Lukaya stuck with sh3.7 billion government market that lacks parking

Masaka, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | A market constructed by the Ministry of Works in Lukaya along the Kampala-Masaka highway in Kalungu district continues to be shunned by the intended beneficiaries. Authorities in the area are confused about what to do with it as it goes to waste under their watch.

The new market with several stalls is located before the renowned Lukaya old private roadside market. It is located in the Lwera area. The stopover is popular for roasted chicken, beef, and soft drinks.

The Ministry of Works and Transport spent over 3.7 Billion shillings to construct it hoping that vendors operating in the old market would take up the spacious stalls.

However, to the surprise of the authorities at Nyendo Town Council, the vendors have declined to transfer to the new market three years since its commissioning.

The Lukaya market joins a string of other structures constructed by the government with funding from borrowed money. Many such structures stand out like white elephants because they are not utilized for the intended purposes.

The targeted vendors reportedly declined to occupy it, complaining about poor structural design workmanship. Vendors said it was not appropriate for their businesses, indicating that it sits in a low-lying location.

Lukaya Town Council Chairperson, Charles Tamale said they have opted to convince a private player to operate it hoping that he would woo other vendors to take up stalls for selling agricultural products.

Tamale observes that the multi-billion market had almost gone to waste, with some of its installations beginning to wear out.

He explains that despite the huge investment, the Town Council was not making any revenue from the market as expected, and it was instead becoming a burden, which they had to offload by finding any possible ways of putting the facility to use.

The Markets Act of 2023 prohibits the tendering of government markets to private individuals. It instead gives absolute powers to local governments to appoint technical administrators to manage markets on their behalf.

Tamale explains that last year, as a local government, they formally appealed to the Ministry of Local Government to provide funds for remodeling of the market to fit into the needs of the vendors, but their plea yielded no response, prompting them to look for local remedies.

Ismail Kafeero Madugu, a local businessman who was trusted with the management of the market indicates that he intends to partly use the facility for private businesses, as well as remodeling some of the stalls to attract vendors into it.

Janipher Nanyonga, a vegetable dealer who is among the vendors that had earlier occupied the market and later abandoned the stalls, says they have no problem with the facility being allocated to the private businessman.

According to Nanyonga, besides flooding, the market lacks proper parking space for their targeted customers who are mainly passengers in transit.

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