Experts call for regional cities
Nov 01, 2010
URBANISATION experts have advised the Government to establish regional cities so as to reduce development pressure in Kampala, according to a local government ministry report.
By Andante Okanya
URBANISATION experts have advised the Government to establish regional cities so as to reduce development pressure in Kampala, according to a local government ministry report.
The experts said the Government must abandon its current mono-city policy.
“Regional cities will also address regional economic disparities,†the report said.
The commissioner for urban administration, Charles Katarikawe, said the lack of an urban policy had caused chaos in Kampala.
He said some towns develop due to the influence of truck drivers who park along the road, while others are formed from petty local brew drinking joints.
Katarikawe was speaking at the Golf Course Hotel in Kampala during a handover ceremony of the report on the Urban Policy Development project last Friday.
The $240,000 (about sh534.7m) project, funded by the UN Development Programme, started in 2008 with research across the country.
The report said due to the high costs associated with building new cities, it would be “appropriate to elevate†some of the existing key municipalities to city status.
Tamale Kiggundu, the research team leader, said the Government should channel more of its resources to urbanisation rather than village development.
“Cities serve as pillars of a global economy. There is no way a poor country can develop without emphasising urban development,†Kiggundu said.
He said the establishment of the regional cities should be based on functionality, and not merely to serve political interests.
URBANISATION experts have advised the Government to establish regional cities so as to reduce development pressure in Kampala, according to a local government ministry report.
The experts said the Government must abandon its current mono-city policy.
“Regional cities will also address regional economic disparities,†the report said.
The commissioner for urban administration, Charles Katarikawe, said the lack of an urban policy had caused chaos in Kampala.
He said some towns develop due to the influence of truck drivers who park along the road, while others are formed from petty local brew drinking joints.
Katarikawe was speaking at the Golf Course Hotel in Kampala during a handover ceremony of the report on the Urban Policy Development project last Friday.
The $240,000 (about sh534.7m) project, funded by the UN Development Programme, started in 2008 with research across the country.
The report said due to the high costs associated with building new cities, it would be “appropriate to elevate†some of the existing key municipalities to city status.
Tamale Kiggundu, the research team leader, said the Government should channel more of its resources to urbanisation rather than village development.
“Cities serve as pillars of a global economy. There is no way a poor country can develop without emphasising urban development,†Kiggundu said.
He said the establishment of the regional cities should be based on functionality, and not merely to serve political interests.