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Britain Suspends Aid to Uganda

The Monitor (Kampala)
NEWS
April 18, 2004
Posted to the web April 19, 2004

By Andrew M. Mwenda
Kampala
Protests increased military spending
The British government has suspended aid to Uganda, protesting the
'unexplained' and sudden increase in military spending.
Highly placed sources told Sunday Monitor that the British government has
withheld UK £10m (approximately Shs 36 billion).
The sources told Sunday Monitor that Britain had given government till end of
March to explain the increased military spending.
The British have been financing Uganda's Defence Review programme through the
Department for International Development (DFID).
The British government withheld this "general budget support grant in 2003/04
financial year" in light of concerns that decisions on the implementation of
the Defence Review were to be made that "would significantly increase the level
of military expenditure in the medium term expenditure framework for 2004/05."
In an apparent worsening relations between the two erstwhile friends, the
British government is now saying it requires reassurances that increases in
defence expenditure reflect the defence review recommendations and are
affordable.
"This requires consultation as set out in the Review's Terms of Reference, both
in relation to the Review itself and the impact of the increases to defence
expenditure resources available to other sectors," a highly placed source in
London told Sunday Monitor.
The source further said the government of Uganda should consult with its
partners on the Defence Review's recommendations before future levels of
defence expenditure are set.
The source said that the aim of the UK government is to ensure that expenditure
on core poverty reduction programmes is not displaced.
Sources in DIFD say that the British recognise that stability and security are
important for poverty reduction.
However, London is concerned that levels of defence expenditure should be
transparent, appropriate and affordable.
Government had budgeted for Shs 310 billion for the ministry of defence this
financial year (2003/04).
However, in January 2004 government sought and obtained a supplementary
military budget of Shs 82 billion, taking the total to Shs 392 billion (US$
203m).
Last financial year (2002/03), the defence budget had been Shs 244 billion
(13.3 percent of total budget). However, in September 2002 government cut the
budgets of all other ministries by 23 percent.
This move raised Shs 52 billion, taking the defence budget to a record Shs 296
billion (21 percent of total public expenditure that financial year).
According to the standing agreement between donors and the government of
Uganda, military spending is not supposed to exceed 1.9 percent of the Gross
Domestic product (GDP).
The battle between the British government and President Yoweri Museveni over
military spending dates back to the mid 1990s.
In an August 28th 2001 letter to then overseas development minister, Clare
Short, Museveni sought her support to increase defence spending by $139m over a
period of three years (2002/03, 2003/04 and 2004/05).
Museveni told Short that 1.9 percent of GDP "translated into $110 million" and
the government of Uganda was spending $113 million per year.
From the president's request therefore, Uganda needed to increase its defence
budget by $46.3 million per year for the first three years, placing military
spending at $160 million.
The Second Secretary in charge of Political, Press and Public affairs at the
British High Commission, Ms Linda St Cooke told Sunday Monitor that: "We are
currently involved in discussions with GOU about our budget support for 2004/
05. We anticipate that consultations with other Ugandan development partners
will be held shortly. We will make further decisions on our financial support
following the outcome of these consultations."
Uganda government has been accusing donors of restricting it on defence
spending; saying this partly explains why it has been difficult to defeat the
rebel Lord's Resistance Army (LRA).
However, on February 27, 2004, donors made a joint statement to parliament
where they rejected this accusation.
In a strongly worded statement, the donors said they agreed to exceptional
increase in defence spending to combat LRA in the 2002/03 financial year.
Britain is Uganda's largest bilateral donor.

   

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