KAMPALA.
Government raised its projected public spending for the 2026/2027 financial year by 12.7% to Shs78.2 trillion ($21.78 billion), up from an earlier estimate of Shs69.4 trillion, the finance ministry announced on Friday.
In a post on the microblogging platform X , previously Twitter, the ministry did not specify reasons for the increase.
The government has previously stated that spending in the next fiscal year will prioritize the completion of the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP), facilitating the commencement of crude oil production.
Other priorities include mineral quantification for iron ore, gold, and copper deposits, the development of a refinery, and the ongoing construction of a standard gauge railway, the ministry said.
“The budget for FY2026/27 will prioritize the ATMS and enablers. Particular attention will be on cleaning up and enforcing execution discipline,” said Uganda’s Secretary to the Treasury Ramathan Ggoobi.
‘Collaborative procurement’
According to the finance ministry, government will introduce a system of collaborative procurement from July 1, 2026, “as part of reforms aimed at standardising prices, improving quality control and achieving value for money across ministries, departments, agencies and local governments.”
Under the new framework arrangement, common user items will be aggregated and procured centrally to maximize economies of scale, improve time efficiency and ensure consistent standards in public procurement.
In a directive to accounting officers as they prepare budgets for the 2026/27 financial year, Ggoobi said government agencies are prohibited from signing agreements with development partners on governance matters without prior approval.
“In line with Cabinet Minute 164 (CT 2025), and as you finalize your budgets for FY2026/27, you are directed not to enter into agreements or memoranda of understanding with development partners on governance issues without prior clearance from Cabinet,” he said.
Ggoobi also said the finance ministry is developing a national Planning Strategy aimed at strengthening the planning function across government.
As part of the reforms, government has allocated an additional Shs200 million to each planning unit in ministries, and Shs100 million to each agency and local government planning unit.
“The funding is intended to support research-based planning, staff training, equipping of planning units and facilitation of programme-based planning and budgeting,” Ggoobi explained.
He added: “These funds are strictly meant to support research-based planning, equipping planning units, training and overall facilitation of staff in planning units to support the programme approach to planning and budgeting. They must not be diverted for other purposes.”