Government targets Shs959bn annual savings from agency shake-up

Government expects to save Shs959 billion a year by merging 60 public agencies or transferring their functions into existing institutions, ICT and National Guidance minister Justine Kasule Lumumba has said.

The reforms will retain 97 of the 157 agencies reviewed under the Rationalisation of Government Agencies and Public Expenditure programme, known as RAPEX.

Lumumba described the Shs959 billion as projected annual savings. The figure represents the expected reduction in spending once the reforms take effect.

RAPEX seeks to cut overlapping duties, reduce administrative costs and clarify which institutions deliver public services. Cabinet adopted the policy on February 22, 2021. 

Under the programme, some agencies merge, while others transfer their responsibilities to parent ministries. The changes remove separate administrative structures while keeping the public functions those agencies performed.

The latest update follows earlier reforms that absorbed staff into the mainstream public service. Appearing before Parliament’s public service committee on March 26, 2026, Public Service minister Wilson Muruli Mukasa said 90 per cent of staff in 40 rationalised agencies had joined the public service.

He also reported Shs773.3 billion in savings across wages, other operating costs, National Social Security Fund contributions, gratuity and board expenses. That earlier reported figure is separate from Lumumba’s latest annual projection. 

The transition has also required government to settle staff obligations and prepare ministries to take over agency functions. Finance state minister Henry Musasizi previously cautioned Parliament that actual savings depended on final staffing structures, work plans and outstanding liabilities. 

The test for RAPEX remains whether government can reduce costs while maintaining the services citizens depend on.