Prisons Budget Cut by Shs8.5bn

This decision has raised serious concerns about the management of overcrowding, inmate welfare, and prison infrastructure, prompting calls from prison reform advocates for urgent intervention.
The Uganda Prisons Service is staring into a significant budget reduction in the fiscal year 2025/26, with funding slashed by Shs8.52 billion—from Shs347.56 billion in FY 2024/25 to Shs339.04 billion.
This decision has raised serious concerns about the management of overcrowding, inmate welfare, and prison infrastructure, prompting calls from prison reform advocates for urgent intervention.
One of the hardest-hit areas is care and human rights activities, which will lose Shs5.34 billion.
These programmes, vital for providing medical care, rehabilitation, and education for prisoners, are critical to maintaining basic standards within the prison system.
The cuts are expected to aggravate already severe conditions in Uganda’s overcrowded prisons, which continue to strain under limited resources.
The funding reduction has also impacted the Enhancement of Prisons Production Systems and Value Addition Project.
This initiative, aimed at boosting prison-run agricultural production of cotton, seed, and grain, is losing Shs8.34 billion.
The project has been essential in reducing operational costs and increasing self-reliance, but its viability is now in question.
Although the Uganda Prisons wage bill remains Shs120.413 billion for FY 2025/26, the budget fails to address Shs22.26 billion in arrears and previously allocated salary increments.
This comes after a 47.2% wage increase in FY 2024/25, which had already stretched resources thin.
The UPS is also battling an 8% annual growth in the prisoner population, which has consistently outpaced case resolution rates.
Efforts to address this through the construction of 50 new wards are now jeopardized by a Shs3.786 billion shortfall. Similarly, plans to build a Kitalya Model Prison each year (at Shs18 billion per prison) and three low-security prisons (requiring Shs24 billion) may face delays or cancellations.
Modernization efforts, including ICT integration for offender monitoring and virtual court platforms, have been halted by a Shs23.4 billion funding gap.
These initiatives are crucial for improving efficiency and reducing reliance on physical transport of prisoners, but their implementation will now remain stalled.
Additionally, no funds have been allocated for the construction of 79 two-bedroom staff houses, an essential project to address housing shortages for prison officers.
This omission compounds challenges of low morale and retention within the prison workforce, further undermining service delivery.
With the prison system already struggling to cope with overcrowding and inadequate resources, these funding cuts are expected to worsen conditions.
Advocates for prison reform are urging the government to reconsider its priorities, warning that further neglect will erode efforts to ensure humane conditions and effective rehabilitation for prisoners.
As FY 2025/26 begins, Uganda’s prison system faces its most daunting challenges yet, with overcrowded facilities and unmet resource needs threatening its ability to function effectively.