By Spy Uganda
Uganda’s ambitious plan to connect more than 1.2 million households and businesses to electricity by 2027 is facing a major implementation test after Parliament discovered that only 25,906 beneficiaries have so far been connected under the $638 million Electricity Access Scale-Up Project (EASP).
The revelation has triggered sharp criticism from Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC), which questioned why a project backed by hundreds of millions of dollars has made such limited progress nearly three years after becoming effective.
The EASP, approved by the World Bank in 2022 and effective from July 2023, is intended to expand electricity access through grid extensions, off-grid solutions and electrification of refugee-hosting communities.
However, the latest review by the Auditor General shows that the project has achieved only a fraction of its intended target, raising concerns over whether Uganda will meet the 2027 deadline.
During a meeting with officials from the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development on Friday, PAC members expressed frustration over the slow implementation and the continued holding of project funds while communities remain without electricity.
PAC Chairperson Patrick Oshabe Nsamba questioned whether the ministry was accumulating supplies and expenditure on paper instead of delivering actual connections to Ugandans.
“We think you are trying to create book stock to balance accounts,” Nsamba told ministry officials.
Other committee members accused officials of failing to move with the urgency required, warning that every month of delay denies communities access to electricity that could support schools, health facilities, businesses and household productivity.
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development, Eng. Irene Bateebe, attributed much of the delay to the procurement process under the grid extension component.
She explained that EASP adopted a different procurement arrangement from some previous electricity projects, with government required to procure materials in bulk before contractors are engaged to undertake construction.
According to Bateebe, the project first had to recruit a design and supervision consultant, after which bidding documents required review by the World Bank before procurement of materials could begin.
This meant that the first year was largely spent on project effectiveness, the second on securing the consultant and the third on material procurement.
The explanation, however, did little to satisfy legislators.
PAC members argued that the ministry should have anticipated the procurement requirements before the project was approved and the loan secured.
They warned that failure to complete the project within the agreed period could force Uganda to seek an extension, potentially exposing the country to additional costs while delaying electricity delivery.
The committee has demanded that the ministry provide a written commitment showing how it intends to complete the project within the remaining implementation period.
The committee also questioned the handling of an additional $5.27 million received by the ministry above the approximately $60 million budgeted for the project during the 2024/25 financial year.
Ministry officials explained that the additional funds were linked to projections made when UMEME was still Uganda’s electricity distribution company, with expectations that about 300,000 new connections would be made.
However, UMEME achieved roughly half of the projected connections, leaving part of the funds unused and subsequently rolled over.
A project official initially suggested that the money had gone to UMEME, before the Permanent Secretary clarified the position.
The clarification prompted PAC members to demand stronger accountability and clearer documentation of project funds in future audits.
The concerns come at a critical time for Uganda, which has placed electricity access at the centre of its industrialisation and economic transformation agenda.
Government’s long-term development plans envision expanded access to reliable electricity as a foundation for manufacturing, agriculture, education, healthcare and small businesses.
But the slow pace of EASP implementation risks undermining those ambitions, particularly in rural and underserved communities where access to electricity remains significantly lower than in urban areas.
The ministry maintains that implementation is now gaining momentum, with major contracts approaching award and further progress expected once outstanding World Bank approvals are secured.
The government has also introduced structural changes aimed at improving project control, including government-led procurement of materials and arrangements with Uganda Electricity Distribution Company Limited (UEDCL) for results-based financing.
For PAC, however, the issue is no longer simply whether the project can eventually deliver. It is whether Uganda can translate the substantial financing already committed into electricity connections before time and money run out.
With only 25,906 beneficiaries connected against a target of more than 1.2 million, the project faces a huge implementation gap.
The coming two years will therefore be critical in determining whether the EASP can dramatically accelerate delivery or join the growing list of publicly funded projects whose ambitions have outpaced implementation.
