President of Uganda Promised in 2006 to "End Poverty" by 2017

on
The World Bank defines Poverty as the lack or insufficiency of money to meet basic needs, including food, clothing and shelter and can be measured in monetary terms based on the monthly (or annual) expenditure of a given individual. In relation to target 1.1 of  SDG 1 which states that, "By 2030, eradicate extreme poverty for all people everywhere, currently measured as people living on less than $1.25 a day", any individual who spends less than $1.25 a day is considered as an extremely poor.


READ ALSO : 5 Things You should Know About Ghana's Social Protection Policy

Photo Credit: Africa's Fact Zone

President Yoweri Museveni made the promise to end poverty in 2006 at a point when the proportion of the Ugandan population living below the poverty line was 31.1%. This is the period of the Millennium Development Goals. In fact, the government was able to work hard to bring the 31.1% in 2006 to 19.7% in 2013 according to the World Bank. 2017 just expired and instead of further reduction, if not totally end it as promised, the poverty rate has rather gone up. Daily Monitor in Kampala on Thursday September 28, 2017 reported that, 3.4 million more Ugandans have slipped into poverty.

According to the Uganda National Household Survey (UNHS) 2016/17 report released by the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS), more people in Uganda are slipping into poverty with the number of poor people currently increased to 10 million compared to 6.6 million in 2013.


In the final Millennium Development Goals Report for Uganda, the  most important success was under MDG 1- income poverty- which was reduced by two thirds, surpassing the 50% reduction specified by the target. According to UNDP, this reduction  was driven by broad-based economic growth, enabled by strong macroeconomic management, public investment in infrastructure such as feeder roads and rural electrification, regional integration and trade, and rapid urban growth. The Government of Uganda led by President Museveni did a fantastic job in fighting poverty in all its forms under the MDGs.

The era of the SDGs seems to bring on board a lot of opportunities and strategies in dealing with poverty which countries must explore.

Poverty fighting which is considered as one of the unfinished business of the MDGs captured by the  SDGs has seen sure progress in most countries across Africa. But the opposite is happening in Uganda despite the promise made by the president.

Going forward, it is very important that the Government of Uganda opens up the economy as it was done between 2006 and 2013 backed by strong macroeconomic managements in order to move back on track in ending  poverty by 2030.

Again, the private sector can play a role in creating economic opportunities for the poor by focusing on segments of the economy where most of the poor are active, namely on micro and small enterprises and those operating in the informal sector.

READ ALSO: African Youth Propose the Creation of "African Youth SDGs Fund"

In conclusion, it is clear that the promise made by the president couldn't be materialized. 2017 just died and poverty is on the rise. Apart from that, there are further 14.7 million Ugandans who remain vulnerable as captured in the Millennium Development Goals Report for Uganda 2015. Fighting poverty is a collective responsibility as poverty has the tendency of affecting international peace and security. In fact, poverty is detrimental, and  if bold steps are not put in place to overcome it, the world will continue to suffer its impact on economic growth and social cohesion as well as political and social tensions.

Click HERE to Download the full report on MDGs for Uganda


Author : Clifford

Comments

Post a Comment