The Auditor General, Edward Akol, has revealed that only Shs9.34 billion has so far been recovered from beneficiaries of the Parish Development Model (PDM), despite Government having cumulatively released over Shs3.25 trillion to support household wealth creation across the country.
Akol made the disclosure while presenting the December 2025 Annual Audit Report to the Speaker of Parliament, Anita Among, on Thursday.
According to the report, voluntary recovery had commenced among 18,105 beneficiaries drawn from 709 Savings and Credit Cooperative Organisations (SACCOs) in 30 local governments under the 2022 PDM funding lot, but recovery efforts remained weak and inadequately planned at local government level.
The Auditor General noted that although the beneficiaries who had received the Parish Revolving Fund by December 2022 had begun voluntary repayment, there was no evidence of preparedness for recovery across all local governments involved.
He further reported that out of the Shs3.258 trillion cumulatively released by Government to 10,589 PDM SACCOs, only Shs2.75 trillion (84%) had been disbursed to households by the end of the 2024/2025 financial year, leaving Shs508.6 billion (16%) undistributed.
Akol highlighted several challenges undermining the implementation of the PDM, including the financing of non-existent or ghost projects, delays in disbursement of funds to households, implementation of ineligible projects, diversion of funds and the presence of duplicate beneficiaries.
In response to the audit findings, Speaker Anita Among urged the Auditor General to intensify scrutiny and enforcement in the auditing of PDM funds to ensure the money reaches the intended beneficiaries.
Among observed that while Parliament continues to appropriate funds for programmes such as the PDM with the expectation that they will benefit the final users, diversion of funds remains a major concern, with money often failing to reach the intended recipients.
She further stressed that Parliament could not continue appropriating funds only for a small, already well-off segment of the population to benefit, while a large portion of the intended beneficiaries remain excluded, and therefore called on the Auditor General to take firm action to ensure equitable access to the programme.
The Speaker also defended the PDM, noting that its success stories among rightful beneficiaries significantly contributed to the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) securing votes during the recently concluded general elections.
However, she cautioned that persistent weaknesses highlighted in the audit report, including delays in disbursement, instances of some beneficiaries receiving funds more than once while others received nothing, and poor alignment with parish priorities, threaten the credibility and effectiveness of the programme.
The Parish Development Model is a flagship government initiative aimed at transitioning households from subsistence to commercial production by channelling funds directly to communities at the parish level.