Finance Minister urges for extra Shs 319 billion funding for hospitals

The Parliament speaker, Anita Among, has given instructions to the Prime Minister in order to provide the government position on the construction status of the International Specialised Hospital in Lubowa, along with the Kampala-Entebbe Road.

This news came outside after the Ministry of Finance has urged for an extra Shs 319 billion in the next financial year to be given to the Italian investor for the project, which was already guaranteed Shs 1.4 trillion in 2019 by the government.

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However, many Parliament members have requested to stop distributing the money until the project progress is conformed.

According to the new Parliament speaker, Anita Among, her team went to the site of the construction site, and their entry was denied.

“On this, we should speak as Members of Parliament. We need to know what is going on in Lubowa hospital before finalising the budget,” said Among.

Muwanga Kivumbi, the MP for Butambala County, explained that the hospital was allocated Shs 348 billion in the current budget.

According to Kivumbi, in the 2022/2023 budget proposal before the committee of finance and ministerial policy statement, another Shs319 billion is being distributed to the same hospital.

He stated that the discussion over the hospital’s development necessitates the Finance and Budget committees to determine the amount of activity at the site.

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As per the Kivumbi statement, the money is being paid through a promissory note and with this system, on completion, and ministry has to provide capital through vote 130. My prayer is that Rt Hon. Speaker, you direct committees of Finance and Budget to ascertain value for money.

Some three years back, in 2019, Parliament approved a loan guarantee of shs1.4 trillion of Finasi/Roko, a particular aim vehicle (SPV) for the hospital’s building.

The project, however, has seen obstacles, with the SPV Finasi/ROKO collapsing with the addition of a new participant, Power China Guizhou Engineering Co. Ltd, as the civil works contractor.

Following the uproar, the Committee on National Economy asked the Ministry of Health to arrange for an on-site inspection of the hospital’s development.