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Academicians Retooled on the System of Environmental-Economic Accounting (SEEA)

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By Jane Anyango

Over 30 members of the academia comprising staff and graduate students from Makerere University School of Economics, Muni University and Makerere University Business School  on 28th September, 2021 converged for a training on the System of Environmental-Economic Accounting (SEEA).

The blended seminar held physically and virtually was organized by the Environment for Development Initiative (EfD-Mak) Centre facilitated by the Makerere University don, who is also Research Fellow at the EfD-Mak center and Fulbright Scholar Dr. Nickolas Kilimani.

Dr. Kilimani streamed live from the USA on the System of Environmental-Economic Accounting focusing on the Integrated Water Resources Management, Policy Analysis and Decision making.

Dr. Kilimani highlighted the recent developments in Environmental-Economic Accounting in Uganda, the System of Environmental-Economic Accounting  and its objectives, Water resources accounting modules and the role of Water Accounting in Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM).

Dr. Kilimani observed that the national economic policy has been underpinned by macroeconomic theory and the necessary statistics are collected and arranged using the System of National Accounts (SNA) which covers all economic activity from production to consumption and accumulation, and all industries using the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) as the key indicator.

He noted that the basic theoretical foundation of the SNA has not changed since 1953 even with the detail that has evolved with technological, economic and social change adding that, for more than 70 years, governments and business have used the information from the SNA as an information source in economic analysis and policy.

Dr. Nicholas Kilimani delivers his training on SEEA online
Dr. Nicholas Kilimani delivers his training on SEEA online

“The SNA does not adequately account for the environment and yet economic activity can adversely drive both observed and unobserved changes in it. The System of Environmental-Economic Accounting (SEEA) aims to address the deficiency of the traditional national accounting (the SNA) by accounting for the environment and linking it to environmental information through common concepts, definitions and classifications” Dr. Kilimani stated.

Compared to the SNA, Kilimani said, the SEEA is not yet widely used in decision making, partly because, it has recently been adopted as an international standard.

Dr. Kilimani said the objectives of SEEA are to develop a consistent data system for economic and environmental data and provide a common system to derive indicators and measure sustainable development. 

He explained that the SEEA provides a better measure of national wealth to include not only produced capital but also natural capital,  and assesses availability of natural resources, their use in production and final consumption and the cost of depletion. In addition  Kilimani said, SEEA assess the level and cost of emissions and other waste from production and consumption and identifies monetary flows related to the environment which are already within the SNA (e.g., expenditures on environmental protection, environmental taxes and subsidies,etc.)

Dr. Kilimani underscored the role of Water Accounting in Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM) noting that the growing pressure on water resources and high uncertainty on future water availability have caused the urgent need for better planning and management.

He emphasized that water is not only essential to cover basic needs for humans and the environment that underpins them, it is also a key factor for the economic development of diverse sectors with conflicting interests as regard to its use.

A dual view of Physical participants in the Makerere University EfD Conference Room (L) interacting with Dr. Nicholas Kilimani (R) live from the US.
A dual view of Physical participants in the Makerere University EfD Conference Room (L) interacting with Dr. Nicholas Kilimani (R) live from the US.

“The IWRM paradigm is considered a good approach to deal with those complexities. It proposes a coordinated utilization of water and land resources to support economic and social development without compromising environmental sustainability.

It recognizes that water management is a key aspect since human intervention is the trigger for all trade-offs and conflicts around water. IWRM highlights the influence of catchment management on water resources quantity and quality, as well as the need to preserve the natural capital for future generations.” He added.

Dr. Kilimani said Water management is considered a social, economic, and political issue rather than just technical and therefore, stakeholder involvement in water management is needed and this translates into legal requirements for public participation and transparency in water governance.

“The value of water, the opportunity costs of its allocation, or the costs of making it available should be known and recognized in order to incentivize water use efficiency. The implementation of those legal requirements calls for making information about water publicly available in a clear and accessible way. In this sense, water accounting emerges as a useful tool to promote efficiency and transparency in water resource planning and management”, Kilimani stated.

The current and proposed framework for IWRM in Uganda

Dr. Kilimani said the existing institutional and policy framework shows the multiple institutions charged with the management of water resources in Uganda, but, there is a need for an explicit connection between water sector policies and those of the social-economic sectors, since water resources are a key input into the country’s economic and social sectors.

Participants pose for a group photo with EfD-Mak Centre Director Prof. Edward Bbaale after the seminar.
Participants pose for a group photo with EfD-Mak Centre Director Prof. Edward Bbaale after the seminar.

“The institutional framework in Uganda, provides for a key component such as Water for Production. Institutions in charge of managing the productive sectors of the economy, i.e., MoFPED, (MAAIF), and the MTTI need to link their development plans and policies with those of the water sector.  A sound national water policy should relate the different development plans of the social-economic sectors in an explicit manner”. Kilimani said.

In the (2015) paper, Dr. Kilimani and other researchers proposed a framework for policy analysis which relates the development plans for the different social-economic sectors to those of the water sector.

This framework he said is aimed at providing policy analysis of IWRM in a typical economy by linking e.g., agriculture, industry, households, hydro-electricity and navigation which are key sectors that primarily depend on water.

The don explained that development plans in these sectors involve several policy variables and inputs. Therefore, the interaction between the policy variables and their impacts are monitored through multiple indicators in the social-economic and ecological domains.

“Given the multiplicity of variables, the SEEA framework uses aggregated water data as do the existing approaches for analyzing the associated policy impacts.

Some of the female graduate students that attended the training listen to proceedings.
Some of the female graduate students that attended the training listen to proceedings.

Computable general equilibrium (CGE) models also use aggregation and hierarchical decomposition in order to simplify model development and data compression to manageable sizes.

While the aggregation hides some of the temporal and spatial variability, it still preserves the fundamental trends that help to provide needed answers by policy-makers”, Kilimani said.

SEEA, a new area of interest to academicians and the Government of Government

The Director EfD-Mak Center Prof. Edward Bbaale described  the seminar  as the most exciting because it brought on board a new area which is of interest to the Government of Uganda.

Prof. Bbaale said, Uganda Bureau of Statistics, the National Planning Authority and other partners are trying to work on the system of Environmental-Economic Accounting away from the conventional system of National Accounting.

“Our System of National Accounting is deficient in incorporating Environmental aspects because as we produce and consume, then in one way or another, we are depleting the environment which we refer to as natural capital and this natural capital is all the time depreciating but there is no way in our conventional GDP measurements that, but now, this new system is solution to this”, Prof. Bbaale stated.

From the academic perspective, Prof. Bbaale commended the facilitator for showing participants   how to undertake the System of Environmental-Economic Accounting and ably bringing participants on board in terms of the key variables that are important in this new system specific to the water sector.

A section of staff and graduate students that attended the seminar
A section of staff and graduate students that attended the seminar

The  Director appreciated Dr. Kilimani for exposing  participants to the policy,  non-policy and  the output variables and giving tips on some methods such as the Computable general equilibrium (CGE) which can be utilized to understand the impact of a policy decision on the rest of the economy in terms of the social, economic and environmental outcome.

“The lesson here is that we need to invest our time into understanding this new System of Environmental-Economic Accounting as a way of incorporating new ventures in our research as economists and academicians. And to our graduate students, this is an area worthy of investing their time and I am glad that a number of graduate students attended this seminar”, Prof. Edward Bbaale said.

Prof. Bbaale said, a number of reports are already out and that SEEA is an area which is very virgin, where very limited research has been undertaken partly because of lack of numbers that incorporate the environment into the entire national analysis.

“But now, some strides have been taken, some milestones are being achieved and if our own, Dr. Nickolas Kilimani with a Fulbright Scholar in the US is having all these on his fingertips, it is a huge resource to Makerere University, to our country and it is a starting point of deeper analysis into how the environment is being affected when we are doing our production and consumption   activities”, Prof. Bbaale said.

He reported that the seminar was quite intriguing and important for national policy and pledged to arrange to involve policy makers from the Ministry of Water and Environment and the National Water and Sewerage Corporation in the next seminar.

Participants comment on the seminar

Makerere University PhD student from the School of Economics Alex Aliga, who is also a lecturer at Muni University Uganda said the seminar was timely.

“It has enriched many of the things that I had learnt in class and I had taken for granted. The System of Environment and Economic Analysis though new is very important and interesting because once you begin to understand Natural Resource Accounting and integrate it into GDP, then we get to understand the full value of our resources. In that case, it means that we may actually be richer than what we thought we are. Some of these things are not easy to bring to the GDP which is the measure of our national economy.

Some of the graduate students and staff from Muni University that attended the seminar.
Some of the graduate students and staff from Muni University that attended the seminar.

I got many lessons; – understanding how you can apply the theoretical things into practical and to influence policy is very important for our country. Given the fact that our resources are under attack, climatic change and environmental issues are real, we need this knowledge so as to be able to sustainably use our resources for a better future”, Mr. Aliga said.

Dr. Paul Edabu, a Senior Lecturer at Muni University said:

“The day’s seminar was an eye opener to the current situation in Uganda bearing in mind that we have two blocks of people who are in accounts and economics and there is no integration even in our ministries.

Our country is at a paradox, today people are restricted to cut trees from the forests and also carrying out farming in the wetlands and the next day, a factory is erected in the wetland. This seminar is timely and something I had yearned to learn because it incorporates the environment as a key resource into the national accounting system”,  Dr. Edabu commented.

SEEA and the Government of Uganda

Government of Uganda (GoU) is moving towards resource-led industrialization by developing a set of natural capital accounts under the Uganda Natural Capital Accounting (NCA) program. The National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP), National Development Plan, and Uganda Green Growth Development Strategy (UGGDS) recognize the challenges of development planning without accounting for its effect on natural resources, many of which are non-renewable.

In cognizance of the above, GoU with her development partner UNEP with its World Conservation Monitoring Centre arm is working with the Darwin Initiative to develop  Natural Capital Accounts for Uganda.

The project is aligned with existing initiatives on natural capital accounting, i.e., the Gaborone Declaration for Sustainable Development in Africa, the UN project on Natural Capital Accounting, and the World Bank Wealth Accounting and the Valuation of Ecosystem Services programme.

The Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) Ministry of Water and Environment, and Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development commenced with the development of land accounts and Water accounts in 2019.  Under the NCA program, the country launched the Wood Asset and Forest Resources Accounts.

Natural Capital Accounting effort is based on the international statistical standard, System of Environmental-Economic Accounting (SEEA).

Jane Anyango is the Principal Communication Officer, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (CAES)

Mark Wamai

Business & Management

PIM CoE Magazine Issue 1: Jul-Dec 2024

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Cover page of the Public Investment Management Center of Excellence (PIM CoE) Magazine Issue 1: July - December 2024. College of Business and Management Sciences (CoBAMS), Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.

The Public Investment Management Center of Excellence (PIM CoE) was conceived as a result of the 2016 PIM Diagnostic study done by the World Bank and Ministry of Finance Planning and Economic Development with support from Makerere University School of Economics that discovered inefficiencies in PIM in Uganda.

This report highlights the work, achievements and prospects of the Center. The Center plans to start offering Advanced level training through Post Graduate Diploma (PGD) in PIM and Master of Science in Economic and Investment Modelling (MEIM). I am pleased to introduce this report to the public for use by all stakeholders.

I would like to appreciate PIM CoE Secretariat, partners, staff and well-wishers for technical support, daily running of the Center and their role in the realization of these achievements.

Special thanks go to Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, National Planning Authority, Cambridge Resources International (CRI) and Makerere University for the overwhelming support rendered towards the development of the Center.

Prof. Edward Bbaale
Principal & Principal Investigator, CoBAMS/PIM CoE

Betty Kyakuwa
Betty Kyakuwa

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Somali Officials Complete Executive Training in Infrastructure Asset Management at CoBAMS

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Prof. Edward Bbaale (Seated 2nd Left) with training facilitators and the six Somali Government officials pose for a group photo. Six Somali government officials three-day Executive Training in Infrastructure Asset Management, held at Public Investment Management Centre of Excellence (PIM CoE), College of Business and Management Sciences (CoBAMS), funded by the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), 27th-29th January 2025, aimed to enhance regional capacity in infrastructure planning and management, Yusuf Lule Central Teaching, Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.

Six Somali government officials have successfully completed a three-day Executive Training in Infrastructure Asset Management, held at Makerere University’s Public Investment Management Centre of Excellence (PIM CoE). The training, funded by the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), took place from January 27 to 29, 2025, and aimed to enhance regional capacity in infrastructure planning and management.

The training brought together senior civil servants and policymakers from Somalia, equipping them with practical knowledge and strategies for sustainable infrastructure asset management. It also fostered valuable cross-border collaboration, facilitated by UNCDF Uganda, which played a crucial role in connecting Makerere University with the Government of Somalia.

Left to Right: Prof. Edward Bbaale, PIM CoE Manager-Dr. John Sseruyange and some of the officials follow proceedings. Six Somali government officials three-day Executive Training in Infrastructure Asset Management, held at Public Investment Management Centre of Excellence (PIM CoE), College of Business and Management Sciences (CoBAMS), funded by the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), 27th-29th January 2025, aimed to enhance regional capacity in infrastructure planning and management, Yusuf Lule Central Teaching, Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.

The program was delivered by experienced faculty from Makerere University’s College of Business and Management Sciences (CoBAMS), alongside experts from the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development (MoFPED) and the Uganda National Roads Authority (UNRA). A special session was also led by the Makerere University Bursar, offering practical insights into financial management in infrastructure projects.

Speaking at the opening of the training, Mr. Ncube Mkhululi, the Regional Technical Advisor for UNCDF emphasized the importance of infrastructure asset management in driving sustainable economic growth. He highlighted UNCDF’s commitment to supporting capacity-building initiatives in developing economies, noting that effective infrastructure planning and management are critical to national development. He also expressed confidence in Makerere University’s expertise in delivering high-impact executive training programs for government officials.

Principal CoBAMS-Prof. Edward Bbaale (Right) presents a certificate to one of the officials. Six Somali government officials three-day Executive Training in Infrastructure Asset Management, held at Public Investment Management Centre of Excellence (PIM CoE), College of Business and Management Sciences (CoBAMS), funded by the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), 27th-29th January 2025, aimed to enhance regional capacity in infrastructure planning and management, Yusuf Lule Central Teaching, Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.

During the closing ceremony, Prof. Bbaale Edward, the Principal of the College of Business and Management Sciences expressed gratitude to all partners, including UNCDF, Makerere University management, and the PIM CoE faculty, for their commitment to making the training a success. He emphasized Makerere University’s ongoing efforts to internationalize its research-led agenda, positioning itself as a hub for regional knowledge exchange.

UNCDF Program Manager, Mr. Joel Mundua, the commended the participants for their dedication and encouraged them to share the acquired knowledge with fellow officials in Somalia. This was reaffirmed by one of the participants, who pledged to apply and disseminate the learnings within their respective departments.

UNCDF Program Manager0Mr. Joel Mundua (Left) and UNCDF Program Officer-Mr. Sunday Denis Aliti (Right). Six Somali government officials three-day Executive Training in Infrastructure Asset Management, held at Public Investment Management Centre of Excellence (PIM CoE), College of Business and Management Sciences (CoBAMS), funded by the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), 27th-29th January 2025, aimed to enhance regional capacity in infrastructure planning and management, Yusuf Lule Central Teaching, Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa.

Mr. Sunday Denis Aliti, the Program Officer at UNCDF highlighted the importance of ensuring that infrastructure asset management strategies are practical, adaptable, and aligned with national development goals. He commended Makerere University for its leadership in knowledge transfer and regional training and encouraged continued collaboration between universities, governments, and international development partners to strengthen institutional capacity.

Dr. John Sseruyange, Manager of the PIM CoE, applauded both the participants and the expert trainers who contributed to the program. He reiterated the Centre’s commitment to advancing infrastructure asset management through continued training and collaboration with regional stakeholders.

As the training concluded, participants departed with valuable insights and practical tools to improve infrastructure management in Somalia and beyond. The success of this initiative highlights Makerere University’s role as a leading institution in public investment management, fostering capacity-building efforts that drive sustainable development across Africa.

Betty Kyakuwa
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Staff of School of Statistics undertake training in Data Science

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Dr. Margaret Banga (2nd Row Right) with participants and facilitators at the kick-off of the training. Statistics and Data Science (SDS) Working Group training to build capacity in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) among its members kick off Monday, 20th January 2025 facilitated by experts from Uganda Revenue Authority (URA), Housing Finance Bank, and the School of Statistics and Planning (SSP), Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa and will run until 24th January 2025. Participants are being equipped with a wide range of skills, covering topics such as text mining, unsupervised learning, neural networks, Geographic Information Systems (GIS), and more.

The Statistics and Data Science (SDS) Working Group training kicked off on Monday, 20th January 2025, and will run until 24th January 2025. This training, an initiative by the college, aims to build capacity in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) among its members.

Participants are being equipped with a wide range of skills, covering topics such as text mining, unsupervised learning, neural networks, Geographic Information Systems (GIS), and more. The training is facilitated by expert data scientists from the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA), Housing Finance Bank, and the School of Statistics and Planning (SSP).

The SDS Working Group comprises academic staff at the School of Statistics and Planning (SSP) whose research interests focus on statistical learning and AI.

Some of the participants follow proceedings. Statistics and Data Science (SDS) Working Group training to build capacity in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) among its members kick off Monday, 20th January 2025 facilitated by experts from Uganda Revenue Authority (URA), Housing Finance Bank, and the School of Statistics and Planning (SSP), Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa and will run until 24th January 2025. Participants are being equipped with a wide range of skills, covering topics such as text mining, unsupervised learning, neural networks, Geographic Information Systems (GIS), and more.

On January 21, 2025, Mr. Kiyingi Simon Peter and Mr. Tusubira Brian from URA led an engaging session on the practical applications of machine learning algorithms in day-to-day activities. They demonstrated how components fed into ML models are used to classify taxpayers into high-risk and low-risk categories, showcasing the transformative potential of AI in optimizing operations.

Dr. Margaret Banga, the Dean of the School of Statistics and Planning (SSP), emphasized the transformative impact of the training on both the academic and professional development of the participants. She commended the expert trainers from the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) and other partnering institutions for their practical and insightful contributions to the sessions. Dr. Banga noted that the training is a significant step toward enhancing the teaching methodologies and research capabilities of the faculty. “By equipping our staff with advanced skills in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, we are empowering them to deliver cutting-edge knowledge to our students and conduct impactful research that addresses real-world challenges,” she remarked.

Dr. Margaret Banga (2nd L) with participants. Statistics and Data Science (SDS) Working Group training to build capacity in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) among its members kick off Monday, 20th January 2025 facilitated by experts from Uganda Revenue Authority (URA), Housing Finance Bank, and the School of Statistics and Planning (SSP), Makerere University, Kampala Uganda, East Africa and will run until 24th January 2025. Participants are being equipped with a wide range of skills, covering topics such as text mining, unsupervised learning, neural networks, Geographic Information Systems (GIS), and more.

The training is a testament to the SSP’s forward-thinking approach to education and research in statistics and data science. The integration of topics such as neural networks, text mining, and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) underscores the need for multidisciplinary expertise in an increasingly data-driven world. Dr. Banga highlighted that this capacity-building effort aligns with the college’s strategic objectives of fostering innovation and staying ahead in the rapidly evolving fields of data science and statistical learning.

The Dean further stressed the importance of partnerships with organizations like the Uganda Revenue Authority and Housing Finance Bank, which provide invaluable industry perspectives. These collaborations ensure that academic training is not only theoretical but also applicable to practical challenges in sectors such as taxation, finance, and public administration.

In conclusion, Dr. Banga reaffirmed her commitment to continuous learning and development within the School of Statistics and Planning. She expressed confidence that the knowledge gained through the training would translate into improved academic delivery, enriched research output, and a stronger contribution to societal and economic transformation through the application of advanced data science methodologies.

Betty Kyakuwa
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