Matia Lwanga Bwanika tries out a grader during the ground breaking on road works recently
HABARI DAILY I Kampala, Uganda I Despite being the biggest district in Uganda, Wakiso is chronically underfunded, a scenario which has dented service provision.
Matia Lwanga Bwanika, the Chairman LC 5, Wakiso district, said Wakiso urgently need Shs50b to work on district roads measuring up to 3000kms.
He said the chronic under funding has meant that only 3% of roads in Wakiso are tamarked.
“But the fact of the matter is that Wakiso, which is interlinked with Kampala are the business hubs that keep the country moving,” he said in a recent interview.
He referred to Wakiso as a transit area which links to the other parts of the country.
“We need modern roads if we are to play that role amply. Important to note is that a kilometer of road works in Wakiso costs up to sh2b, millions more compared to other districts,” he said.
Bwanika, who disclosed that this financial year, Government allocated a meagre sh10b to go towards road construction and rehabilitation, added that the authorities should accord a special status to Wakiso as a special zone, like it did Kampala.
He however expressed optimism due to the newly launched Greater Kampala Metropolitan Area Urban Development Program (GKMA-UDP), in which the World Bank has committed to giving Uganda billions for road construction and rehabilitation.
“In terms of traffic, Wakiso district has the highest burden of traffic. As a result of that, our roads degenerate very easily, and need emergency funds to keep them in shape,” he said.
Alfred Malinga, the Wakiso District Administrative Officer (CAO) said that the GKMA-UDP encompasses not only Kampala but also other key areas such as Entebbe, Kira, Makindye-Ssabagabo, Mukono, Nansana, and the districts of Mukono, Mpigi, and Wakiso.
He added that the program’s focus areas include enhancing mobility and accessibility through road upgrades, bolstering urban resilience with drainage infrastructure, fostering job creation through workspace establishment, and strengthening institutional capacity for coordinated planning and investment in infrastructure.
“Under GKMA-UDP, we are planning to build roads such as Bweya-Namulanda-Kajansi measuring 7km, Nalumunye Road as well as the Kayunga-Kawanda Road,” he said.
He added that road construction in Makindye-Ssabagabo has also kicked off in earnest, with roads such as Kibutika (2.90km), Kibutika Municipal (1km), Mpala (0.6km) and Nakayenga (0.60km), which are being constructed by Jilk Construction Ltd.
China First Highway Engineering was hired and is currently constructing Lubugumu-Busabala Link I (2.30km), Lubugumu Link 2 (1.20km, Lubugumu-Busabala Link 3 (0.50km, and Lubugumu-Kakoola (1.06km).
Malinga said that the works, to which the World Bank has allocated sh70b, will take 18 months to complete. Other roads to be constructed include Bukasa-Sentema-Kakiri (12.17km, Kitemu Kisozi (2.0km), Nagalabi Spur (2.0km), Seguku-Nalumunye-Bandwe-Kinaawa-Kyengera (8,2km, Namulanda-Bweya-Kajjansi-Airstrip—Dambwe-Lutembe Beach (17.3km) and Kayinga-Kawanda-Kiteezi-Luteete-Namirembe Hillside (12.1km, among others.
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