Allen Kagina’s next plan for roads

Completed projects

UNRA hopes to complete six road projects before the end of this financial year. These are; Soroti-Katakwi-Aksim, estimated to be 100km, Bulima-Kabwoya, estimated to be 66km, Kyenjojo-Kabwoya, 100km, Mubende-Kakumio-Kagadi, 107km and Bumbobi-Lwakhakha, 44.5km.

Earlier, UNRA had completed the upgrade of 26 road projects that span 1,131km between 2016 an June, 2019. This is equivalent to 17 projects that covered 998km completed in 8 years from 2008 and 2015.

UNRA also reported that 346.5km of national roads had been rehabilitated and were at advanced stages for their serviceability. These include;  the famous Nakalama-Tirinyi-Mbale Road (102km), Nyenga-Njeru (10km), Fort Portal-Hima (55km), Hima-Katunguru Road (60km), Ishaka-Katunguru (58km), Nakawa-Seeta (9km) and Fort-Portal-Kyenjojo (50km) whose rehabilitation is fully complete.

The roads agency is in the process of developing five ferry projects; Sigulu Ferry which will operate on Lake Victoria, New Kiyindi-Buvuma ferry, Bukungu-Kagwara-Kaberamaido ferry, Amuru-Rhino Camp ferry, and Vegetable Oil Development ferry for Kiyindi-Buvuma. The completion of the projects have been set latest next year.

Kampala Jinja Expressway

In relation to the expressway, the planned 95kilometre Kampala-Jinja Expressway is the latest bone of contention in the road politics.

On Sep. 3, 2018, UNRA conducted an open bidding process where eight consortia submitted their bids for the construction of the expressway. The consortia were largely from Europe and Asia and the successful bidder was to undertake the project in a Public Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement at a cost of US$1bn.

However a year later, in Sep, 2019, President Yoweri Museveni subverted the procurement process, handpicking China Railway 17th Bureau Group Company (CR17th) to start work on the ambitious project.

In a letter to then Works and Transport Minister, Monica Azuba, Museveni said he was opposed to the idea of borrowing for the project and ordered that the Chinese company will recoup their money through road tolls.

Museveni insisted that the country should borrow externally only for railway construction, electricity generation, irrigation schemes, and to a lesser extent for social services of education and health sectors.

This suggestion, however, prompted a protest from Speaker of Parliament Rebecca Kadaga, who did not want a toll on the road.

Kadaga argued that it  was unfair for travelers heading to the eastern n part of the country  to pay for the road toll yet most of the country’s roads that heads to different destinations were constructed using the taxpayers money,  and thus do not pay road tolls.

At one point, Kadaga blocked the government’s request to borrow for oil roads until the issue of how financing for the Kampala Jinja Expressway will be done.  Kagina now awaits a directive from the Cabinet on how the road will be financed.

Besides the above issues, the project has also been a source of contention between State House and the statutory roads agency. For instance, Museveni and Kagina tussled over Dott Services, a company that was contracted to do the Mbale-Tirinyi Road. Sources say, Dott Services is closely tied to the President’s younger brother, Gen. Salim Saleh.

The Kampala- Jinja Expressway project is part of the northern trade corridor that connects the East African coastline to the landlocked countries in East Africa including Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, South Sudan and the eastern part of Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

The alternate route to the existing Kampala Jinja Road will comprise two separate lots – Lot 1 being the 35km section Kampala to Namagunga and an 18km Kampala Southern bypass section.

Lot 2 will be the 41km section from Namagunga to Jinja. The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, is the Lead Transaction Advisor for the project.

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