Finance Minister Henry Musasizi has challenged Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) officials to strengthen domestic revenue mobilisation, combat tax leakages and uphold integrity as the country seeks to reduce its dependence on borrowing.
Musasizi made the remarks on Tuesday while officiating at the pass-out ceremony of 174 UPDF and URA officials who completed the Transformational Leadership Course, Intake 10/2026, at the Oliver Reginald Tambo School of Leadership and Pan-African Centre of Excellence in Kaweweta, Nakaseke District.
He said domestic revenue had increased from about Shs16 trillion in the 2019/20 financial year to Shs36 trillion in 2025/26, adding that the government aims to increase domestic revenue from about 14 percent to 20 percent of Gross Domestic Product within five years.
“Our economy has the capacity to raise more. If we fix the bottlenecks, we can raise the 20% and 25% in the long term,” Musasizi said. He urged URA to broaden the tax base rather than placing additional pressure on compliant taxpayers, while balancing enforcement with support for legitimate businesses.
Musasizi also called on the authority to make greater use of data and technology to identify tax non-compliance and ensure taxpayers are treated fairly and professionally. “We want a URA way which ensures that every taxpayer in this country pays his due taxes,” he said.
The minister cautioned the officials against corruption, saying integrity was critical to maintaining public confidence in the tax body. “You don’t have to steal to be successful in life. Behind every shilling you mobilise is a Ugandan child who needs a school, a patient who needs healthcare, a farmer who needs a market and a country that increasingly wants to finance its development agenda from its own resources,” Musasizi said.
He also pledged to follow up on the President’s commitment of Shs4 billion and seek improvements to roads within and around the training school. Representing the Chief of Defence Forces, Major General Henry Masiko, Joint Staff Political Commissariat, said effective mobilisation and protection of domestic revenue should be treated as a national security priority.
Masiko urged the officers to reject corruption, laziness and self-interest and to embrace the government’s “No More Sleep” campaign. “The declaration of the government of no more sleep, no more corruption, no more laziness or sitting on the fence, and no more politeness on the side of the supervisors, must be internalised by all,” he said.
He said successful revenue mobilisation and protection strengthen the UPDF by ensuring adequate budgetary support for security operations and development of the force. “Successful revenue mobilisation and protection is a force multiplier for UPDF because this way we are guaranteed adequate budget support to enhance force capacity and capability,” Masiko said.
He reaffirmed the UPDF’s partnership with URA and commended the authority’s leadership for embracing ideological and mentorship training. URA Commissioner General John Musinguzi commended the UPDF and the Oliver Reginald Tambo School for supporting the authority’s training and operational activities, including efforts to combat smuggling along Uganda’s borders and waterways.
Musinguzi pledged to deliver the government’s Shs46.6 trillion domestic revenue target for the 2026/27 financial year, saying the newly trained officials would contribute to achieving the target. He also reaffirmed URA’s commitment to combating corruption and indiscipline within the authority and urged the graduates to apply the knowledge and values acquired during the course.
“We shall not sleep, and we shall not be corrupt, and we are sure we will give you the desired results. Everything that you have learned here, you should not leave it behind. Carry it with you because we need it,” Musinguzi said.
Brigadier General Justus Rukundo, Commandant of the Oliver Reginald Tambo School of Leadership and Pan-African Centre of Excellence, said the course was designed to equip the officials with leadership skills, patriotism, discipline and knowledge to support Uganda’s socio-economic transformation.
He described the training as an introductory component of the officers’ leadership careers and encouraged them to pursue continuous learning. Rukundo urged the graduates to maintain integrity, discipline and commitment to duty while avoiding corruption, sectarianism and excessive materialism.
“Guard against subversive tendencies, especially corruption. Guard against sectarianism, guard against love of soft life. Always endeavour to be part of the solution and not the problem,” he said. The ceremony was attended by senior officials and representatives from the UPDF, URA, the Basic Military Training School in Kaweweta, the Fort Samora Special Force Command Training Academy, the URA Tax Academy and the URA Staff Academy, among other institutions-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
