A BRIEF ANALYSIS OF THE NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS BILL, 2015It is the responsibility of civil society to drive action and [ensure] change Professor Sheila Meintjes1James Muh!"# $ A%!#&" '(es)a*I+ Ge!e%a& O,e%,e(Civil Society Organizations, including on!"overn#ental Organizations $"Os% can be tracedas far bac&asthe '()*s+#ostlyase#ergencyrelief organizations,-hedevelop#entof theCSO sector is attributed largely to .the resurgence of the neo!liberal, free #ar&et ideology, /hichsought to reduce the role and influence of the state,01 Over the years, the role of civil society hasbeen critical in the areas of protection and pro#otion of hu#an rights, and to ensuretransparence, accountability and good governance /ithin the State, 2ccording to Clar&e, .Civilsociety[is]closelylin&ed/ithde#ocratization, andit ca#etobeseenasasolutiontotheproble#s of develop#ent policy i#ple#entation, bypassing corrupt and inefficient organs of thestate,03Overall, CSOs, particularly"Oshavebeenandcontinuetobeat theforefront tosupple#enting govern#ent initiatives to deliver crucial services of health, food, education ande#ergency relief to the poor, elderly and #ost vulnerable persons /ithin the co##unity, -heyoperate closer to the people and as they are innovative, cost!effective and efficient4 they havebeen an easy reach to by the #ost!at!ris& populations+especially in instances /here there isneed for urgent interventions, -his is #ore critical in 5gandas situation /here public service isanything but efficient,In 5ganda, the "O sector is guided by a nu#ber of legal and policy instru#ents /hich includea#ong others4 -he '(() 5ganda Constitution, the on!"overn#ental Organizations6egistration2ct '(7(, theon!"overn#ental Organizations 6egistration$2#end#ent% 2ct1**8, the "O 6egistration 6egulations 1**(, -he Co#panies 2ct '(8', -he Inco#e -a9 2ct'((:, -he ;alue 2dded -a9 $2#end#ent% 2ct 1**), the ational "O uhangi, Study of Civil Society Organizations in 5ganda, accessed at httpEFFuphold,Bsi,co#FJocsF6esourcesF6esearchFCivilSocietyFcivilIsocietyIorganisationI#appingIstudyIphase1,pdf36on Clar&e, Civil Society and its 6ole in Jevelop#ent, Kandboo& on Jevelop#ent anage#ent, 1**31In essence,all these instru#ents are intended to regulate and give effect to the constitutionalright of every 5gandan to engage in peaceful activities and influence the policies of "overn#entthroughcivicorganizations,L-hisisalsopre#isedon2rticle1($'e%/hichguaranteeseveryperson the right to freedo# of association, including the freedo# to for# and Boin associations orunions, includingtradeunions andpolitical andother civicorganizations, Si#ilarly, CSOsenhancethe"overn#ents desireandpro#otionoftherighttodevelop#ent byencouragingprivate initiative and self!reliance so as to facilitate rapid and eMuitable develop#ent,)In the sa#e spirit,local govern#ents have greatly relied on the services of"Os to providei#portant servicestotheneedy/ithintheirco##unities, -hisis/ithintheoverall planof"overn#ent, throughitsoverarchingpolicyfra#e/or&, the