The Ministry of ICT and National Guidance has officially handed over 60,247 tablets to the Ministry of Local Government, Operation Wealth Creation and the Electoral Commission, to support critical national programs, including the Parish Development Model (PDM) and the upcoming electoral processes. The handover took place at the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) warehouse in Ntinda Industrial Area on Friday, December 20, 2024.
The devices, provided by the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS), will help to improve service delivery at different levels of government. Speaking at the handover ceremony in Kampala, Dr. Aminah Zawedde, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of ICT and National Guidance, commended UBOS for the collaboration, noting that it exemplifies the government’s adoption of a whole-of-government approach.
“The sharing of devices used in the census exercise will reduce the cost of operation of government work,” said Dr. Zawedde. She emphasized the critical role the tablets will play in the upcoming elections and PDM implementation.
The tablets were distributed as follows:
1. Electoral Commission: 36,000 rugged tablets to facilitate preparations for the 2026general elections.
2. Ministry of Local Government:
• 21,434 tablets for the Parish Development Model Information System (PDMIS), enabling efficient disbursement of funds and registration of beneficiaries.
• 1,496 tablets for Sub-County Community Development Officers (CDOs).
• 580 tablets for Town Council CDOs.
• 25 tablets for City Division CDOs.
• 181 tablets each for District IT Officers
• 181 tablets for local government statisticians.
3. Operation Wealth Creation: 350 tablets for monitoring government wealth programs.
Each tablet was verified to ensure it is in good working condition and was dispatched alongside its charging accessories and a power bank to address battery and power-related challenges, particularly in areas with limited electricity access.
Dr. Zawedde highlighted the challenges community leaders at the parish level have faced due to inadequate devices for data capturing.
“We had already got concerns from people at the parish level, the chiefs, that they do not have enough devices to do this data collection, to do registration of beneficiaries for PDM. But now that we have these devices, this is going to make our life and job easy because we shall be collecting data in real time, processing it in real time, and being able to make decisions in real time,” she explained.
The Ministry calls on the recipients to ensure effective use of the tablets to achieve their intended objectives. The distribution of these tablets underscores the government’s vision to digitize operations and enhance efficiency in public service delivery.
