Stakeholders in joint review of Transport sector progress
The Ministry of Works and Transport technical team and other key stakeholders will converge at Imperial Royale Hotel in Kampala this week to assess the performance of the transport sector and map out strategic interventions to bridge the gaps, where they exist, and revamp the country’s road network to boost economic development. The three-day workshop starts October 20-22. The Joint Transport Sector Review will examine the problems affecting the sector, review the progress being made, make critical assessment of new developments and ultimately map out the way forward to improve the management and development of the transport sector.
The government has for the second year running maintained funding for roads at the same level as in 2008/09 financial year. This is testimony of the importance the government attaches to the sector.
Key objectives
·        Review the progress on the implementation of actions agreed at the 2008 Joint Transport Sector Review (JTSR) and the road construction unit cost workshop.
·        Review the status of key sector reforms.
·        Review the performance of sector projects and programmes.
·        Discuss the implementation strategy for the Nation Transport Master Plan and Greater Kampala Metropolitan Area (GKMA).
·        Review the progress on development of the central corridor route to the sea and agree on the action plan for the period up to October 2010
Papers to be presented:
·        Transport services and projects
·        Implementation of the district, urban and community access roads (ducar) programmes
·        Restructuring of the ministry
·        Development of the central corridor route to the sea
·        Implementation strategy for the national transport master plan including a transport master plan for the greater kampala metropolitan area
·        Creating opportunities for sustainable spending on roads A proposed project to be funded by DFID and the EC.
·        Implementation of the Road Fund in Uganda
·        Report on national roads construction and maintenance rogrammes
·        Construction standards and quality assurance
·        Governance and accountability in the transport sector in Uganda.
Restructuring of the Ministry
Background
The Public Sector Reforms in Government aim at the withdrawal of the state from direct service delivery, reserving for itself the roles of policy making, regulation and monitoring. This is premised on increasing reliance on the motivations and efficiencies of the private sector for implementation operations. The reforms in the transport sector were therefore driven by Government policies of privatisation, liberalization of the economy, and decentralization. The reforms called for restructuring of the Ministry of Works and Transport (MoWT) to take on a new role.Â
The restructuring was meant to shed off the Ministry’s executive functions that were inconsistent with its new role, such as Road Maintenance Management, Road Development, Plant Management, Ferry Services Management, Axle Load Control Management etc. These functions were included in the portfolio of the Uganda National Road Authority.
In this way, the new Ministry structure reflects Government’s aim for developing an integrated transport policy based on sector-wide considerations focused on general transport issues rather than individual sub-sectors. The resulting lean Ministry structure emphasizes professionalism in the core areas of the transport sector i.e. road, rail, water and air transport.
The restructuring of the Ministry was to be implemented in a phased manner to avoid disruption of service delivery and any adverse social impact likely to arise from the restructuring process would be mitigated. The restructuring of MoWT
was planned to commence in January, 2008 – July, 2010.
Achievements Made :
Since the last meeting in October 2008, the following has been achieved;
Issuance of the Approved Structure:-In February 2009, the final Ministry structure was approved by the Ministry of Public Service. The new mandate of the Ministry is ‘’To plan, develop and maintain an economic , efficient and effective works and transport infrastructure and services ; manage public buildings and develop standards in the construction industryâ€.
Planned Activities:Below are the planned activities for the next twelve month’s:-a) Conclude payment of retirement benefits both severance and pension in liaison with Ministry of Public Service;b) Seek approval of the proposed deployments by TMT;c) In liaison with PSC, conduct promotional interviews;d) Following up on all re-designation cases with PSC;e) Analyzing the staffing levels and declare remaining vacancies after the promotions;f) Implementation of the CMT Action Plang) Capacity Building: Intensifying Staff reorientation, training /development to improve staff skills and competencies to enable them deliver on the new mandate.h) Recruitment: fill all the remaining vacancies to fill the ministry establishment of 582 positions.
In conclusion, the restructuring of the Ministry has been guided by the previous restructuring implementation guidelines and the approved organizational structure of the Ministry. The Restructuring is being carried out in a phased manner. The establishment of a change management team will mitigate the effects of restructuring and ensure a vibrant new MoWT. Its hoped that by the next Joint Transport Sector Review Meeting, the total establishment (582) will be filled to en-able the Ministry deliver on its new mandate efficiently and effectively.
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