Here is the so called Uganda's poor man's Budget.

Is uganda budget a poor man’s budget or a rich man’s budget?
The 2007/2008 budget which was read on Thursday June 14, 2007, left many questions un aswered.Many Ugandans were hoping that the government will present a better plan to generate revenue and spend it in the most beneficial manner. They expected the budget to sufficiently Adress issues like energy, infrastructural development , poverty, high taxation and information technology . Many Ugandans had thopugh that the government learnt from last year's budget, and will provide a more efficient budget which is capable of solving uganda’s problems unfortunately it was the reverse .


Areas of interest : energy, transport infrastructure, ICTs, Science and technology, industrial development; rural development, human development, security and government,
92bn for thermal generation
119bn for development of hydro power plants (Bujagali)
More incentives for export investors -10yr tax holiday
Government to fund 61.7% of budget locally
Taxes scraped: road licenses no more, income tax for airlines,
New taxes: environmental tax on motor spare parts, polythene bags, local service tax, local hotels tax, 18% and 21% tax increase on fuel
35bn for road maintenance, 15bn for completion of stalled roads
34bn for recruitment of secondary teachers
12bn to roll out NAADS( National Agricultural Advisory Services) to all districts
10bn for bonabagawale (prosperity for all) loans -to be managed by Prosperity for all desk in President's Office and Sub-county Chiefs
Agricultural loans to strengthen marketing and processing of local products
2b for marketing research in agriculture
11bn for recruitment of health workers and provision of drugs at Health centre IIIs
National Health Insurance scheme for later next year.
Soldiers' salary increased from shs. 140, 000 to 180, 000
15.6bn for local government pension arrears
10.2mUSD to fight corruption
7.5bn for model sub-county program
50bn fro IDB (international Development bank ) to support SMEs
33bn for local governments
7.5bn for local government pension arrears
200bn to pay pension arrears
80bn to be pensioners this year
Total resource envelope: 5025bn shillings
Dr. Ezra Suruma has said that most of this years budget will be funded by the government . He also noted that the government will emphasise the provision of energy, transport infrastructure, Science and Technology, rural development, human development, security as well as funding the education .
Dr. Suruma further highlighted that the government expect to get 5,025bn of which 61.7% will be financed from local sources . Uganda Revenue Authority, expects to collect 3, 190bn. The government expects donors to fund 38.3% of the budget.This is in line with government intention to fund most of its budget than last year where 44%of the budget was funded by donars
To fight illitacy in uganda t, the Education sector has been given a lions sharein the Budget. The sector’s budget grew by 5% to sh752.35b up from sh720.81b this financial year, which ends June 30. The closest sectors to the education budget were Economic Functions and Social services which grew from sh671.38b to sh720.70b; Works and transport from sh464.88b to sh563.70b; Security from sh377.26b to sh396.9b and Health from sh381.84b to 386.46.
This year’s budget read under the theme, "re-orienting government expenditure towards prosperity for all," will expand opportunities for local people to improve their incomes.
The minister also announced VAT reduction on residential properties to promote proper accommodation. The government is to loose about 2bn from this measure.
What must bring a smile to some Ugandans , the government has also scrapped off road license fees paid by all vehicles, except regestration charges . Dr. Suruma said that the government will lose about Shs 80bn which it was getting in these road fees.
But the government as expected has increased excise duty on fuel from shs.450 to 530 per liter of diesel. Diesel has been increased by 18% and petrol by 21%. This will help the government get 56bn shillings. But the government intoduced road fund to help develop infrastructure to ensure marketing of fermers product.
All the East African cauntries decided to ban polythene/plastic bags (buveera) of less than 30microns and impose 120% excise duty on the rest. Importation and manufacturing of these buveera is banned with effect from July 1st, 2007.
Dr. suruma also proposed a fixed levy of 0.25USD per kilogram of hides and skins, introduction of a 10% environmental levy on used motor vehicle spare parts. This will add to the already existing 10% environmental levy on importation of used motor vehicles

This budget has shown the resilience of the Ugandan economy. To register an economic growth of 6.5%, maintain inflation at 7.8%, the Uganda Revenue Authority collecting a surplus of shillings 2,566 billion in a time of electricity shortage, high oil prices is very remarkable," said President Yoweri Museveni
“ I want to be optimistic that a people who have been able to grow at a rate above 6% per annum over the last 15 years while at war and without oil, can grow even faster while we are not at war and when we have oil," Dr. Suruma said.
The budget performance is measured according to how much it contributes to more gainful economic activities (production), and thus contributing to poverty reduction.Is this a poor man's budget.