Bunyoro Kitara Kingdom – Management Task Force – Setting the foundation for a relevant Kingdom in the 21st century

Bunyoro Kitara Kingdom (BKK) and the entire Albertine region is well endowed with rich natural resources like lakes, rivers, land, minerals, people, forests, biodiversity and oil + gas among others. Despite this endowment, the people of Bunyoro are still poor and with limited ability to harness and/or benefit from their environment. Since its re-establishment in 1993,
the kingdom has not established appropriate management and governance arrangements that are considered critical for it to effectively and efficiently play its role and contribute to the development of the region and the country at large.

The management task force (MTF) was commissioned to assist the Kingdom put in place fit for purpose processes/systems, structures, people, and governance arrangements and facilitate the determination of the strategic direction of BKK. The MTF was established on 08 January 2018 by the Royal Commission of Bunyoro Kitara Kingdom, on behalf of His Majesty R.A Omukama Solomon Gaffabusa Iguru, the King of Bunyoro Kitara Kingdom.

Composition of the Management task force The Management Task Force is comprised of 7 members who were charged with the
responsibility to put in place “Fit for Purpose” systems with operating procedures, structures, people, and governance arrangements, and facilitate the determination of the strategic direction of BKK.

Edgar Isingoma, the Team Leader of the MTF is a Partner at KPMG and the Country Leader/Managing Partner for Uganda country office with overall responsibility for country leadership, business development, practice management and client service delivery. He is actively involved in delivering assignments in the East Africa region and providing overall leadership in Quality Performance and Risk Management within the Advisory line of business in East Africa. He is a chartered accountant,
financial analyst and management consultant with over 25 years of working experience. He holds a Bachelor of Commerce Degree and Masters in Business Administration. Edgar excelled during accreditation with the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), being awarded the top student nationally in three subjects (Financial management and control, Audit and Internal review and Performance Management). Edgar is a Fellow of the Association of Certified Chartered Accounts (FCCA), Member of the Institutes of Certified Public Accountants of Uganda and Rwanda and a member of the Chartered
Financial Analyst Institute (USA). For over 10 years before joining KPMG, Edgar worked in the private sector (transportation and coffee industries) in Uganda initially as an accountant, and rose through ranks to the level of General Manager. Edgar has presided over successful delivery of various assignments involving multiple stakeholders both as Team leader and technical specialist. Edgar has delivered assignments in Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, Zambia, Mozambique, Uganda, Rwanda and Tanzania.

Mr. Patrick Byabakama Kaberenge, member of the Task Force is a management consultant and Lead Partner at “Byabakama Kwemala & Associates, Certified Public Accountants”. He is the current Chairperson of National Social Security Fund. Formerly he was the Executive Director, Operations of the Bank of Uganda, Ag. Deputy Governor and Executive Director/Chief Internal Auditor of the Bank. Mr. Byabakama Kaberenge holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Financial Services, a Master of Science degree in Finance and Computing and he is a Chartered Banker, a Chartered Certified Accountant, a Chartered Secretary and Administrator, a Chartered Transporter and a Certified Internal Auditor.

Professor Vincent Bagire, Member of the Task Force is an Associate Professor of Strategic Management at Makerere University Business School (MUBS). He is a Deputy Dean in the Faculty of Graduate Studies and responsible for teaching and research on Postgraduate Diplomas, Masters and PhD Programs. Prof. Bagire holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration and Management, an MBA and PhD. He has been a University Lecturer for 22 years

Mr. Abdul Bazara Byakagaba, member of the Task force is a Petroleum Geologist with 25 years’ experience in the upstream petroleum sector. Currently he is a Tutor of Strategic Planning and Project Management to MBA students at the Edinburgh Business School, Heriot Watt University, UK. He is a lecturer of Petroleum Economics at Makerere University. Formerly
worked with the Petroleum Exploration and Production Department of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development and worked as Deputy Country Manager for Heritage Oil and Technical Manager for Tullow Oil.

Mr. Byakagaba holds a BSc (Hons) in Geology and Chemistry from Makerere, and MSc in Sedimentology from Reading University, UK, an MBA in Strategic Planning and MBA Oil and Gas Management from Edinburgh Business School.

Dr. Fred Muhumuza, member of the Task Force is involved in Development Policy Research, Analysis, Formulation and Review for over twenty years. He is a lecturer at Makerere University, Nkumba University and African Bible University. Formerly he worked as Economic Advisor to the Minister of Finance, Planning and Economic Development in Uganda and was a Research Follow at the Economic Policy Research Centre. He also worked as Senior Manager at KPMG Uganda. Dr Muhumuza holds a PhD (Development Economics), a Masters in Economic Policy and Planning and a Certificate in Development Evaluation.

Mr. Andrew Kirungi Byakutaaga, Member and currently the Omuhikirwa (Prime Minister) is a Petroleum Geologist who has used his technical expertise to manage customs, valuation and tariffs in Uganda Revenue Authority. He retired in July 2015 while heading Entebbe Airport customs. By Byakutaaga started his professional career as a Petroleum Geologist in 1991 in the Petroleum Exploration and Production Department of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development and worked for 7 years before joining the Uganda Revenue Authority.
Mr. Byakutaaga obtained a BSc degree in Geology and Chemistry from Makerere University, an MSc in Petroleum Geoscience from the Norwegian University of Technology, a Postgraduate Diploma in Petroleum Exploration and Production from Norwegian University of Technology; a Post graduate Diploma in Management and another Post graduate Diploma in Tax Revenue Administration.

Dr Sylvester Kugonza, P.K. holds a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Public Policy (University of Birmingham, U.K), Master of Project Management (MPM) (Curtin, Australia), Pgd. Rural Policy and Project Planning (RPP) (ISS-Netherlands), BSc (Hons) Agricultural Economics (MUK)

As a Principal Consultant at UMI, Sylvester specialises in development planning, Project Planning and Management, Public Policy, Strategic Management Monitoring and Evaluation. Within development work, Sylvester’s research interest is on what happens at point of service delivery to the customer and/or citizenry Dr. Kugonza has practiced as a Development Planner and Manager. For the last 17 years he has been teaching, researching and consulting in Project Planning and Management including Public Policy and Strategic Management as well as Institutional Development.

The R.A Omukama of BKK, through the Royal Commission assigned the following tasks to the MTF:

1. Consult with Key stakeholders of the Kingdom on the future of Bunyoro Kitara Kingdom and what they want achieve in Bunyoro by 2050.
2. Facilitate a Symposium to determine the strategic direction of BKK.
3. Study and/or consult other similar jurisdictions/Kingdoms to inform the task force recommendations.
4. Present the draft strategic plan, policies/procedures, structures and governance arrangements to the Commission and other agreed Key Stakeholders.
5. Work with the Royal Commission to refine and determine the profiles of people to fill the governance positions (Orukurato, Ministers, County Chiefs, Sub County chiefs, Clan leaders, etc).
6. Document the role and purpose of the different governance entities/bodies in the Kingdom to avoid ambiguity or conflict.
7. Put in place fit for purpose policies/systems/procedures, governance arrangements, management structures at BKK.
8. Define or determine the competences (Skills and behaviors) or role profiles of key positions in the kingdom secretariat

The MTF has substantially completed the assigned tasks. Below are some of the key recommendations/proposals:

1. The BKK secretariat will comprise of 30 staff headed by the Administrative Secretary who shall report to Cabinet and is supervised by the Prime Minister. The recruitment process will be competence based. Roles will be filled progressively to take into consideration of the resource envelope.
2. The management structure of the BBK Secretariat will comprise 8 departments (Natural resources, Social sector, Oil and gas, PPS, Clerk to parliament, Finance and administration, Production and Trade, and Mobilization/protocol –Chiefs).
3. The operating policies and guidelines of BKK will be characterized by modern management practices and these will include; Governance policies, Human resource policies, financial management guidelines, procurement guidelines and risk management policies. These will ensure an effective and efficient Kingdom
4. The Cabinet will comprise of a maximum of 10 Ministers (Abagatwa) headed by the Prime Minister (Omuhikirwa).
5. The Parliament should be a “broad coalition” of Bunyoro –Kitara stakeholders e.g. Elders, religious leaders, business leaders, youth, political leaders, clan leaders, women etc. The Orukurato will constitute of 40 Voting members, headed by the Omutalindwa. The Orukurato will be attended by Members of parliament from Bunyoro Kitara Kingdom, LV Chairpersons from BKK and Abagatwa.
6. The Secretariat will prepare an annual budget and this shall be approved by the cabinet and the Orukurato. This budget shall be based on the BKK development plan, 5 year strategic plan and annual work plan.
7. Our work has been accomplished and we want to thank the people of Bunyoro for the significant and timely contributions made. The operationalization of our work now rests in the hands of the Prime Minister and the Royal Commission. Indeed the strong foundation has been laid and includes:

a) Bunyoro Kitara Kingdom Development plan – 2050;

b) The Governance and management structures of BKK;

c) Job descriptions/role profiles for the different roles in the Kingdom;

d) Finance management policies and guidelines;

e) Human resource and administration policies and guidelines;

f) Procurement policies and guidelines for BKK;

g) Governance policies and guidelines for the Kingdom; and

h) Risk Management guidelines for the Kingdom.

Habwa Ruhanga, Ne’hanga Lyaitu