Mudenda Urges MPs to Prioritise Pro-Poor Budgeting

Speaker of Parliament Jacob Mudenda has emphasized the vital role legislators play in ensuring that public funds are fairly distributed to initiatives that uplift citizens’ livelihoods.

Speaking at a capacity-building workshop in Bulawayo for members of the Budget and Finance, and Public Accounts Committees, Mudenda called for deeper parliamentary engagement in all stages of the national budgeting process.

He encouraged MPs to move beyond passive observation and become active participants in fiscal governance, insisting that rigorous analysis must replace superficial reviews. “You must become the lion that tells its own story,” Mudenda said, urging lawmakers to assert their oversight role as mandated by the Constitution.

At the heart of budget scrutiny, he noted, lies a simple but crucial question: Does this allocation improve the lives of the most vulnerable in your constituency? He also advocated for the use of Artificial Intelligence and data analytics to better understand the economic realities citizens face.

Citing global benchmarks, he pointed to declarations such as the Abuja Declaration (15% for health), Dakar and Incheon Declarations (20% for education), and the Maputo Declaration (10% for agriculture) as targets for guiding budget priorities. While acknowledging that economic constraints sometimes hinder adherence, he stressed that such standards remain critical for evaluating equity and impact.

Mudenda also highlighted that proper budget oversight requires a firm grasp of the Public Finance Management (PFM) system—from planning to implementation and evaluation—and called on committees to align their work with national goals like Agenda 2063 and the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

He reminded MPs that constitutional provisions, particularly Sections 119(3), 298, and 299, give Parliament not just the right but the duty to hold all public institutions accountable for how they use state resources.

He concluded by urging members to anchor their budget reviews in the Bill of Rights and factor in the growing importance of climate-resilient infrastructure, which demands forward-thinking and climate-sensitive allocations.

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