Otuke County MP Omara raises concern over debt burden in Uganda

Otuke County Member of Parliament, Paul Omara, has raised concerns over the debt burden in Uganda, noting that the domestic debt component is now higher than foreign debt. 

This, he said, attracts much higher interest rates compared to concessionary loans from abroad.

Economist and former banker, Omara raised the concern on Tuesday, April 14, 2026, at the National Leadership Training Institution (NALI) in Kyankwanzi district during the NRM Members of Parliament-elect retreat.

He observed that out of the shs44 trillion which Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) is projected to collect in taxes, shs34 trillion will go towards debt repayments, with an additional shs14 trillion of that amount being interest payments alone.

MP Omara suggested that a debt ceiling should be agreed upon so that the persistent practice of debt rollovers can be addressed, thereby allowing fiscal space to widen.

Currently, the national debt stands at shs115 trillion, out of which shs60 trillion is domestic debt while shs55 trillion is foreign debt. The economist, Omara, addressed this concern to the Permanent Secretary and Secretary to the Treasury (PSST), Dr. Ramathan Ggoobi, and the Deputy Governor of the Bank of Uganda at Kyankwanzi.

Omara lamented that debt service may crowd out government spending and called for strict budget control over this matter.

Furthermore, he cited that a total of 84.2 trillion shillings budget is under scrutiny. Therefore, experts demand efficient spending, with fiscal discipline remaining a key issue.

Over these concerns, he requested the government to expand the tax base, particularly through the informal sector, which is key to tax growth.

Although the government has achieved efforts in maintaining a stable macroeconomic environment, Omara noted that for URA to collect more revenue, the government needs to open more major road infrastructure, especially roads that connect to business centers, in order to generate more revenue.

Additionally, Omara cited that out of the shs44 trillion URA is expected to collect, shs9.7 trillion is allocated to security, followed by shs11 trillion to human capital development, and over shs7 trillion to road infrastructure.

President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni encouraged the legislators to work closely with the people and prioritize pro-people programs.