The Parish Model: A strategy for Rural Development – What you need to know!

The 3rd National Development Plan (NDP3) has adapted the parish model as a strategy for rural socio and economic transformation. According to the ministerial statement, the Parish Development Model (PDM) is a strategy for organizing and delivering public and private sector interventions for wealth creation and employment generation at the parish level as the lowest economic planning unit.

The parish will be the epicenter of multi-sectoral community development planning, implementation, supervision, monitoring and accountability. The LC2 chairman and parish chief shall be responsible for political and administrative stewardship in the implementation of the parish model in their respective parishes with support from the sub county and district technical planning committee (STPC and DTPC).

With its implementation set to start in the new financial year 2021/2022, here’s everything you should know about the Parish Model;

  1. The parish development committee chaired by the parish chief will coordinate implementation of the parish model.
  2. Every parish is expected to mobilize and organize its productive youth, women and men into a parish production and marketing cooperative association.
  3. Every parish cooperative association is expected to prioritize and plan for commercial agriculture, fishing, livestock, trade and other commercial activities they would like to engage in for income generation.
  4. Every parish cooperative society is expected to start a SACCO to save and invest in strategic commodities in which members have comparative and competitive advantage with ready market.
  5. The central government will supplement the locally mobilized funds with central government revolving funds to undertake planned productive projects. The YLP (Youth Livelihood Programme), UWEP (Uganda Women Entrepreneurship Programme), Emyooga and DEEG funds will be channeled to the parish to implement the parish model.
  6. To increase production and productivity every parish will have access to tractor services and improved seeds and breeds.
  7. Production extension staff are expected to provide extension services to farmers, fishermen and livestock keepers.
  8. Every parish will be provided machinery such as cassava chippers, flour and oil millers among others to process, package and brand their products.
  9. Members of the parish cooperative association will be supported to have access to local, regional and export markets and to set up a parish market /trading centre.
  10. Support construction of a parish resource centre with offices and hall for community meetings.
  11. Set up a parish database for evidence based planning and programming.
  12. Provide other social and community development services including games and sports facilities for youth.
  13. Have a plan to develop the parish centre into an urban growth centre.
  14. Plan for extension of community access roads, water and electricity services to the parish centre.
  15. Prioritize recruitment of parish chiefs, community development assistants and extension workers to implement the parish rural transformation model.
  16. All community based organizations, NGOs and FBOs to align and harmonize their activities to the Parish Model strategy.

It should also be noted that there is a plan to orient all key stakeholders in the planning, implementation, supervision, monitoring and reporting on the performance of the Parish Model.

7 thoughts on “The Parish Model: A strategy for Rural Development – What you need to know!”

  1. William Olaho-Mukani

    The parish model is a superb arrangement by the NRM government to bring funds to the local people. If well implemented in Body and Spirit, it should quickly propel Uganda to Middle income status. However, there is a lot to do to empower the rural people. The money is there, yes, but how to translate it into products for ‘Kidda’ and wealth requires concerted effort from all players because nearly all us Ugandans have our base in the villages which constitute the parishes. As Agriculture will be the main enterprise, me as a specialist in this field must ensure that my parish has animal plant and fisheries health, production and marketing guidelines for farmers at no fee and I am already working on this. I want my Parish to be No. 1 in Uganda. Dr William Olaho-Mukani. This will be our vision. Amen!

  2. The model novel as it is appears to have been developed with a greater bias towards livelihoods and food security. There are very few details on the social sectors like health, education, etc.
    While it does well to bring planning, implementation, and evaluation closer to the people it does not explain linkages between parishes. there are services that are more cost-effectively delivered across more than one parish over a larger geographic area eg. a bulk water supply system.
    For this plan to work there must be Parish chiefs and LC 2 chairpersons with adequate skills and experience to manage the development process. We do not have this management structure in place, it’s like putting a cart before a horse. This needs to be in place first.

  3. Okello Jimmy Opio

    This is a good move. We should work collectively to eradicate poverty out of Uganda. 0777360446. OMORO district. Diploma in Agriculture.

  4. businge n herbert

    have bought the idea and will support the hard local person in this model.how will our members in updf baracks benefit when we have established production directorates.i would propose we engage extension workers in service to desiminate and implement these programmes

  5. There has not been a needs assessment at Parish level to base on the operationalization of this much publicized model. Government is just borrowing money to waste like PEAP, PAM, Bonabagagawale, OWC without any fruition.
    The model is also dead on arrival.!

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Scroll to Top