Ntungamo District Council Bids Farewell, Passes Sh76.1 Billion Budget

By Anthony Kushaba
The Ntungamo District Council has officially concluded its 2021–2026 term with a farewell sitting marked by the passage of budget estimates worth 76.148 billion Shillings for the 2026/2027 financial year. This represents a slight decline from the current fiscal year’s 76.161 billion Shillings, attributed to reduced support from development partners such as UNICEF and GAVI.

Budget Highlights

Staff salaries: Over 60% of the budget is dedicated to wages, underscoring the district’s commitment to strengthening service delivery in health, education, and infrastructure.
Funding sources: Secretary for Finance and Planning, Atuhaire Elijah, revealed that 97.4% of the budget will be financed by the central government, 2.5% from locally generated revenue, and just 0.1% from external funding.
Conditional grants: Despite the overall allocation, the district has seen a notable reduction in programme conditional grants.
Council Achievements and Transitions

Outgoing Speaker Twikirize Nicholas Mugyenyi praised councilors for fulfilling their mandate and highlighted achievements during the five-year tenure. Reports show that out of 63 councilors, only 22 will return in the next council.

Veteran politician Lay Canon Ketty Kapasi, who began her career in the 1990s and chose not to recontest, commended past and present leaders for laying a strong foundation. She hailed Chairman Mucunguzi Samuel and the council for unity and effective articulation of issues, before bidding farewell with a symbolic cake-cutting ceremony.

Recognition and Farewell

Deputy RDC Atuhaire Rosemary lauded the outgoing council for teamwork between political and technical arms, which she said improved service delivery. She also acknowledged the district’s allocation of land for a new modern President’s Office building.

Ntungamo resident district commissioner Mariam Kagaiga recogonized the longest serving members of the district council with gifts.

Those awarded with special gifts include Elijah Atuhaire who is the secretary for finance and also the councillor for Rugarama North, Anthony Byaruhanga the councillor representing male elderly and Lay canon Ketty Kapasi who represents female elderly.