Gender and taxation: analysis of personal income tax (PIT)

the paper examines the gender dimensions of personal income tax (PIT) in Uganda with an eye on the possible gender biases that may be embedded in the tax system. It further addresses the issues of Uganda achievement of substantive gender equality rather than formal equality as regards the impact of taxes from a gender perspective. This is in line with Convention on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against all people as if they are the same and synonymous with equality of opportunity... we find that PIT paid by different household earning types increases gender inequality. We also find that some tax systems only worsens gender gaps and hardly is a useful tool that could be used to close the gender gaps. This paper proposes how PIT could be reformed with a view to using taxation as a tool for the realization of substantive gender equality.Gender equality, CEDAW, Taxation, Income tax, Kiiza, Bategeka, Guloba, Economic policy research center, Community/Rural/Urban Development, Consumer/Household Economics, Demand and Price Analysis, Financial Economics, Institutional and Behavioral Economics,

Overcoming the limits of institutional reform in Uganda

This paper begins by noting that Uganda has been a public sector reform leader in Africa. It has pursued reforms actively and consistently for three decades now, and has produced many laws, processes and structures that are 'best in class' in Africa (and beyond). The problem is that many of the reforms have been limited to these kinds of gains - producing new institutional forms that function poorly and yield limited impacts. Various kinds of data showed - in various areas (civil service and public administration, public financial management, revenue management, procurement, and anti-corruption) - that laws are often not being implemented, processes are being poorly executed, and there is insufficient follow-up to make sure that new mechanisms work as intended. The paper suggests that government should reframe its reform agenda to address these limitations and close the gaps between what Uganda's system looks like and how it functions

The Global Financial Crisis and Developing Countries: Phase 2 Synthesis

When the global financial crisis broke out in earnest in September 2008, it quickly became clear that developing countries would also be affected, but that the impacts would vary markedly. The Overseas Development Institute (ODI) coordinated a multi-country study over January-March 2009 involving developing country teams in 10 countries. This showed that, while the transmission mechanisms were similar in each (trade, private capital flows, remittances, aid), the effects varied by country, and much was not yet visible. As such, further country-specific monitoring was required. Most findings suggested that, as a result of time lags, the worst effects were yet to come. This synthesis of the effects of the global financial crisis on developing countries updates the description of the economic and social situation during the course of the crisis in 11 countries

Accelerating Growth and Maintaining Intergenerational Equity Using Oil Resources in Uganda

Uganda discovered commercially viable oil deposits in 2006. Estimated oil reserves as of September 2012 stood at 3.5 billion barrels. Since the discoveries, there has been much public debate on the types of public policies that the Government of Uganda (GoU) can implement in order to avoid or minimize the economic, social and political dislocations that have usually accompanied the exploitation of oil and gas in other African countries. It is important to note that the discovery and eventual exploitation of natural resources, such as gas and oil, are necessary but not sufficient conditions for the upheavals that are collectively referred to as “the curse of natural resources.” The reason why many African countries that have significant endowments of commercially viable oil and gas reserves often end up with the curse is that they do not have institutional arrangements that guarantee the rule of law. Without appropriate legal and judicial systems—that is, those that adequately constrain civil servants and politicians—the latter are likely to engage in corruption and other forms of political opportunism, and fail to implement policies to allocate resources efficiently and equitably and hence, enhance human development. It is hoped that Uganda will use its newly-discovered oil and gas resources to promote genuine economic growth and human development. This study employs a perception analysis of the views of key stakeholders on the suitability and impacts of available spending options

Uganda's Electircity Sector Reforms and Iinstitutional Restructuring

Using time series and the Uganda National Household Survey data, this paper seeks to examine the impact of the electricity reforms on the performance of the sector. Specifically, we investigate the effectiveness of the reforms in terms of sector performance taking into consideration various performance indicators such as electricity access, generation per capita, distribution efficiency, price trends, subsidies and customer growth. These indicators were selected on the basis of the rationale of the reforms..

Does teaching methods and availability of Teaching resources influence pupils’ Performance: evidence from four Districts in Uganda

This paper explores ways of improving education quality in Universal Primary Education (UPE) schools in Uganda. Following the introduction of UPE in Uganda in 1997, primary school enrolment increased tremendously, leading to a strain on existing teaching resources such as classrooms, teachers’ accommodation, toilets, teachers, chalk, and students’ furniture among others. The inadequacy of teaching resources partly attributes to the low quality of education in UPE schools as reflected in the Primary three and six pupils’ performance in literacy and numeracy. Accordingly, Government responded by increasing supply of teaching resources with the hope of improving the quality of education in UPE schools. The major findings of the paper include: i) Supplying more teaching resources in the current Uganda context should not be the number one priority intervention if the quality of education in public primary school is to be improved. Paradoxically, supply of teaching resources is found to have adverse effects on education quality. This suggests that the supply of teaching resources in these schools seem to be done at the expense of effective teaching. ii) Primary school teachers employ teacher-centred methods of teaching, which are less effective. The study finds that child-centred methods of teaching are more effective for both males and females as regards improvement of education quality. Yet, teachers in UPE schools hardly employ child-centred approaches to teaching, which mainly explains the poor quality of education in UPE schools. iii) There is urgent need for the ministry in charge of education to focus more on teacher supervision to compel teachers to attend to their duties and use child-centred methods of teaching. This calls for increased budget for school inspection and teacher supervision

Institutional Constraints to Agriculture Development in Uganda

Since the early 1990s, Uganda has implemented a number of reforms in the agricultural sector. However, in the past 10 years, the performance of the sector has lagged behind other sectors particularly services and industry. There are concerns among researchers and policy analysts that institutional constraints in agriculture play a central role in the lacklustre agricultural performance registered during the 2000s. This study examines the institutional constraints affecting agricultural production in Uganda. We recommend reforming the land tenure system as well as the architecture of the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries as means of dealing with the major constraints

RIGHTING RESOURCE-CURSE WRONGS IN UGANDA: THE CASE OF OIL DISCOVERY AND THE MANAGEMENT OF POPULAR EXPECTATIONS

Following Uganda’s discovery of oil deposits in 2006, the country’s development prospects look higher than ever before. Different stakeholders (discussed in the paper) have high development expectations. However, development experiences from oil-rich countries in Africa raise concerns that Uganda could suffer oil curse - a situation in which extraction of oilincreases poverty and misery to majority of the people instead of leading to improvement in livelihoods for all. The paper discusses management of popular expectations in Uganda that are associated with discovery of oil, with a view to assisting the country to avoid the dreaded oil curse. The oil curse is not because of the oil but due to economic and political mismanagement. Oil abundance typically generates valuable rents that tend to trigger violent forms of rent-seeking or “greed-based” insurgencies. Lack of transparency and accountability in Uganda’s oil sector are early signs of an oil curse. Uganda can avoid the oil curse by managing popular expectations better and by ensuring transparency and accountability in the management of the oil sector

Gender and taxation: analysis of personal income tax (PIT)

the paper examines the gender dimensions of personal income tax (PIT) in Uganda with an eye on the possible gender biases that may be embedded in the tax system. It further addresses the issues of Uganda achievement of substantive gender equality rather than formal equality as regards the impact of taxes from a gender perspective. This is in line with Convention on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against all people as if they are the same and synonymous with equality of opportunity... we find that PIT paid by different household earning types increases gender inequality. We also find that some tax systems only worsens gender gaps and hardly is a useful tool that could be used to close the gender gaps. This paper proposes how PIT could be reformed with a view to using taxation as a tool for the realization of substantive gender equality