By Ritah Kemigisa
The World Bank has warned against continued use of supplementary budgeting which it says is undermining fiscal consolidation.
The Bank’s latest 19th Uganda Economic update shows that during the first half of last financial year, a supplementary budget amounting to shs 3.8 trillion was utilized by the Ministry of Defense, Ministry of Health, and State House, with direct COVID-19-related expenses accounting for only 13 percent of the total supplementary budget.
According to the World Bank, the total of supplementary budgets for last financial year are equivalent to 8.5% of the annual budget.
It is from this that the bank urges government to limit supplementary budgeted to unforeseen and unavoidable situations, to avoid distorting the budget process and national priorities.
Speaking to KFM recently, the permanent secretary and secretary to the treasury in the ministry of Finance Ramathan Ggoobi says they will work with parliament to ensure such budget distortions are minimized.
