UTB cracks down on non-compliant hotels

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The Uganda Tourism Board (UTB) has launched a nationwide operation to enforce compliance with the Tourism Accommodation Facility Regulations.

Supported by the Uganda Police Force, the UTB enforcement team is conducting inspections across various accommodation facilities to ensure they meet the required standards. This crackdown, guided by the Uganda Tourism (Registration and Licensing of Tourist Accommodation) Regulations 2014, comes amid reports that up to 70% of accommodation facilities in the country are non-compliant.

The widespread failure to comply is seen as a threat to Uganda’s burgeoning tourism industry, attributed mainly to complacency and lack of awareness among hotel operators. On the first day of the operation, the enforcement team, led by Samora Marshall Ssemakula, UTB’s Compliance Manager, and SSP Donald Muhwezi, the Community Liaison Officer for Kampala Metropolitan Police, conducted inspections focused on hygiene, lodging amenities, waste management, and dining practices.

Three hotels were issued 48-hour closure ultimatums due to serious non-compliance. The Imperial Royale Hotel was found operating without a valid tourist accommodation license, and its kitchen was discovered to have unfit-to-eat food, including leftovers over four days old being kept for staff consumption.

The Grand Imperial Hotel was flagged for poor hygiene and substandard dining amenities, with unsafe lodging conditions, including inadequate room ventilation, unkempt bedding, and poorly sized rooms.

Emerald Hotel, located along Bombo Road, was cited for inadequate reception services, poor waste management, and unsafe conditions that posed risks of diseases and accidents.

All three hotels were ordered to vacate their guests within 48 hours and address the issues or face closure. Ssemakula reported that while inspections were carried out in Kampala Central, other teams were deployed to areas like Nansana, Wandegeya, and Kawempe, which are classified as independent policing zones by UTB.

He explained that while the operation is primarily an enforcement measure, it also serves as an awareness campaign to remind hotel operators of the need to adhere to legal and regulatory standards. “Today’s exercise has been very smooth because we communicated with every operator before the visits,” Ssemakula noted.

He emphasized the importance of maintaining high standards for both front-end and back-end operations of hotels. Despite some compliant hotels raising concerns about the increased operational costs resulting from regulations, Ssemakula advised them to adopt innovative strategies to remain compliant while managing costs.

SSP Muhwezi emphasized that these regulations benefit hotel operators and their businesses, rejecting claims that the enforcement is meant to sabotage operations. “Enforcement will always come in whenever the responsible parties fail to comply,” he said.

He also addressed the gap between hotel operators and UTB, attributing it to inadequate sensitization efforts. “Up to now, people don’t realize that this is for their good. They see it as a UTB affair. In some places, people have been running away from us over something meant to help them improve, and this is good for the country,” Muhwezi added.

Innocent Bomera, the assistant general manager of Emerald Hotel, told URN that the hotel is still a work in progress, affirming that all that was pointed out by the inspection team will be worked on to ensure the hotel is licensed to operate.

According to him, the hotel administration wasn’t aware of the licensing requirements but promptly followed those of KCCA and the Ministry of Health among other inspection agencies. “We only got to know about these licensing requirements a week ago, when the UTB team was informing us of the enforcement operation that was going to take place, but we are going to work on them promptly.”

Efforts to get a comment from the imperial group of hotels, yielded no fruit as the contact person was refused to make any comment.

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URN