Quick Guide To Establishing And Operating A Foreign Not For Profit Organisation (NGO) In Uganda

Regulation of Not for Profit Organisations in Uganda

Not for profit Organisations commonly referred to Non Governmental Organizations (NGOs) in Uganda are regulated by the Non Governmental Organizations Act 2016. The Act was signed into law the President on 30th January 2016. S. 56(1) of the Act repealed and replaced the Non Governmental Organizations Act Cap 113. The Non Governmental Organizations Regulations SI NO 19/2009 is still applicable law in Uganda. The new law brought in stringent regulation of Not for profit Organisations in Uganda. The body responsible for regulating the activities of not for profit Organisations is now called National Bureau for Non Governmental Organisations. It replaced the Non Governmental Organisations Board under the old law.

Section 57 of the 2016 Act vested all rights and obligations of the Board into the Bureau, (including property, assets, money on board account, contracts, agreements, undertakings, securities, any proceedings etc) and former employees of the board continued in office as employees of the bureau on similar terms and conditions. This bureau is established as body corporate with perpetual succession, common seal, power to sue and to be sued, purchase and hold property, enter into contracts and to do all lawful things a corporate body is capable of doing. The Bureau will have branch offices at every district.

Self regulatory of Not for Profit Organisations

The 2016 Act allows NGOs to form a self regulatory body for purposes of exercising regulatory authority over them. Two or more organizations may come together and form a self regulatory body which must be registered with the Bureau. The organizations must agree that the body will regulate them and that they will abide by a set code of conduct, rules and procedures.

Registration with the Bureau is by way of application accompanied by a resolution of each of the organizations forming part of the body stating its willingness to be part of the self regulatory body and a code of conduct of the body. The code of conduct is adopted by a special meeting of the body. The body also has the liberty to adopt its own structure, rules, procedure for efficient administration. The body may also adopt self regulatory mechanisms that include rules, standards to govern the organizations.

Requirements for registration of foreign Not for profit Organisations in Uganda

The 2016 Act put in place many requirements for registration of a foreign not for profit...