The public accountability meeting was held on Thursday 2nd August 2018 at Kyanyambali primary school in Kyegegwa district. The meeting was organized in partnership with ‘Aturanagyayo’ a community advocacy group based in Kakabara Sub County but operating in the whole Kyegegwa district. The purpose of the meeting was giving a platform to electorates/citizens to engage with their elected leaders to get accountability of what has been done by their leaders and also engage them on other service delivery issues as a way of participating in the governance processes of their district. It was an avenue to present issues generated through ToroDev’s initiated MML platform focusing on key service delivery sectors of health, education and economic development.

The meeting was attended by about three hundred (300) people who included; the district chairperson, operation wealth creation district coordinator, district agricultural officer, area councilors including the district councilor, head teachers, political and technical officers at Sub county level, local council chairpersons, health unit management and school management committees, elders, religious leaders, media and local citizens.

David Kugonza on behalf of ToroDev appreciated participants for coming and encouraged them to always do the same. He said this is the only way citizens can get clear accountability of what their leaders have done, what they have failed to do and why but also getting to understand what is planned for them. David said as an organization they developed a platform called ‘Me and My Leader’ (MML) where citizens use a pre-paid Sms to engage duty bearers on service delivery issues with an aim of reducing the information gap that used to exist between citizens and duty bearers but also getting evidence based data to engage leaders in development programs.

David further said, through the platform citizens from Kyegegwa district and in particular Kigambo Sub county are complaining of failure by their elected leaders not coming back to communities after votes, operations of Operation Wealth Creation program where they receive limited seed/seedlings and breeds on addition to receiving them late after or towards the end of planting season, limited drugs and absenteeism of health workers in their health centers, lack of safe and clean water especially people from Kitalesa, lack of a secondary school in Kigambo Sub county, absenteeism of teachers and learners, under staffing, limited infrastructure in schools, etc. He said, we are presenting these issues before duty bearers today so that together we can find a lasting solution to improve services in our communities. He requested citizens to continue using the platform so that we can get evidence based data to engage duty bearers for improved services.

 Some of the participants who attended the public accountability meeting

Citizens were given time to also ask questions to their duty bearers and their questions were not different from the issues generated through the platform. They wanted their HC II to be upgraded to a HC III status, be supplied with safe and clean water, reduce the under staffing in schools and health centers, drugs in health centers, mobilization women and youth to benefit from government programs like Youth Livelihood and Women Entrepreneurship Program (WEP), construction and upgrading of their community roads, etc.

Responses from the District chairperson:

1. Elevation of Kigambo HC II to HC III- The district chairperson said they submitted 3 names of health centers to be upgraded including Kigambo, Karwenyi and Bigogo. This financial year government has elevated Karwenyi and promised people that next financial year Kigambo will be elevated to a HC III status so that the facility can provide better health services to the populace.
2. Destruction of wetlands- ‘’All wetlands belong to government, we have started destroying trees and other things that are not friendly to the environment but also as a district we have passed a budget to move around the district sensitizing citizens to stop farming in wetlands. Let the issue of protecting wetlands be a responsibility of everyone’’, Said the district chairperson.
3. Understaffing- We are going to recruit more teachers and post them in schools with staffing gaps to reduce teacher: pupil ratio and also use the merger resources to improve on the infrastructure beginning with schools that are really doing badly. Also we are going to sit with the DHO to plan on how we can recruit more health workers and post them to health facilities with staffing gaps to improve health services in the district.
4. Lack of a secondary school- The district chairperson requested the sub county leadership to immediately begin mobilizing citizens to start a community secondary school and there after request government to support them but they should have some work done on ground much as it is a government policy to have a government aided secondary school in every sub county in the country.
5. Absenteeism of health workers- The district chairperson pledged to meet all health workers together with the district health officer (DHO) the following week to sensitize them on their roles and responsibilities while serving community members. He said health workers play a very important role in community hence they should effectively play their roles or else risk losing their jobs. He promised to intensify monitoring together with sub county leaders to tackle absenteeism of health workers and teachers in schools.
6. Operation Wealth Creation program- It is very true there are still gaps in the operations of this program. What they are giving is not leading us out of poverty. For example they gave the district 16 heifers last financial year, what can it do to the population of Kyegegwa as a district? ‘’We are going to seriously talk to the managers of the program if they can not increase their supplies at least they give us money we buy fuel and construct roads for the people to transport their good and easy access to markets’’, Said John Kisoke, district chairperson while responding to issues from citizens.
7. Access to safe and clean water- ‘’People of Kamuganyi, Kyanyambali and other areas please we urge you to be patient for we are aware of the issue of water and how it is affecting you in your communities. As a district together with my councilors we are working tirelessly to see that you access safe and clean water before the end of this financial year 2018/2019. We promise to work on the issue of water as soon as possible the way we have worked on Nyakagongo, Kihorongwa, Kinyambale B cell shallow wells’’, Said John Kisoke, the district chairperson.

           The district chairperson Kyegegwa, Hon. John Kisoke responding to citizens issues during a                    public meeting in Kigambo Sub county

The coordinator operation wealth creation Col. Jackson Asiimwe asked farmers to not only complain of what they have received but also share knowledge and experience from those who have been successful especially people who have received animals. He said if these animals are not cared for especially on drugs they can easily die. He promised to share the complaints with top managers of the program such that the intended objective of increasing house hold income can be a reality rather than a dream.

                 Col. Jackson Asiimwe, coordinator Operation Wealth Creation Kyegegwa district                                                 responding to OWC issues during the meeting

An action plan was made on how to follow the pledges, monitoring service delivery and advocacy for issues that need further engagements.

We thank SIDA, SPIDER, NED, CIPESA and all our partners for the financial and technical support.