Key Guildlines that you need to follow when operating a Non-profit organization/ NGO in Uganda

Staffing
Regulation 14 of the NGO Registration Regulations 2009 provides that an organization shall comply with certain staffing regulations.

Thus it is a requirement for every organization to submit to the NGO Board a chart showing its structure and staffing, particularly specifying: foreign workforce requirements; requirements of the Ugandan counterparts of foreign employees; planned period to replace foreign employees with qualified Ugandans and must comply with the labor laws of Uganda.

Receiving Money
Regulation 15(3) of the NGO Registration Regulation, 2009 requires that where an organization “receives monies in convertible currency in its possession, it shall open and operate an external bank account with a reputable bank in which the currency shall be deposited and through which the transactions shall be conducted.”

To monitor the use of foreign grants and related NGO activities, Ugandan law requires NGOs to: submit to the NGO Board an annual return and a report approved by the organization's annual general meeting or Board of Directors; provide to the relevant district development committee estimates of its income and expenditures for review and approval; and submit to the Board or any other authority information that the Board may consider to be in the public interest (NGO Registration Regulations, 2009, Regulation 16).


Entering the Community
Regulation 13 of NGO Registration Regulation, 2009 provides that an organization must in carrying out its operations comply with the following:

a) Shall not make any direct contact with the people in its area of operation in Uganda unless it has given seven days’ notice in writing of its intention to the local councils and Resident District Commissioners of the area5;

b) Cooperate with the local councils and the relevant district committees in the area; article 26 (j) of the Local Government Act, Cap. 243, 1997;

c) Should not ‘engage in any act which is prejudicial to the national interest of Uganda’.

d) The law further prohibits the registration of the organization whose objectives are in contravention of the law;

e) An organization must also restrict its operations to the area of Uganda in respect of which it is registered to carry out its operations;

f) Hold itself responsible for all acts of its members and employees and;

g) Obtain the approval of the Board for any goods for which it seeks exemptions.


Reporting
Regulation 16 of the NGO Registration Regulations 2009 requires NGOs to submit to the NGO Board each year returns in Form C as specified in the Schedule to the NGO Regulation, furnish to the district development committee of each area and submit to the Board or any other authority information the Board may from time to time consider to be in public interest.