NATIONAL
An assessment of the Parish Development Model (PDM) performance has named the best six performing local governments in the implementation of the Parish Development Model (PDM) Program.
In a statement issued today, Wednesday, July 23, 2025, three days after President Museveni concluded country PDM assessment tours, names Ntugamo and Rukungiri Municipal Councils as the best.
The two Municipal Councils are followed by Amuru, Oyam and Kwania Districts.
President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni on Sunday, 20th July, 2025 officially concluded his nationwide Parish Development Model (PDM) assessment tours with a call to Ugandans to fight poverty by embracing wealth creation at household level.
President Museveni who was accompanied by the First Lady and Minister of Education and Sports, Maama Janet Kataaha Museveni and the First Daughter, Mrs. Natasha Karugire Museveni, made the appeal while addressing a public rally attended by thousands of Kampala residents at Kololo Independence Grounds.
The ceremony also marked the final day of the nationwide Presidential assessment tour on PDM and wealth creation in Kampala.
“I have been telling you about peace. The second thing is development, roads, electricity, schools, and hospitals. But when you return home in the evening, you still find the poverty you left there in the morning. That’s why I came to talk to you about wealth,” President Museveni informed Ugandans.
Launched in February 2022, the Parish Development Model is the government’s flagship approach to move 39% of Ugandans still outside the money economy into productive enterprise.
It operates at the parish level with each parish receiving shs100m annually, empowering communities through structured SACCOs and direct access to capital.
President Museveni explained that while development projects like paved roads benefit everyone, wealth must be personal, generated within homesteads.
“When Jesus was teaching people, He said: ‘Seek ye the Kingdom of God and all other things shall be added unto you.’ I am also telling you to seek the wealth in homesteads, and all the others shall be added unto you,” he said.
President Museveni outlined three primary forms of wealth generation, one of them being; commercial Agriculture.
The President emphasized agriculture as the foundation for rural wealth.
“Whether you are a big farmer or a small one, if you have a small piece of land, you must have ekibaro, a calculation,” he said.
He screened a video of Mr. Joseph Ijaara, a former taxi conductor from Serere, who transformed his life through poultry farming on 2.5 acres. Today, he sells 310 trays of eggs per day, produces yoghurt and soap, and earns over shs 1 billion annually, with shs800m in profits.
President Museveni also lauded Mrs. Fausta Nalweyiso of Busega, who turned sh1m in PDM support into a successful piggery business.
He mentioned that the second type of wealth creation was through artisanship and manufacturing.
In urban areas, President Museveni highlighted artisans in Kawempe, Maganjo, and Makindye, engaging in metalwork, tailoring, carpentry, and welding.
He applauded the Kigo Carpentry Centre, which the government helped secure land for in Kigo. It now produces quality furniture previously imported from Dubai.
“These youth are doing wonders. What we used to import, they are now making here,” he said.
He also showcased the Presidential Zonal Industrial Hubs, which have trained and empowered thousands of youths with employable skills.
The President described services as the third form of wealth creation.
“You may not produce the goods, but by selling them in a shop or market, you are creating wealth,” President Museveni said.
He also acknowledged ICT as a fourth avenue of wealth creation for the youth but emphasized focus on the first three pillars.
