The Cabinet has directed the National Planning Authority (NPA) to collaborate with academic institutions and think tanks to provide data-backed, evidence-based solutions aimed at fixing faulty government policies.
Speaking at the inaugural Yobel Biashara conference at Makerere University on Wednesday, NPA Board Chairperson Prof. Pamela Mbabazi revealed that the country is currently grappling with ineffective policies due to hasty decision-making processes that bypass thorough research and consultation with knowledgeable Ugandans.
Prof. Mbabazi noted that President Yoweri Museveni personally instructed the NPA to bridge the gap between policymakers and research bodies to ensure future decisions are grounded in sound data.
“I have had that unenviable opportunity to sit with the President in cabinet, and they are asking us to get them the right guidance based on evidence and data so that they do not make the wrong decisions. It is only think tanks that can help our politicians to make the right decisions,” Prof. Mbabazi said.
She pointed out that government agencies, such as the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA), are making strategic missteps that harm the economy, undermining the national vision of attaining a $500 billion economy by 2040. Drawing a comparison, she noted that China achieved its economic transformation by deliberately anchoring think tanks into its core policy framework, ensuring no major decision was executed without expert input.
Concurring with the NPA chief, Dr. Fred Muhumuza, head of the Makerere University Business School (MUBS) Economic Forum, stressed that governments worldwide rely on research-driven institutions to guide development policies. He recalled that during the 1990s, the Bank of Uganda and the central government regularly relied on the Uganda Economic Association to navigate complex economic shifts, including privatization and market liberalization.
Dr. Muhumuza criticized URA’s current tax policies, cautioning that aggressively taxing struggling startups and vulnerable businesses to meet short-term revenue targets ultimately destroys the tax base and stifles job creation. He further questioned recent infrastructure priorities, arguing that borrowing heavily for projects like the Jinja Expressway is ill-advised when cheaper water transport routes, such as the Kisumu-Port Bell line, remain underutilized. He also criticized the practice of charging examination fees for candidate classes, warning that it forces poorer students out of the education system, creating a long-term socio-economic burden.
The conference, themed “Africa’s Agency in an Era of Geopolitical Change,” was organized to address these broader structural and economic challenges.
Dr. James Magara, Chairman of Yobel Biashara, stated that the forum was established to bring together eminent Ugandans to examine shifting global dynamics and develop home-grown solutions. He noted that as global power balances shift, African nations must take control of their economic destiny by self-funding key institutions like the African Union, driving intra-continental trade through the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), and strategically investing in the youth to prepare for future demographic shifts.