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Uganda is rehabilitating major roads in the country.

Plans are in place to tarmac 29 key roads in Kampala, a total of 70 kilometres. This is part of a wider plan to restructure transport systems in the capital under the 'Smart City' arrangement. According to the Kampala City Authority, the scope of work on the Kampala City Roads Rehabilitation Project (KCRRP) includes:

• Construction of 69.70km of roads complete with associated drainage works including improvement to 22 traffic junctions, 123km of NMT facilities, commercial vehicles parking places, Bus depots, thirty (30) public toilets, six (6) markets along project roads for women vendors, installation of 1,600 energy efficient streetlights, and tree planting.

The project involves roads in all the five divisions of Kampala - Nakawa, Lubaga, Makindye, Kawempe, and Central.

Dorothy Kisaka, Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) executive director, said last year that the planned roadworks were grouped into five lots. The targeted roads are:

• Lot 1 - Wamala road Lubaga,Luwafu road Makindye, Kabega Makindye,Muteesa1 Lubaga, Old Mubende Lubaga, Kigala Lubaga and Kayemba road Lubaga.
• Lot 2 - Old Portbell road, Portbell road, and Spring road.
• Lot 3 - 5th put to 8th street Central division, Sir Apollo Kaggwa road Central, Muzito road Lubaga, Suuna 1 & Ssuuna2 Lubaga.
• Lot 4 - Kasubi northern bypass Lubaga, Queen's way Central, Salama Munyonyo Makindye, Kyebando ring2 Kawempe, Kisasi ring Nakawa.
• Lot 5 - Mugema road Lubaga, Masiiro road Lubaga, Ssentema road Lubaga and Nsambya Halton Makindye.

The contract for the construction (civil works) in Lot 1 was awarded to China State Construction Engineering Corporation Limited - see details of the Lot 1 award here.

The contract for the construction (civil works) in Lot 2 was awarded to Zhejiang Communications Construction Group Co. Ltd - see details of the Lot 2 award here.

The contract for the construction (civil works) in Lot 3 was awarded to China Railway 18th Bureau Group Co., Ltd - see details of the Lot 3 award here.

The contract for the construction (civil works) in Lot 4 was awarded to China Railway 18th Bureau Group Co., Ltd - see details of the Lot 4 award here.

The contract for the construction (civil works) in Lot 5 was awarded to China Communication Construction Company Ltd - see details of the Lot 5 award here.

The contractors are reported to have been selected through a lengthy transparent international bidding and meticulous procurement process. They are onboarding staff, mostly locals, and acquiring office spaces, material yards etc. to begin construction.

Construction works for Lot 3 was launched on Monday, February 13 (2023), by Ms Kisaka, KCCA executive director.

Happening Now!@KCCAED inspecting the forward maintenance works as reconstruction of City roads starts.

100km of roads are to be reconstructed under the Kampala City Roads Rehabilitation Project funded by @AfDB_Group. #KCCAatWork #KlaSmartCity pic.twitter.com/MTCQrw49wO

— Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) (@KCCAUG) February 12, 2023

While launching the Lot 3 project in Kampala, Ms Kisaka said "The commencement has been issued after signing the contract for the design review and construction supervision. The necessary plant and equipment obtaining the necessary permits and statutory approvals will then follow. The Kampala City Road Reconstruction Project is on course. However, the potholes in these roads shall be patched first to ease the traffic flow as the construction work takes shape."

Kisaka had earlier said the African Development Bank (ADB) had approved a US$288 million loan for the project. “Our technical people have judiciously analysed the infrastructure needs in the city, and we are confident the projects are going to address some of the transport challenges we have in the city. We have 2,100 kilometres that make up the Kampala roads that are tarmacked, but the tarmac is only 35% of the entire network. We have already procured what we need, and soon, the refurbishment of about 70 kilometres of city roads will kick off. Smart City is not about smart talks; it is about smart actions,” said Kisaka. 

According to Ms Kisaka, KCCA also envisages refurbishing 270 kilometres of city roads.

Top Photo: Road construction works by the Kampala Capital City Authority (@KCCAUG Twitter Handle | Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA))