BY AMBROSE GAHENE
Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) has embarked on fixing City potholes that have for long posed a threat to motorists or pedestrians, especially during the rainy season. There has been a public outcry of cases where people fall in open trenches filled with rain water, while motorists have complained of impassable roads in and around the city suburbs.
While addressing Journalists at the Uganda Media Centre on Wednesday, the Minister for Kampala, Betty Amongi, said the Government had extended a total of UGX 9 Billion to fix the City potholes. She said the money had already been advanced and the works were underway at different sections of the city in order to alleviate the bad state of roads in the city, where she pointed out that the works are expected to be complete in two weeks.
“I am certain you are already witnessing these road works across all the five Divisions of Kampala; Nakawa, Central, Kawempe, Lubaga and Makindye,” she said.
She in addition pointed out that the plan is to address the overall infrastructure master plan and will also handle road rehabilitation, traffic congestion, drainage and flooding problems in the City.
Currently, Kampala has a road network of 2,100Km but just 642Km is paved. The government also spends billions every year to desilt drainage channels which some observers attribute to lack of the large bulk of unpaved roads. Minister Amongi said 147km of major drainage is constructed. She said of the 3,428Km of minor drains in the city, only 714Km (20 percent) are constructed.
