Uganda

Government organization

Uganda is a unitary republic with two spheres of government: central and local.

Central government

Head of State: The President is directly elected by voters.
Head of Government: The Prime Minister is appointed from amongst Parliament members by the President, with the approval of a simple majority of Parliament members.
Legislative body: The Parliament is a unicameral legislature which consists of directly elected members and nominated representatives of women, youth, workers, persons with disabilities, and the army.
Executive body: The Cabinet consists of the President, the Vice-President, the Prime Minister, and ministers appointed from amongst members of Parliament by the President, with the approval of Parliament.

Local government

Organization: Local government is organized into two or three tiers in Uganda. The City of Kampala is organized into two tiers, with an upper tier of the City of Kampala government and a lower tier of five city division-level local government units. Rural areas are organized into two tiers, consisting of an upper tier of district-level local government units and a lower tier of 1,195 sub-county-level local government units and 357 town-level local government units. Urban areas are organized into three tiers, consisting of an upper tier of district-level local government units, an intermediate tier of 41 municipalities, and a lower tier of 122 municipal division-level local government units.
Competencies: Local government is responsible for making laws and by-laws and formulating, approving, and executing the local budget.
Ministerial oversight: The Ministry of Local Government is responsible for central government oversight of local government.

Overview of local government

Local government composition

District-level government

Deliberative body: The district council is composed of the chairperson, elected members, reserved seat members, the chairperson of district women’s council, and the chairperson of the sub-county women’s council. A speaker is elected by and from the council to preside over it; the speaker is not vested with executive powers.

Executive body: The district executive committee is composed of the chairperson and members nominated by the chairperson, including a deputy and a maximum of five secretaries.

City of Kimpala government

Deliberative body: The city council is composed of the chairperson, elected members, and reserved seat members. A speaker is elected by and from the city council to preside over it; the speaker is not vested with executive powers.

Executive body: The city executive committee is composed of the chairperson and members nominated by the chairperson, including a deputy and a maximum of five secretaries.

City division, sub-county, town, municipal division, and municipal-level government

Deliberative body: The city division, municipal, municipal division, town, and sub-county council are each composed of the chairperson, elected members, and reserved seat members. A speaker is elected by and from the council to preside over it; the speaker is not vested with executive powers.

Executive body: The city division, municipal, municipal division, town, and sub-county executive committees are each composed of the chairperson and members nominated by the chairperson, including a deputy and a maximum of five secretaries.

Local government elections

Electoral system

Electoral system for local deliberative bodies: majority/plurality (first-past-the-post)

The winner is the candidate that has obtained the largest number of votes in each electoral area.

Electoral system for chairpersons: majority/plurality (first-past-the-post)

Chairpersons are directly elected by voters. The winner is the candidate that has obtained the largest number of votes.

Source: Local Governments Act, 1997 (amended through 2020), article 115(1) and 135

Quotas

Gender quotas: Reserved seats

In each local government deliberative body, there shall be a woman councillor directly elected to represent each ward. Additionally, from the reserved seats for youth, disabled persons, older persons and workers, one of the two councilors (per category) must be female. These councilors are indirectly elected (see additional quotas below).
Additionally, in each local government executive body, at least one of secretaries must be female.

Additional quotas: Youth, disabled persons, older persons, workers

Youth: two representatives per council, elected by an electoral college consisting of:
- In district councils: all sub-county youth councils and the district youth executive;
- In the City Council: all city division youth councils and the city youth executive;
- In all other localities: all parish or ward youth councils and the sub-county, town, or division youth executive.
Disabled persons: two representatives per council, elected by the National Union of Disabled People of Uganda forming an electoral college as follows:
- In district councils: all members of the District Executive Committee and sub-county executive committees;
- In the City Council: all members of the City Executive Committee and city division executive committees;
  - In all other localities: all members of the division or parish executive committees.
Older persons: two representatives per council, elected in accordance with the National Council for Older Persons Act of 2013, elected by the associations of the elderly forming an electoral college composed as follows:
- For all other localities: all members of the town, division, or sub-county executive committees and parish or ward executive committees
Workers: two representatives in the District Council, elected in accordance with the Labor Unions Act of 2006.

Source: Local Governments Act, 1997 (amended through 2020), articles 10(1)(c), 10(1)(d), 10(1)(e), 10(1)(f), 10(1)(fa), 16(3), 23(1)(c), 23(1)(d), 23(1)(e), 23(2)(c), 23(2)(d), 23(2)(e), 23(3)(c), 23(3)(d), 23(3)(e), 23(4)(c), 23(4)(d), 23(4)(e), 23(5)(c), 23(5)(d), 23(5)(e), 23(6), 117, 118, 118

Term of elections

Term length: 5 years
Last local elections: 2021
Next local elections: 2026

Electoral management body

Electoral Commission of Uganda

National legal framework on local government

National legal framework

Constitution of the Republic of Uganda, 1995 (amended through 2018);
Local Governments Act, 1997 (amended through 2020).

Constitutional provisions on local government

There are constitutional provisions that establish local government in Uganda. According to Article 180 of the Constitution of 1995 (amended through 2018), “a local government shall be based on a council which shall be the highest political authority within its area of jurisdiction, and which shall have legislative and executive powers to be exercised in accordance with this Constitution.”

Legislative provisions on local government

The Parliament is responsible for establishing the national legal framework on local government. The key piece of legislation which regulates local government is the Local Governments Act of 1997 (amended through 2020), which provides for the political and administrative setup of local governments, the election of local councils, and the decentralization at all levels of local government, to ensure good governance and democratic participation in decision making by the people.

Sources:

1. UN Women: Data on share of women in local government as of 1 January 2023.

2. UN Women: Information on Head of State and Government as of 3 October 2023.

3. Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU): Data on share of women in the single/lower chamber of parliament as of 1 January 2023.

4. IPU and UN Women: Data on share of women in ministerial positions as of 1 January 2023.

5. Information on local government organization as of 1 January 2022.

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Local government country profile

Local government country profile

Government organization

Overview of local government