Background

Corruption remains an impediment to development and a barrier to poverty reduction in Uganda and in many other African countries. This study has defined corruption as “abuse of office for private gain” and recent surveys, coupled with nationally produced data, indicate that corruption in Uganda is a problem, both at national and local government levels. Corruption manifests itself as bribery, financial leakages, conflict of interest, embezzlement, false accounting, fraud, influence peddling, nepotism, theft of public funds or theft of public assets. With the discovery of oil and the prospect of substantial windfall oil revenues coming on stream in the relatively near future, Uganda is bound to face major challenges with regard to the problem of corruption.

The Data Tracking Mechanism

The Data Tracking Mechanism was launched in 2009 to address a growing concern about the lack of credible tools and methods to track corruption. The initiative aimed to develop a tool, the DTM, to monitor corruption trends in Uganda on an annual basis. The current study provides a baseline for tracking progress over time. Altogether, the DTM comprises 71 indicators which are used to track corruption.

Data Collection

The choice of the 71 indicators was agreed in a workshop of 7 April 2010 in Kampala. The EPRC was designated the DTM Manager and EPRC collected and analyzed data associated with the 71 indicators. Some of the data sources were from Uganda including the Uganda Bureau of Statistics, the Office of Auditor General, the Inspectorate of Government, Budget Monitoring and Analysis, Procurement Performance Management System, and Uganda Police Force. The rest of the data was sourced from international organizations that collected and compiled data from Uganda, including Global Integrity and Transparency International.

Findings and Recommendations

1. A Large Implementation Gap. Uganda has made great efforts at establishing systems to fight corruption. By 1970, the Prevention of Corruption Act (1970) had been enacted; then the Inspector General of Government Statute (1988), the Anti-Corruption Act (2009) and the Enforcement of the Leadership Code of Conduct Act (2002) were also put in place. However, the implementation of corruption prevention and detection and of anti-corruption enforcement has been particularly weak. In a recent study of 114 countries, Uganda was found to have had the largest implementation gap, in which it was scored very highly (99%) on having a very good legal framework but was awarded 45% for having weak implementation record, giving an implementation gap of 54% (Global Integrity Report, 2009). Further evidence of the existence of this implementation gap is given in the subsequent sections of the Report.
   
   Recommendation: To tackle the challenge posed by anti-corruption enforcement, the Government of Uganda should consider adoption and implementation of good enforcement practices similar to those of other countries which have made a serious commitment in this area: Bangladesh has adopted a 60-day timeline for handling corruption prosecution in Bangladesh; Ghana has established a “fast-track” court for corruption cases in Ghana; and use of speedy and effective prosecutorial methods, including the protection of whistleblowers in Singapore. We would recommend that government study these examples and adopt at least one of the mechanisms as a way to accelerate prosecutions.


2. Weak Performance related to Enforcement of Political Financing Disclosure. On Regulations governing Political Financing of Parties and Individual candidates, Uganda rates “very weak” in critical areas of political financing which include; (i) Regulatory effectiveness related to political governance, and (ii) Citizen access to information for financing of political parties and individual candidates campaigns. However, regulation of conflict of interest appears more promising and this can be seen against Uganda’s “strong” track record for establishing laws and regulations. But as further evidence will reveal, Uganda has been less successful in implementing its laws and regulations and this has given the country the distinction of having the largest implementation gap in the world.
   
   Recommendation: Enforcement of Political Financing Disclosure – Although no modern state has eliminated corruption from its party and campaign finances, the Government of Uganda could seek to reduce the scope for corruption by strengthening the enforcement of disclosure laws and regulations. There is need to ensure that disclosure laws include clear enforcement guidelines and penalties for non-compliance. In addition, within three months, the Electoral Commission should take the steps necessary to enforce disclosure of financial records of individual candidates and political parties as stipulated by law, and such information should be made publicly available.


3. Substantial Improvement needed to ensure a Safe and Open Climate for Reporting on Corruption. There are two notable findings related to the role of media in combating corruption.
   • On censorship of corruption-related Journalism, two elements are assessed to determine if media are able to report on corruption: (i) Whether the government or media owners/distribution groups encourage self-censorship of corruption related stories, and (ii) The extent to which there is no prior government restraint (pre-publication censoring) on publishing corruption-related stories. On the first element, Uganda was “strong” in 2007 but dropped to a “very weak” rating in 2009. On refraining from censoring publication of corruption-related stories, Uganda’s rating fell from “very strong” in 2006 to “very weak” in 2008 but improved marginally to “weak” in 2009.
   • On Imprisonment of journalists investigating corruption, Uganda had a poor record between 2007 and 2009. On physical harm to journalists investigating corruption, Uganda’s record was good during the four assessment years 2006-2009. On killing of journalists investigating corruption, Uganda’s record was consistently clean.


4. Bribery Continues to be a Factor of Citizen Interactions with Government Officials: The Afrobarometer data chosen for DTM on the extent to which households had to pay a bribe, give a gift, or do a favor to government officials in respect of obtaining permits, getting water or sanitation and avoiding problems with the police show that bribery in the three areas cuts across sectors and functions equally, affecting one out four households in the country.
   
   Recommendation: The Prime Minister’s Office should direct individual MDA’s responsible for the administrative procedures identified in this report to initiate business process reviews with the aim of reforming functional processes that are subject to bribery and corruption which impact citizens and enterprises. The Prime Minister’s Office would monitor progress on the reviews and reforms. The functional processes might include starting a business, securing a construction permit, registering a property, making tax payments, enforcing contracts, securing a driver’s license, obtaining an educational certificate, securing a land title, and connection and disconnection of utilities.


5. Auditing can be Improved, Particularly as it relates to Involving Citizens. Uganda is doing well In terms of auditing annual expenditures in a timely manner, but there is still room for improvement. Secondly, there is a positive trend in the release of public audits of extra-budgetary funds – and this could indicate a willingness to improve; however, areas that reflect poor and sometimes very poor performances exist and they increase opportunities for corruption to take hold and continue. These areas include: actions related to the auditing of actual outcomes, maintaining formal mechanisms of communication with the public, reporting to the public on actions taken to address audit recommendations, releasing public audits of extra-budgetary funds and public reporting related to tracking of executive actions to remedy audit recommendations. Nearly all these areas of weakness refer to communication with the public; so Uganda has got to improve on giving and receiving information from the public in budget matters.
   
   Recommendation: Institutionalize Citizen Participation, especially with Auditing – As has been proven in Indonesia, combining auditing with citizen participation can be an important means of strengthening anti-corruption efforts. We recommend that the Auditor General commence a regular process of announcing audits of public infrastructure projects to national and local communities, and hold community-level town meetings to discuss audit findings upon completion of infrastructure projects. Over the next year, we recommend that the Auditor General conducts 20 audits which include the citizen participation approach described above. Results of the audits should be announced in the papers in the relevant district, and this information should be posted at the District’s notice board.


6. Need for Improvement in Quality of Budget Information Provided to Public, and More Citizen Consultation. Open Budget Initiative’s budget-related indicators attempt to evaluate the quantity of information available to the public in Uganda’s budget documents; the opportunities for public participation in the budget process; as well as the ability of key oversight institutions of Government to hold the Executive accountable. The analysis reveals that there is substantial room for improvement for the government of Uganda to make available high quality, user-friendly relevant budget reports to the public of Uganda, and to consult its citizens in the budget process.
   
   Recommendation: Based on the evaluation results we recommend as follows: (a) There is substantial room for improvement to make available high quality budget reports to the public and (b) The Uganda Government should do more by way of consulting its citizens in the budget process.


7. Improvement of Parliamentary Scrutiny of External Audit Reports, yet Need for Executive Follow Through. Legislative scrutiny of external audit report includes three areas of assessment: (i) Timeliness of examination of audit reports by the legislature (for reports received within the last year); (ii) Extent of hearings on key findings undertaken by legislature; and (iii) Issuance of recommended actions by the legislature and implementation by the executive. The results from Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability (PEFA) covering 2005 to 2008 showed consistent poor performance in respect of (i), steady improved performance in respect of (ii) and decline in performance in respect of (iii). However, since 2008 the PAC of Parliament has made notable progress. It has reviewed and adopted recommendations for Central Government reports from 2001/02 to 2006/07, and for Local Governments from 2001/02 to 2004/05. The Public Accounts Committee should be commended for addressing this backlog.
   
   Recommendation: Currently, there is need for MOFPED to issue Treasury Memorandum to implement these findings of the CAG and Parliament. We recommend a target of no more than six months for the issuance of this memorandum.


8. Lack of Available Data to Assess Anti-Corruption Efforts in Procurement. PPDA was asked to provide information related to the following two procurement indicators (from the PPMS system) which relate to corruption in this area: % of sampled contracts subject to open competition, and % of procurements with disclosed evaluation criteria actually applied. These two criteria are critical components of fighting corruption in procurement. Unfortunately, the data provided was not responsive to this request.
   
   Recommendation: Bolster Competitive Procurement Efforts – PPDA should continue to ensure that procurement processes are transparent and competitive by publishing regular reports to the public at least annually on the status of contractual activity in the government using the PPMS system. Reports should be posted on the PPDA website to ensure accessibility to the public. This reporting should address the extent to which procurements are open and competitive, and the level of procurements which include evaluation criteria. Normally, these practices help reduce corrupt practices and increase the chances of obtaining value for money in public spending. In addition, PPMS should provide to the public and the press a list of all contractors awarded a contract in a given period, the amount of the contract, and the contract purpose. This information should be provided on a quarterly basis.


9. Budget Monitoring Data can be improved to assess Corruption in Roads and other Public Works Projects. For this report we selected two roads projects from the Budget Monitoring and Analysis Unit (BMAU) Reports of 2008/9 and 2009/10. These were the Kampala Northern By-Pass and the Soroti-Dokolo roads projects. At the time of reporting on them, both had a weighted physical progress of 90% or more. The data showed that the Northern By-Pass was 22 months 11 days beyond the initially agreed completion time of 30 months. It developed cracks along the shoulder and a dispute also arose which led to works stoppage. The projected overrun was 30% of the original price of UGX 83.9 billion (excluding VAT). The Soroti-Dokolo road was ahead of schedule with 26.1% of the contract time remaining to finish 10% of the remaining road works. By that time 90.6% of the revised contract price of UGX73.9 billion had been paid. The original contract price had been revised from UGX 70.6 billion to UGX73.9 billion; and then another revision from UGX73.9 billion to UGX96.1 billion was made; this latter revision was excessive in the light of the good progress made already. Information like this on roads construction did not necessarily point to a specific practice of corruption; however, cost overruns and high per unit costs are flags for the possibilities of corruption and merit special attention.
   
   Recommendation: Curb Corruption in Public Works – A first step for improving data in this area is for BMAU to start immediately to collect data associated with the following indicators for all of its infrastructure project evaluations (including roads, hospitals and other public works): (i) unit prices for construction components at entry (based on the amount at the contract signing) and exit (exit costs include variation of quantities and amendments of contract, etc); and (ii) project costs and the unit costs estimates included in detailed engineering studies (DES).


10. Need for More Data Assessing Corruption in Key Sectors such as Agriculture, Health, Education, and Transport. Numerous sector indicators reveal notable problems with corruption in education, health, the business environment, as well as with sub-county and local council institutions.
    • Education, Health, Sub-county and Local Council II Institutions
      Uganda Bureau of Statistics (NSDS 2008) provided valuable baseline data related to; (i) Misuse of funds in targeted public institutions; results showed that 8.4 % of sub-counties had been involved in misuse of public funds and in 23.1% of those involved no action taken on the culprits; (ii) Enforcement actions related to misuse of funds in these public institutions and facilities; the health sector showed the highest percentage of institutions that were involved in misuse but where no action was taken.
    • Health – Sale of Drugs
      Uganda Bureau of Statistics (NSDS 2008) assessed the extent to which patients in government health facilities paid for drugs; the results showed that 15.5% of patients at government health facilities paid for drugs. This information serves as a useful baseline for tracking corruption in the health sector.
    • Business Environment –Enterprise Bribery
      Ugandan Data from Doing Business suggests there is substantial room for improvement to eliminate bribery in doing business; streamlining processes and reducing them would minimize opportunities for bribery. In particular, the number of procedures associated with starting a business and registering a property in Uganda far exceed the neighbors’ and sub-Saharan averages.


11. Public Data related to Reporting and Enforcement of Administrative Corruption is Weak and Fragmented. Anti-corruption efforts reveal that substantial improvements can be made as reflected in the comments below.
    • The National Integrity Survey (NIS)
      The National Integrity Survey (NIS) of 2008 provides data on: (i) Number of corruption cases reported in governmental organizations over last four years; the data showed an increase; 16.1% in 2004 and 28.1% in 2007 indicated one or more cases of corruption were reported in their organization; (ii) Number of corruption cases that resulted in suspension or dismissal; data also showed an increase; 22.5% in 2004 and 33.4% in 2007; (iii) Number of reported cases of corruption taken to courts of law which resulted in conviction of culprits; 7.1% in 2004 and 14.3% in 2007.
      
      The success of the anti-corruption campaign will depend on the number of corruption cases comprehended and on which action is taken. However, NIS data does not give actual numbers on reported cases, suspensions, dismissals or convictions. It is therefore recommended that Government designates an appropriate entity to manage the collection of this information across government institutions, so that DTM can track actual cases.
    
    
    • Inspectorate of Government (IG)
      The IG provides data on corruption to parliament twice a year. However, the reporting from IG needs to be revised to show more clearly the number of cases that were brought forward and the length of time a case has spent at the IG; it is also not clear from the IG data whether there is a system to track the outcome of IG cases that are referred to other institutions. The high proportion of cases “still going on” suggests that the IG needs to do more to clear these cases on a biannual basis.
      
      Recommendation: Generate Accurate Data on the Outcomes and Duration of Anti-Corruption Cases – The IG has made great strides to report routinely on its activities related to investigating and prosecuting of corruption cases. Nevertheless, the efforts of the IG could be improved. The IG Reports to Parliament would benefit from improving data accuracy, rigor, and integrity. Additional information which focuses on the outcome of corruption cases over time would be beneficial. This type of focus would assess how long it takes (on average) for corruption cases to be resolved, and the likelihood of a culprit to be sanctioned, administratively or judicially. Determining the outcome of cases over time is of particular importance because many corruption cases unfold over a multi-year period.
    
    
    • Uganda Police Report: The 2008 and 2009 Uganda Police Force Annual Crime Reports show data on (i) Number of corruption cases that were reported to the police; results showed these doubled from 46 cases in 2008 to 95 in 2009; (ii) The percentage of corruption cases reported to police and taken to court - 87% of the reported cases in 2008 were taken to court, but the percentage in 2009 dropped substantially to 38%. More information would be needed – for example to explain the decrease in reported cases that were taken to court; whether it was due to a lower commitment to enforcement or lack of capacity to handle increased workload; or whether it was because of a shift in the type of corruption cases, or another factor. Recommendation: Strengthen Efforts to Collect and Make Available Corruption Data - Numerous governmental entities generate information which is useful to the DTM. These entities include the IG, the Auditor General, BMAU (MOFPED), the Police (including the Criminal Investigations Division), DPP, Anti-Corruption Division in the High Court, DEI, Public Service Commission, Local Government Commission, Inspectorate of Courts, and UBOS. The data helps citizens understand the nature of governmental efforts to combat corruption, and the areas where corruption is greatest. These entities should be more proactive to collect consistent and frequent data related to corruption, and they should make available their reports or surveys on the Internet for a ten-year period. A specific example of how government can be more pro-active in this area would be for UBOS to collect data on stock-outs in health facilities, a problem which appears to have a linkage to corruption (in addition to other factors) in the health sector.


12. Information related to Outcomes and Duration of Anti-Corruption Cases is Poor, partially due to Weak Coordination amongst Anti-Corruption Entities. This study has established that there are multiple government agencies involved in the collection of corruption-related data. However, their efforts are not well coordinated, limiting our ability to understand the effectiveness of government anti-corruption efforts, particularly related to public sector corruption.
    
    Recommendation: Ensure all Anti-Corruption Entities Provide Useful Information on Public Sector Corruption – The government should support efforts to ensure that all anti-corruption entities in the government are generating regular and comprehensive reports to the public related to outcomes and performance associated with public sector anti-corruption activities. Activities (or cases) involving public sector officials or resources should be distinguished from strictly private sector corruption activities. The reports should be based upon consistent and frequent data collection. If the entity is involved with anti-corruption cases (such as the IG, CID, DPP, and the Anti-Corruption Division of the High Courts), its reports should emphasize data which reveals the outcome of cases and the average length of time associated with resolution of a corruption case. If the entity is involved in broader efforts to combat corruption (such as DEI, PSC, the Local Government Commission, and the Inspectorate of Courts), data should focus on anti-corruption outcomes. If not already being conducted, annual reports should be developed and posted on the Internet for public dissemination. Reports should remain available on-line for a ten year period, in order to track progress over time. The IG and DEI should conduct specialized broadcasts to disseminate report highlights to rural areas.