The Ministry of Works and Transport has pledged its commitment to end overcongestion in Kampala city.
The commitment was prompted by the dominant boda-boda issue, too much traffic jam, and the rehabilitation of the main capital center and outskirts roads, which were to be handled by the end of the 2021 NRM Manifesto term (2026).
The ministry officials made the pledge during their presentation of the National Resistance Movement (NRM) Manifesto that took place on November 22, 2024, at the Office of the Prime Minister in Kampala.
The Minister of State for Works and Transport, Fred Byamukama, highlighted the main causes of congestion in the city capital as solvable, stating that “the ministry is working in conjunction with the Kampala City Council Authority (KCCA) and other development partners to solve the overcongestion in Kampala.”
Byamukama noted that the Boda-boda issue has been long pending with authorities in charge and the ministry coming up with the right measures to solve the issue.
“The boda-boda issue is being handled carefully, and registration of all boda boda cyclists is ongoing. We are going to register a certain number of cyclists per stage, and those without stages will have to vacate Kampala. This will reduce the overcongestion and the high crime rate being committed by these unknown cyclists,” he said.
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Byamukama added that the ministry is working on other measures to ensure that there is reduced congestion in Kampala city, stating that the ministry is working with the Uganda National Roads Authority (UNRA) to rehabilitate roads in and out of the city and the repair of the Meter Gauge Railway leading to the outskirts of the city.
“The ministry with UNRA is supervising the rehabilitation of urban roads and community access roads around Kampala, with over 670 km done and over 560 km of work ongoing. We have rehabilitated the Namanve-Mukono meter gauge railway to ease the traffic jam,” he added.
The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Works and Transport, Bageya Waiswa, said that the ministry faced a few challenges in implementing its manifesto, noting that if solutions are given, the ministry will fulfill its manifesto.
“We are faced with issues of financing and land acquisition agreements. These two drag the progress of the ministry’s work,” he said.
The NRM Manifesto week started on November 19, 2024, and is expected to end on December 5, 2024. During the manifesto week, different government ministries are expected to present their achievements and challenges while implementing the 2021 NRM manifesto.
