First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of East African Affairs Rebecca Kadaga
The Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) together with 11 United Nations (UN) agencies have launched a three-year joint programme that will lead to the collection and analysis of data and statistics which are geared towards improving planning and budgeting in Uganda.
The program, which will cost $41.8 million (about Shs160 billion), is envisaged to produce timely and quality data and statistics that will also support the implementation of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Speaking at the launch in Kampala on Tuesday, January 30, 2024, the Executive Director of UBOS, Dr. Chris N. Mukiza, said the programme is a fundamental step in bringing the entire National Statistical System (NSS) to the same wavelength and appreciation of the need for quality data at all levels.
He said the programme will help the government to create public awareness of the various data and statistical programmes, disseminate the findings of the status review of data and statistics in Uganda, re-affirm the critical role of data and statistics in tracking and accelerating progress on SDGs in Uganda and consolidate existing and build new partnerships along the statistics value chain.
UN Resident Coordinator, Ms Susan Ngongi Namondo
“Quality data is a key prerequisite for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) targets. Similarly, the National Development Plan is reliant on quality statistics to inform the government of its performance and where necessary to inform policy review or redirection of resources to achieve maximum economic gains. These efforts will hugely gain from the rollout of an implementation plan of this joint programme,” Dr Mukiza said.
The participating UN organisations in the launch of the programme are UNDP, UN Women, UNICEF, UNAIDS, WHO, UNCDF, UNGP, FAO, UNEP and IOM.
The UN Resident Coordinator, Ms Susan Ngongi Namondo, said it took three years for the partner agencies to come up with the programme. She, therefore, challenged the government to take a new approach towards data collection and utilisation by building synergies across its different ministries and departments for effective development.
State Minister for Finance (Planning) Amos Lugoloobi said the initiative will revolutionise the national statistical system to tap into mainstreaming administrative and citizen-generated data into the realm of official statistics.
“This initiative comes at a time when we are planning to conduct our 11th National Population and Housing Census. The results and outcomes from the Census undertaking should provide a firm baseline on which the monitoring of all major statistical indicators should be anchored,” Mr Lugoloobi said.
Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja, in her speech read by First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of East African Affairs Rebecca Kadaga, hailed the UN agencies for supporting Uganda in improving its capacity to collect data that is necessary for planning.
She said the programme comes at a time when the government is implementing SDGs and various wealth-creation projects that require data for effective planning and resource allocation.
Executive Director of UBOS, Dr Chris N. Mukiza
“We, therefore, cannot wait longer to have the outcomes of this programme to support us manage the equitable allocation of resources and informing evidence-based policy and decision-making,” she said.
Ms Nabbanja, however, appealed to technocrats to make the programme user-friendly for various stakeholders such as local government leaders and the general public.
“…statisticians and demographers are not any different when they start talking about the ‘coefficients of variation’, ‘geometric mean’, ‘GDP deflators’, ‘degrees of freedom’ etc.,” she said.
“Therefore, in dealing with the phenomenon of statistical data, it is important that the data to be managed and subsequently disseminated meets the basic tenets of good data/information,” she added.