UNRA set to work on Jinja-Kamuli road

In fulfilment of President Museveni’s pledge and the NRM Manifesto on infrastructure development, the Uganda National Roads Authority is set to work on the 129-kilometre Jinja-Mbulamuti-Kamuli-Bukungu road.

According to Mr Titus Aleper, the Uganda National Roads Authority (UNRA) project manager, they are in the process of securing contractors to undertake designs and build the roads.

 

“We are still in the process of identifying contractors before the exercise kicks off. The construction process has been divided into two parts; the 65km Jinja-Mbulamuti-Kamuli road and the 64km Kamuli-Bukungu road in Buyende District. So we shall have two contractors,” he said during a stakeholders’ engagement meeting in Jinja City on Tuesday.

According to Mr Aleper, the road will commence immediately after securing contractors and it will be completed within three years.

Mr Abdul Hakim Kalinaki, the Unra land acquisition officer, said they have started with the process of   compensating those who will be affected by the (road) construction.

 

“We do compensation before taking over any land. Those who will be affected by the project will be paid before the exercise kicks off,’’ he said.

Mr Allan Ssempebwa, the Unra spokesperson, said the Jinja-Mbulamuti-Kamuli-Bukungu road is one of the projects that have been prioritised for implementation under the National Development Programme III (NDPIII).

 

“The road will also provide access to Bukungu-Kagwara-Kaberamaido (BKK) ferry site and will open up the area for economic development, the reason government has prioritised it,” Mr Ssempebwa said, adding that the cost and the actual date of the construction will be announced after the procurement exercise is done.

 

Mr Maxwell Kuwembula, the Kamuli District chairperson-elect, said the road, once completed, will boost economic activities in the area by increasing connectivity and improving market accessibility.

 

“The volume of traffic will improve business in the area because we shall be having people who use that road to Teso Sub-region and the value of land will also rise,” he said.

 

Mr Moses Batwala, the Jinja District chairperson-elect, said once constructed, the road will attract more investors to the area who will set up more petrol stations and hotels because of easy accessibility, adding that the area had lagged behind because of poor road network.

Over the years, NRM has improved the country’s road network to increase prosperity among the  people of Uganda. Historical experience provides proof that if you construct a road or railway through a cultivable area, you automatically stimulate economic development. 

NRM, therefore, is committed to developing all modes of transport, including road, railway, water and air to reduce the cost of both passenger and cargo transport. Over the next five years, as a package of measures to reduce the cost of transport, we are going to concentrate on five areas.