A year into office, the UDC government has seen little progress on its manifesto promises, with 148 of 171 commitments yet to commence, according to African Citizens Watch
GAZETTE REPORTER
The performance of the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC)-led government is now under systematic scrutiny following the release of the first annual assessment by African Citizens Watch (ACW), a platform established to monitor the implementation of the ruling party’s manifesto commitments.
The report coincides with the first year since the UDC assumed office on 4 November 2025 and marks the introduction of the Africa Citizens Watch tracker (ACW), a tool developed by Sivio Institute to track 171 promises made in the UDC manifesto.
According to the Sivio Institute team, extracting and categorising the promises proved to be a complex task. “The UDC manifesto touched on many areas spanning different sectors. The extraction of the 171 promises was not an easy task,” the report notes.
Some commitments cut across multiple sectors, making classification challenging. “A key example would be the promise on the provision of sanitary pads to all secondary school girls, which had to be placed under either health or education in the Social Services sector,” the report explained.
ACCESS-TO-INFORMATION CHALLENGES
The tracking initiative also flagged serious access-to-information issues. Monitoring government performance depends heavily on publicly available data, which the team said is often inconsistent or delayed.
“The tracking process relies heavily on the accessibility of information, especially on the actions of government,” the report stated. Some ministerial actions are not documented, while others are not easily accessible online.
In addition, media coverage sometimes poses limitations. “Media reports in many instances focus on news that they deem of interest and can sell their platforms. In the process, some government actions deemed not newsworthy can be left out,” the report added.
Government websites and ministerial platforms were described as “slow to publish information,” further hampering real-time tracking efforts.
LAUNCHES VS. IMPLEMENTATION
The report also highlighted confusion between public launches and actual implementation. Several initiatives have been launched by ministers, but evidence of follow-through remains limited.
An example cited is the restoration of school sports. “Despite the Minister of Sport and Arts having launched an initiative for this action, there is still no evidence of school sports having started in schools,” the report said. It warned that speeches in Parliament and official events can create the impression that progress has been made, “but a closer look may show that there has been no action.”
ECONOMIC PRESSURES HAMPER PROGRESS
The review comes as the government battles an ailing economy which has constrained fiscal space and limited the rollout of projects.
Despite these challenges, the tracker credits the government with some achievements, including increasing the old-age pension, establishing a Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF), and kickstarting the Bonno Housing Scheme.
MAJORITY OF PROMISES YET TO START
However, the overall picture remains daunting: 148 out of 171 promises are currently classified as “Not Commenced.”
“This shows the magnitude of the task that lies ahead for the government in the next 48 months,” the report concludes.