Kyenjojo District has concluded a three-day capacity-building training aimed at strengthening the collection and management of local government statistics, particularly under the State of Parish Economy and Asset Register (SPEAR) system. The three-day training, brought together Community Development Officers (CDOs), statisticians, parish chiefs, and ward agents from across the district.

 PARISH CHIEFS & CDOs in the training

Under the program, all parishes across the district will document their economic activities, community assets, household livelihoods, and development priorities providing a clearer picture of opportunities and gaps that need urgent attention.

The exercise is line with national efforts led by the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) to harmonize data collection tools for the National Statistical System. The initiative seeks to enhance the accuracy, consistency, and usefulness of community-level data used for planning, budgeting, and monitoring government programs.

The District Planner, Immaculate Atuhurra, reminded the participants that under the First Budget Call Circular issued by the Ministry of Finance, each parish is required to prepare the State of Parish Economy and Asset Register as part of the Budget Framework Paper (BFP) submissions. Reliable data from the parishes is essential for shaping development priorities and informing expenditure decisions, “This training is timely because it improves our capacity to produce accurate parish-level statistics that guide service delivery and local development planning,” she noted during the opening session.

 The District Planner, takes through the participants in the training

The phased training also involved UBOS experts taking participants through the SPEAR tools, digital reporting procedures, and the standardized statistical requirements expected of all local governments.

The district leadership has welcomed the initiative, emphasizing its importance in strengthening data-driven decision-making, particularly under the Parish Development Model (PDM). As the PDM continues to roll out across the district, SPEAR is expected to support monitoring of the enterprises financed through the PDM revolving fund. Parish chiefs and CDOs will use the data to track the performance of funded enterprises, identify households transitioning from subsistence to commercial production, assess the viability of different enterprises across parishes, and support targeted interventions to increase household incomes.

 The DPMO, Mr. Shem Ssekyanzi takes the particpants though the key PDM actvities to underatke  during the SPEAR exercise

Kyenjojo District, which comprises 19 sub-counties and 12 town councils, has long grappled with challenges such as incomplete data, inconsistent reporting, and scattered information on household livelihoods. Through SPEAR, the district expects to compile a unified database capturing dominant economic activities including crop farming, livestock rearing, and small-scale agribusiness, household asset ownership such as land, livestock, farm tools, and business equipment, community assets including boreholes, schools, health centers, and parish roads, and priority development needs across the district.

Kyenjojo District remains committed to transitioning more households into the money economy. With SPEAR, leaders hope to unlock new opportunities in commercial agriculture, value addition, rural infrastructure, youth enterprise development, and improved access to markets.

The District Vice Chairperson, Mrs. Grace Atuhaire emphasized that the initiative aligns with national efforts to uplift rural communities by ensuring planning is guided by real-time data collected from the grassroots.

Kyenjojo District Assistant Resident District Commissioner, Mr. Thaddeo Kasaija, noted that SPEAR will close gaps in asset monitoring, reduce duplication, and improve planning for maintenance and rehabilitation. The tool will also help streamline reporting to the Ministry of Local Government. He further intimated; “The SPEAR initiative is a great endeavor, the modeling of the parish as a standard service delivery and accountability point is very exciting”

As field teams continue capturing information across all parishes, Kyenjojo District believes SPEAR will become one of its most important tools for achieving inclusive and sustainable development, with a strong belief this comprehensive documentation will make planning more accurate and responsive to real community needs.

With this training and capacity of the participants built, Kyenjojo District reaffirms its commitment to improving statistics management and ensuring that parish data effectively informs government planning processes for better service delivery, With SPEAR's digital records feeding into district reports, leaders believe it will also significantly enhance transparency and accountability for PDM funds.