The United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) in partnership with Makerere University today launched a new programme—Local Economic Acceleration through Partnerships (LEAP) to promote improved access to public goods and services in secondary cities in Uganda and across Africa.

The LEAP programme implemented by UNCDF in partnership with Makerere University and supported by Cities Alliance, in Gulu and Mbale municipalities looks to build the capacity of secondary cities to attract private capital to finance their development needs.

Opening the launch event, Dmitry Pozhidaev, Head of the UNCDF Country Office in Uganda emphasized the innovative nature of the programme that endeavors to explore alternative financing modalities to address the challenge of inadequate public infrastructure lagging behind the accelerated growth in Ugandan secondary cities, which is twice as high as the average population growth. At the same time, the programme will contribute to improving the capacity of municipal governments to analyze their financial situation and identify the measures to expand their fiscal space.

Speaking at the launch event, Rosa Malango, United Nations Resident Coordinator, emphasized that the programme is a tangible embodiment of the United Nations’ commitment to support Uganda in the achievement of its development objectives informed by the Sustainable Development Goals. “In order to attract investment and private capital, secondary cities need to demonstrate creditworthiness to potential investors and this calls for changes in how they plan and manage their finances,” said Malango.

The LEAP programme builds on the first phase of the Joint Work Programme on Equitable Economic Growth in Cities (JWP) which identified critical service areas to boost local economic activity in the two municipalities. As a follow on, the LEAP programme focuses on the required financing of the identified service areas to contribute to equitable economic growth.

To achieve this, the LEAP programme seeks to develop tools and undertake an assessment, which will be conducted by Makerere University, of the risk for potential investors in pilot municipalities and estimate the ability of municipalities to pay back. This will include analyzing past municipal financials, current revenues and projections in order to prepare them for credit rating and prescribe deliberate and sustainable strategies to attract investment.

“We are not only empowering the municipalities here but also building the capacity of our local researchers in financial modeling and economic policy,” noted Professor Umar Kakumba, Deputy Vice Chancellor of Makerere University

The results of this engagement at the municipal level will inform national and global knowledge products which will provide field-tested guidelines for investments in secondary cities in Africa and beyond.

The programme is part of the Cities Alliance Joint Work Programme (JWP) on Equitable Economic Growth, which works to bring together members and partners to produce global knowledge, facilitate policy dialogues and support city-level diagnostics and policy recommendations. Recognizing the needs and capacities of cities and local governments, it focuses specifically on supporting equitable access to public goods and services by all citizens and formal and informal businesses.

About UNCDF

UNCDF joined Cities Alliance and the Joint Work Programme in 2015. It is the UN’s capital investment agency for the world’s 48 least developed countries, offering finance models that unlock public and private resources, especially at the domestic level, to reduce poverty and support local economic development

About Cities Alliance

Cities Alliance is the global partnership for poverty reduction and promoting the role of cities in sustainable development. It brings together organisations with different perspectives and expertise on city issues around common goals: well run, productive cities that provide opportunities for all residents. Cities Alliance is based in Brussels, Belgium and is hosted by the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS).

For more information, please contact Joel Mundua: joel.mundua@uncdf.org