Parliamentary Commissioner Faith Nakut says only 11 of more than 50 bills presented in the 2025/2026 financial year were processed within 45 days, prompting plans to strengthen committees and staff capacity.
The Parliamentary Commission has raised concern over delays in processing legislation, revealing that only 11 of more than 50 bills presented to Parliament during the 2025/2026 financial year were handled within the stipulated 45-day period.
Faith Nakut, the Commissioner of Parliament in charge of Finance, Administration and Planning, said the Commission was prioritising capacity-building for Members of Parliament and technical staff to improve the timely processing of government and private members’ bills.
In an exclusive interview, Nakut, who is also the Napak District Woman MP, said the delays were among the issues highlighted in the Commission’s Annual Performance Report for the 2025/2026 financial year, which was tabled in Parliament last week.
She said the report also highlighted areas requiring improvement in the performance of Parliament and other institutions accountable to the legislature.
Nakut noted that institutions funded through the Consolidated Fund are required to submit annual performance reports to Parliament as part of their accountability obligations.
“All institutions that receive funding from the Consolidated Fund should present an annual performance report to Parliament. It is a constitutional requirement and those that breach it should be held accountable,” she said.
On Parliament’s legislative performance, Nakut said the report identified significant delays in processing bills, with the majority exceeding the stipulated timeframe.
“The report observed that a number of bills in the Financial Year 2025/2026 were processed beyond the stipulated time of 45 days. Out of over 50 bills presented to Parliament, only 11 bills were processed within the stipulated 45 days, with the rest going beyond the required time,” she said.
To address the delays, Nakut said the 12th Parliament had embarked on a strategy to strengthen parliamentary committees by equipping MPs and technical staff with the necessary skills and resources to scrutinise proposed legislation more efficiently.
“Within this 12th Parliament, to enable Committees to process bills in time, we have embarked on building capacity of both MPs and the technical staff, in addition to extending the necessary funding to Committees to execute their work in time,” she said.
The Commission also raised concern over the failure to convene any meeting of the Programme Leadership Committee during the reporting year.
Nakut said the Commission was now working to reactivate the committee to improve coordination on parliamentary business.
“No single meeting on programme leadership was held during the reporting year. Now our focus is on reactivating this leadership committee,” she said.
The Programme Leadership Committee is chaired by the Speaker of Parliament and brings together key political and government officials, including the political head of Kampala Capital City Authority, the Minister for Local Government and the Attorney General, among other representatives.
The committee is mandated to handle matters relating to legislation, oversight and representation.
The Commission’s findings point to the need for improved coordination, adequate resourcing and stronger oversight of parliamentary business to ensure proposed laws are scrutinised and processed within the required timelines.