VZCZCXRO6403
RR RUEHROV
DE RUEHKM #0586/01 1621326
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 111326Z JUN 09
FM AMEMBASSY KAMPALA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 1473
INFO RUEAWJA/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHINGTON DC//ICITAP//
RUCNIAD/IGAD COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KAMPALA 000586 
 
DEPARTMENT PASS TO MCC (CHAKA) 
DOJ FOR ICITAP (TREVILLIAN, RODERICK, BARR, AND RAUCH) 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PHUM EAID KCOR UG
SUBJECT: LACK OF POLITICAL WILL UNDERMINING ANTI-CORRUPTION PROGRESS 
IN UGANDA 
 
REF: A. Chaka-Dobberstein telecon May 13, 2009, B. Hoover-Chaka 
e-mail April 8, 2009 
 
¶1.  (SBU) Summary: A joint review of Uganda's Millenium Challenge 
Corporation Anti-Corruption Threshold Program (MCC ACT Program) 
found the program to be largely on track.  However, there has not 
been substantial progress towards improving broader anti-corruption 
measures and indicators.  Government officials acknowledged that 
improved interagency coordination, increased prosecutions, and 
adequate funding for the Anti-Corruption Division of the High Court 
are essential to achieve an overall improvement in anti-corruption 
performance.  Government officials participating in the ACT Program 
claim there is no concerted effort to undermine anti-corruption 
efforts but admitted that there is a lack of leadership at the top 
to bolster the anti-corruption fight.  End Summary. 
 
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MCC COUNTRY THRESHOLD PLAN REVIEW 
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¶2.  (SBU) Uganda's ACT Program was signed in March 2007 and outlined 
a 30-month program to strengthen the government's capacity to fight 
corruption in public procurement and enhance Uganda's eligibility 
for an MCC Compact.  The program ends on December 31, 2009.  In 
November 2008, the MCC issued its scorecard.  Uganda failed to score 
above the median on 3 out of 5 "Investing in People" indicators.  To 
qualify for MCC Compact eligibility, countries must score above the 
median in at least half of the indicators in each of three policy 
areas and above the median on control and prevention of corruption. 
In addition, Uganda's corruption indicator has not shown a steady 
upward trend.  Therefore, Uganda remained MCC Threshold eligible but 
was not MCC Compact eligible for 2009.  In November and December 
2008, Mission officials informed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and 
the Minister for Ethics and Integrity (MEI) of Uganda's status. 
 
¶3.  (SBU) On February 11, the Government of Uganda's (GOU) Ministry 
of Ethics and Integrity convened a joint mid-term review of the ACT 
Program to consider these findings and discuss the way forward. 
Participants included all government partner agencies: the 
Directorate of Ethics and Integrity (DEI), the Office of the Auditor 
General (OAG), the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets 
Authority (PPDA), the Criminal Investigation Division (CID) of the 
Uganda Police Force, the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP), 
Inspectorate Government (IG), and the Anti-Corruption Division of 
the High Court (ACD).  In addition, staff from USAID and the ACT 
Program, representatives of Ugandan civil society, and Resident 
Legal and Law Enforcement Advisors from the U.S. Department of 
Justice participated. 
 
¶4.  (SBU) The review noted that the ACT Program had achieved 
significant results improving the capacity of the anti-corruption 
institutions to fight corruption but that Uganda has not made 
significant progress in the fight against corruption.  Uganda will 
need to demonstrate significant progress on broader anti-corruption 
indicators over the next year if it hopes to become MCC Compact 
eligible in 2010.  (Note: Uganda will also have to improve 
performance on the investing in people indicators, though these are 
not the focus of the ACT Program.  End Note.)  To do this, the GOU 
needs to better integrate and institutionalize its anti-corruption 
efforts by improving coordination between law enforcement and 
prosecutors, strengthening its analysis of cross-cutting issues, and 
prosecuting more anti-corruption cases in the Anti-Corruption 
Division of its high court.  Finally, the GOU will need to devote 
sufficient resources to implement these recommendations and 
demonstrate the will to go after all who are implicated in 
corruption scandals. 
 
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FOLLOW UP ACTIONS 
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¶5.  (SBU) On May 7, Charge attended a meeting of the ACT Program 
Oversight Committee.  The Committee is comprised of high-level 
policy makers from institutions involved in the MCC Threshold 
Country Program, including the Minister of State for Internal 
Affairs, Minister of State for Finance, Minister of State for 
Justice, Minister of State for Ethics and Integrity, Director of 
Public Prosecutions, Inspector General of Government, the Executive 
Director of the Public Procurement Disposal Authority, the Principal 
Judge of the High Court, and the U.S. Ambassador.  The Committee 
reviewed the mid-term assessment conducted in February.  By and 
large, all participants agreed that the ACT Program had achieved 
significant results improving the capacity of the anti-corruption 
institutions but that Uganda had not made significant progress in 
the fight against corruption.  The issues identified and discussed 
were: the need for mechanisms to follow up audit reports (both 
 
KAMPALA 00000586  002 OF 002 
 
 
administratively and legally); the importance of adequate funding 
for the new Anti-Corruption Division (ACD) by the GOU; the need to 
enact laws agreed to in the ACT Program such as the Anti-Corruption 
Law and a Whistler Blowers Protection Law; improved coordination of 
anti-corruption agency activities; and full budgeting of GOU 
counterpart funding and support to the GOU anti-corruption agencies 
that was agreed to under the ACT Program. Minister of Ethics and 
Integrity Buturo vowed to develop a plan of action in the coming two 
weeks to address the issues. 
 
¶6.  (SBU) Charge, USAID Democracy and Governance Advisor, and P/E 
Chief met with Minister for Ethics and Integrity Buturo, Acting 
Inspector General of Government Rafael Baku, and DEI's Permanent 
Secretary Alex Okello on May 27 to discuss what measures could be 
taken to improve Uganda's performance before the ACT Program ends in 
December 2009.  All agreed that the ACT Program had improved the 
capacity of the anti-corruption agencies to fight corruption and 
that steps were being taken to enhance interagency coordination as 
well as prosecutions.  Overall, however, they agreed that progress 
had been slow and that the anti-corruption fight faced many 
challenges.  Buturo said that, in his view, there was "no concerted 
effort" to undermine anti-corruption efforts.  Charge asked if it 
would be helpful for the line agencies if the issue of lack of 
leadership or political will was raised at a higher level.  Buturo 
said a higher level intervention would be very helpful. 
 
- - - - - 
COMMENT 
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¶7.  (SBU) Uganda's commitment to fight corruption remains weak and 
the incidence and perception of corruption are increasing, despite 
the progress being on capacity building the capacity of the various 
anti-corruption agencies.  Lack of political will remains at the 
heart of Uganda's corruption problem despite President Museveni's 
continued "zero tolerance" for corruption. 
BROWNING