Abstract: After dabbling in microfinance, Uganda, under the leadership of a new finance minister, is reintroducing the cooperative system as the core of its rural development program. This article also includes interesting commentary on microfinance.

As Dr. Augustus Nuwagaba notes about Uganda's experience wiht microfinance, "Uganda's poverty eradication programmes are usually implemented in a poor way and during time of electioneering. In the end, people perceive the (funds they receive) under the schemes as a reward for their votes, thus leading to misuse of the funds and the reluctance to pay back".