President Yoweri Museveni has urged Ugandan youth to get acquainted with the government budgeting process.
Presiding over the International Youth Day celebrations held at Bubukwanga Primary School grounds in Bundibugyo district, western Uganda, Mr. Museveni said the youth should use their numbers to pressurize and engage their MPs to budget and prioritize three areas; peace, job creation and infrastructure development, including roads and electricity.
“Youth leaders need to get acquainted with budgeting, because it’s through this process that we are able to put more money in roads and electricity,” he said, adding: “We now spend more than Shs3,000 billion on roads and I can confidently say that we have archived minimum economic recovery.”
The International Youth Day is a global event, celebrated annually on August 12 to recognize efforts of governments in enhancing the widespread response to young people`s needs. It also aims to promote ways to engage the youth in becoming more actively involved in making positive contributions to their countries and communities.
At the celebrations President Museveni also noted that despite government collecting more revenue now, there is need to budget by the book.
“We should budget more for development and not consumption,” he said.
Museveni also cited the contribution of peace to the recovery of cocoa in Bundibugyo, a region that was heaped with loads praise for its high production of the cash crop.
“All these cocoa plantations had been abandoned because of unrest, however we restored peace, and cocoa production is now on the increase. There cannot be development without peace,” Museveni said.
President Museveni also commended the people of Bundibugyo for protecting the environment and asked the youth countrywide to help join in the conservation drive.
