and September 2019 when they would want to have the NDP III draft document in place ahead of its launching/unveiling by the President in June 2020.
A fast-talking Mbabazi enumerated some of the areas to be prioritized in NDP III. These include emphasis being put on program-based planning approach to increase synergies and collaboration between government entities to eliminate duplication of interventions which leads to wastage of scarce government resources.
The parish-based model to development too is being emphasized to adequately reach out to the 68% of the population that is immersed in agriculture hence inclusiveness. Emphasis will also be on area-based commodity approach to allow areas specialize and produce efficiently.
Emphasis will also be had on boosting the GDP growth and per capita income and boosting house hold incomes to ultimately improve the quality of life of Ugandans. High impact strategic interventions will also be undertaken.
Prof Mbabazi said there will be a high-level consultative session at the end of September specifically targeting development partners and MDAs on especially implementation issues because their ineptness greatly affects implementation and realization of development objectives enshrined in the NDPs.
Prof Mbabazi, who sits in cabinet as an ex-officio member by virtue of being the NPA Chairperson, said she was enthused by the fact that there is a lot of political will and support in the top echelons of this country to ensure NDP III is well thought out via consultative processes to ensure it turns out to be a much better experience than the previous two NDPs preceding it.
