Profile of public sector

The Uganda public sector refers to the production, delivery and allocation of goods and services by and for the government or its citizens, whether at central or local government level. The public sector covers all government ministries and agencies of government. The public sector management players include the following;

The Public sector therefore includes all departments, agencies and Local governments.

Importance of Public Sector

The role of the public sector includes the following;

  • It oversees the economic development of the country;
  • It provides employment in the public sector and also acts as a model employer in terms of staff welfare matters;
  • It encourages balanced regional development as government services are available in all areas;
  • The public sector provides the necessary infrastructure in terms of roads, railway, airports, and hospitals which are necessary to support the economic development of the country;
  • The sector provides pubic services to the society that cannot be effectively provided by the private sector;
  • It is responsible for keeping  economic development on the right course and therefore it can take corrective action in case need arises,

Regulatory Framework

The legal and regulatory framework used by the Public Sector to initiate and implement infrastructure development and service delivery is covered   under the following:

The Ministry of Public Service

The Ministry of Public Service exists to develop, manage and administer human resource polices, management systems, procedures and structure for the public service.

Uganda Constitution

The Constitution is the supreme law of Uganda. The present constitution was adopted on 8 October 1995. It is Uganda’s fourth constitution since the country’s independence from Britain in 1962. The constitution lays out the basic structure of the government according to which the people are to be governed, defines the powers allotted to each of the three main organs and makes a clear demarcation of the responsibilities assigned to each of them. Any law enacted by the ruling government has to be in conformity with the concerned constitution. The constitution of a particular country lays down the national goals which form the basic edifice on which the nation rests upon.

Local Government Act 1997

An Act to amend, consolidate and streamline the existing law on local governments in line with the Constitution to give effect to the decentralisation and devolution of functions, powers and services and to provide for decentralisation at all levels of local governments

Public Procurement and Disposal of Assets (PPDA) Act 2003

PPDA regulate and facilitate public procurement and disposal in Uganda by setting standards, building capacity and monitoring compliance and ultimately contribute to socio-economic development

Land Act 1998

An Act to provides for the tenure, ownership and management of land, to amend and consolidate the law relating to tenure, ownership and management of land and to provide for other related or incidental.

Challenges in Public Sector

The challenges of the public sector include the following:

  • Lack of commitment from public servants to deliver effective and quality service;
  • Weak state of records management;
  • The public sector tends to suffer from bureaucratic tendencies;
  • The sector is often faced with poor leadership of public servants due to inadequate training;
  • The government employees tend to live lavish lifestyles at the expense of the public;
  • The resources of government are often not effectively utilized;
  • The public sector suffers from corruption scandals and
  • The resources envelope for rendering quality services to the public is quite small.

The information under the public sector is organised as follows

Governance in Uganda

Financing Developments

Water Sector in Uganda

Mining sector