Govt, Interreligious Council to sign cooperation deal

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KAMPALA - The Government says it is planning to enter a memorandum of understanding with the Inter-Religious Council of Uganda.

The deal is expected to help promote government services, according to the Office of Prime Minister (OPM).

"You are everywhere and you are with the people and yet the Government would like to reach where the people are and disseminate information. You do a lot of mobilisation as religious leaders and, therefore, as a government, we are going to work closely with the Attorney General to ensure this that co-operation is institutionalised so it can become a powerful tool for delivery of services," OPM permanent secretary Dunstan Balaba says.

He made the revelation during a consultation meeting between over 500 religious leaders and the Uganda Bureau of Statistics about the upcoming national census, which is set to start on May 9.

During the meeting, Balaba also thanked the leaders for closely with the Government on the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

"Let's work together because we want our country to reach [the] middle-income status and become a developed country, " he said.

He said Vision 2040 highlights modernity: "You cannot become a modern country if you cannot deliver services".

IRCU membership

Established in 2001, IRCU is affiliated with the World Council of Religions for Peace (WCRP) and the African Council of Religious Leaders (ACRL).

Members of the IRCU include the Catholic Church in Uganda, the Uganda Muslim Supreme Council, the Church of Uganda, the Uganda Orthodox Church and the Seventh Day Adventist Church Uganda Union.

Other religious organisations notably the independent Pentecostal and Evangelical churches participate in the implementation of IRCU programs.

Inter-Religious Council works with civil society in many different regions around the country providing Faith-based approaches, care, and advocacy to defend the rights of those affected.

IRCU implements cross-cutting programs/projects of different social sectors including peace, justice and Governance, gender-based violence(GBV) and prevention; peace and national reconciliation, human rights, and governance.

The programmes are implemented with and through the structures of Institutionalized Religious Bodies (IRBs) of the five-member religious organizations, and a network of Community and Faith-Based Organisations (FBOs) that are affiliated to the IRBs and other independent churches.