Gov’t to raise budget awareness

The government has embarked on a campaign to sensitize local councils about the national budget, as a means of making the budget more effective. The Minister of Local Government, James Musoni, said that by training the officials on the national budget, they will be in better position to pass on the message to their constituents, as well as establishing a feedback mechanism from the people they represent. “In the next national budget, 25 percent will be allocated to Local Government, so there is need for people from the grass root understand it and know their responsibilities concerning on the budget,” Musoni said. To facilitate the budget awareness drive, John Rwangombwa, the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, said that booklets, containing simplified information about the budget have been published. “We have translated booklets to the local language and they will be sent to all districts so that all the local leaders can easily read and understand them,” Rwangombwa said. A recent survey showed that 92 percent of rural citizens are ignorant about the national budget. According to Public Policy Information, Monitoring and Advocacy (PPIMA), a civil society organization, that conducted the survey, people in rural areas think that the budget does not concern them. Ends

National

Gov’t to raise budget awareness