ANALYSIS: Not all are happy with this city ranking

Patrick Musoke, the director of strategy at the Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) told The Independent that he has not seen the study but he would be keen to know how the ranking of the African cities was done by the researchers.

He told The Independent on March 18 that it would be good to know if the researchers had used “perspective and objectivity” in ranking these cities. He says, for instance, Kampala of 50 years ago is not the Kampala of six years ago or now.

“We are not badly off when it comes to institutional governance because right now Kampala is being benchmarked by cities like Lusaka and Lilongwe.”

But Dr. Amin Tamale Kiggundu, an urban planning expert based at Makerere University’s Department of Architecture and Physical Planning, says Kampala’s position in the survey seems fair.

“These are standard indicators used to rank cities as sustainable, smart, efficient and productive,” he said.

He says what is also clear is that the best ranked cities tend to have systems that work and the institutions there are always trying to see that services are working.

Kiggundu told The Independent that what is clear about the study is that there is urgent need for investment in Kampala’s key infrastructure which plays a big role in provision of better services. Kiggundu says what Kampala needs is both good governance and enough money to provide the social services.

“If people don’t have access to clean piped water or tarmacked roads and modern modes of transport, that city cannot be competitive and it cannot achieve urban sustainability,” he told The Independent.

In June, 2016, Prof. Paul Collier, the director of the International Growth Centre, said making Kampala work requires massive investments in residential, commercial, and industrial structures and infrastructure. Collier was giving a lecture entitled, “What Policies would make Kampala a Great 21st Century City?” hosted by Bank of Uganda and KCCA.

Collier said development of the city will be undertaken largely by the private sector, whose investments will be guided principally by the market.

In the recent past, KCCA has talked about stepping up efforts to implement an integrated transport system that would include building flyovers, light railway for trams, cable cars, and a bus rapid transit system within the city but all these remain on paper.

“The truth is that no investor is going to sink money in a dream; they are not charitable organisations,” Musoke told The Independent.

Musoke, however, said KCCA is doing everything possible to position Kampala to be one of the most attractive cities for private investments.