ToroDev attained membership with CSBAG in January 2015.

ToroDev attained membership with  CSBAG in January 2015. The partnership arrangement has enhanced ToroDev to  participate in National Budget Analysis, Advocacy& Lobbying Trainings organized by  a Civil Society Budget Advocacy Group (CSBAG).

After a series of engagements and participation in CSBAG activities on national budget advocacy to benefit ordinary  local citizens in Uganda, ToroDev was formally admitted to the national group in August 2014. One of the key advocacy activities that ToroDev has participated in together with CSBAG members, was the “campaign against taxation of agricultural/agribusiness inputs in Uganda”, as proposed by the Ministry of Finance, Planning & Economic Development in Uganda during the 2014/2015 National Budget proposals to the Ugandan Parliament.

ToroDev and other CSBAG members combined forces and efforts to collect at least 1 million signatures of farmers throughout Uganda to petition the Ugandan Parliament to reject the passing of the taxation proposal made by the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development earlier in June 2014. Indeed, it was celebration amongst Ugandan farmers and CSBAG members countrywide, when Parliament eventually supported the local farmers and heeded to their plea of rejecting the proposed taxation of agricultural/ inputs in Uganda. This was achieved in September 2014.

Meanwhile, in January 2015, ToroDev staff participated the “Budget Analysis & Advocacy & Lobbying” training organized by the CSBAG secretariat in Kampala, Uganda. Key models of the training included; Contextualization of the Budget Policies in Uganda, Introduction to People –Centered Budgeting, Identifying Community Needs & Linking them to Budgets, Sector Financing, Budget Analysis, Budget Tracking (Monitoring) & Accountability and Advocacy & Campaign.

Partners of CSBAG  attending training  in Kampala - Uganda in January 2015. ption

In 2015, ToroDev will actualize this skill and also orient her collaborating Citizens’ Advocacy Forum members spread in seven districts of the Rwenzori sub-region, western Uganda.