President Museveni’s government this week announced that it had approved 25 new districts in Uganda. The NRM government of president Museveni captured power through an armed struggle when Uganda had only 25 districts, 26 years later the country now has 137 districts.

However it is expensive to support a district. It requires a district council councilors, district chairperson and deputy, a resident district commissioner (RDC), chief administrative officer and his assistants, district planner, district education officer, district environment officer, district agricultural officer, NAADS coordinator, secretaries, DPC, CIDs, district service commission, district land board, district health officer, sub county chiefs and so many other technical staff members all drawing hefty salaries and allowances.

Many of the new districts Museveni’s government create have few sources of income where some of the districts created cannot pay their public servants, and must rely on their mother districts for support.

President Museveni’s government claim that it creates new districts to improve service delivery but in places where most of these new districts have been created the said service deliveries have not been realized.

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