UVTAB IN SH21.6BN TROUBLE! Undisclosed Payables, Procurement Mess, Missing DIT Land, Cars, Animals & Furniture Rock Skills Body
KAMPALA — Uganda’s vocational and technical assessment body, the Uganda Vocational and Technical Assessment Board (UVTAB), is facing a string of financial, asset management and procurement challenges, with liabilities running into billions of shillings and questions over assets inherited from the former Directorate of Industrial Training (DIT).
The issues are contained in the Uganda Government Auditor General’s report as of December 2025 on human capital development at UVTAB, which carries an unqualified audit opinion but highlights a number of matters requiring attention.
The report shows that UVTAB had domestic arrears totalling UGX2.13 billion, all relating to the previous year. The arrears, according to the report, may attract litigation, raising concerns over the financial obligations inherited or carried forward by the entity.
An even bigger financial concern emerged from the merger process involving UVTAB and the former Directorate of Industrial Training.
According to the report, the merger process excluded liabilities at the Directorate of Industrial Training, resulting in undisclosed payables amounting to UGX19.49 billion.
The revelation places the total value of the domestic arrears and undisclosed payables identified in the report at UGX21.62 billion, although the two figures arise from separate findings.
The audit also raises questions about assets transferred from the former DIT to UVTAB.
The assets included land, vehicles, animals and furniture listed in the handover report, but the Auditor General found that they could not be traced in UVTAB’s assets register.
The discrepancy raises concerns over the completeness of UVTAB’s asset records following the institutional transition and merger arrangements.
Procurement also emerged as another area of concern.
The report indicates that UVTAB had procurements worth UGX14.19 billion to various contractors, but the procurements did not provide for reservation schemes as required under PPDA regulations.
The entity had planned to execute procurements worth UGX14.19 billion, but contracts actually awarded amounted to only UGX9.46 billion.
This represented an implementation rate of 67 percent, leaving a gap between the procurement plans and the contracts ultimately awarded.
The report further points to staffing gaps within the Procurement and Disposal Unit.
Out of the five staff provided for in UVTAB’s approved structure, only three were in place, representing 60 percent staffing, while the unit had a 40 percent staffing gap.
The combination of financial obligations, inherited liabilities, asset-record concerns, procurement compliance issues and staffing gaps presents a series of challenges for an institution responsible for assessing and supporting Uganda’s vocational and technical skills development.
Despite the concerns highlighted, the audit opinion on UVTAB was unqualified.
The findings nonetheless place emphasis on the need for the institution to strengthen accountability for inherited assets and liabilities, improve procurement implementation and compliance, and address staffing gaps within its procurement function.
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