With only four months left until the end of the 2025/26 fiscal year, the Uganda Police Force (UPF) is mooting a budget of at least UGX 1.5 trillion for the next financial year. The police leadership, led by Inspector General of Police (IGP) Abas Byakagaba, hopes that an increase of more than UGX 500 billion from the current budget would enable the force to improve police officers’ welfare, especially addressing the chronic housing deficit cited in the latest Auditor General’s report.
In the current budget, UPF was allocated only UGX 925 billion, and there are fears that this could even be reduced since the election period is over. The allocation of UGX 925 billion in the ongoing budget was a disappointment to IGP Byakagaba and his team, who had tabled a UGX 2.5 trillion budget proposal.
UPF had proposed the UGX 2.5 trillion budget to enable it to address, among other things, election security, the sub-county policing model, construction of more housing units, and improvement of force multipliers such as the installation and replacement of damaged CCTV cameras.
Nevertheless, UPF ended up receiving only UGX 925 billion. Now, the force is again mooting at least UGX 1.5 trillion, primarily to improve housing units. The proposed budget would also cater for the installation and repair of CCTV cameras, as many have stopped functioning, while in other areas security cameras have never been installed.
Regarding housing, the Auditor General, Edward Akol, states in his report: “UPF faces a shortage of accommodation for police personnel, with a reported deficit of approximately 18,700 housing units.” While assessing the progress of the construction of 1,200 housing apartments at Naguru Barracks, IGP Byakagaba said there is a need to have standard housing units for police officers across the country. He emphasized the importance of ensuring that police officers, regardless of their areas of operation, have decent accommodation.
However, the IGP’s ambitions of improving police officers’ accommodation and increasing CCTV installations could remain on paper if the budget is cut, as feared by police leadership. The Parliamentary Budget Committee, led by Patrick Opolot Isiagi, and the Defence and Internal Affairs Committee, led by Wilson Kajwengye, have so far indicated that UPF will require a wage bill of UGX 522.48 billion to cover current staff.
“However, salaries for 10,000 PPCs recruited and trained in FY 2025/26 (UGX 28.016 billion) are not included in the new estimates. The committee recommends allocating an additional UGX 28.016 billion to the UPF wage bill for FY 2026/27 to cover salaries of the 10,000 PPCs recruited last year,” the Kajwengye-led committee states in the budget framework paper.
UPF also plans to recruit and train 4,000 additional personnel in the next financial year under its Strategic Plan. Following the recent salary increments, where Police Constables’ emoluments were increased from UGX 466,000 to UGX 583,000, the police will need at least UGX 2.33 billion every month to pay the 4,000 recruits in the next financial year.
On CCTV cameras, UPF believes the rampant criminality in Kampala, Wakiso, and Mukono, as well as in other upcountry urban areas, is partly a result of damaged roadside surveillance cameras. Several CCTV cameras have reportedly stopped functioning after being knocked down by reckless road users and utility providers who damaged fibre optic cables, mostly in Kampala, Wakiso, and Mukono.
It is estimated that more than 200 out of over 3,000 CCTV cameras in the Kampala Metropolitan area have stopped functioning for various reasons. However, the police force lacks sufficient funds to replace them or repair the damaged fibre optic cables.
Almost every day, videos circulate on social media showing thugs terrorizing people on streets, at junctions, and on highways. Nonetheless, ACP Kituuma Rusoke, the Police Spokesperson, explains that the police force, in collaboration with sister security agencies, is working tirelessly to restore normalcy.
Rusoke said they have conducted numerous operations in Kampala Metropolitan East, South, and North, as well as in Aswa West, West Nile, Albertine North, Elgon, Savannah, East Kyoga, Wamala, and other regions. “A total of 1,095 suspects were arrested over the seven days, many of them habitual offenders and gang members involved in robberies, burglaries, phone snatching, narcotics, and related crimes,” ACP Rusoke said.
The police added that several suspects were screened, with many taken to court while others received cautions after profiling and verification of criminal records. According to UPF, recovered exhibits include pangas and other dangerous weapons, breaking implements, narcotics, stolen motor vehicle parts, multiple SIM cards, and livestock.