Essential services must keep pace with Namanve industrial growth — stakeholders
RDC Ndisaba wants a wider meeting involving the Uganda Investment Authority, Mukono District and Municipality, police, railway authorities, the Ministry responsible for Kampala metropolitan affairs and investors.
The Mukono Resident District Commissioner Fatuma Ndisaba (Pictured) said local authorities were not adequately involved in the original planning and were not given the necessary maps and information to prepare for future management of the park.
MUKONO - The rapid growth of Namanve Industrial Park should be matched by improved essential services for workers, truck drivers, investors and other users of the industrial hub, stakeholders have said.
The call was made during a recent visit to Liberty Inland Container Depot (ICD), where concerns were raised about the availability of basic services as industrial activity in the area continues to expand.
Namanve Industrial Park LC1 Chairperson Enock Ssekitoleko said the industrial park has become a key driver of Uganda’s industrialisation agenda, with new factories, increased investment and major infrastructure projects transforming the area.
However, he said the expansion of industrial activity should be accompanied by services that support the people who work and operate businesses in the park.
Ssekitoleko noted that three weighbridges are currently being constructed by Lagan Dott in Namanve, but the workers, truck drivers and other daily users of the park continue to face challenges accessing basic facilities, including public toilets.
“When we talk about industrial development, we should also consider the people who work here and the services they need every day,” Ssekitoleko said.
He noted that when the industrial park was initially planned, there was a broader vision to combine industrial infrastructure with supporting services. However, as development expanded, particularly with the emergence of South A Estate, greater emphasis was placed on attracting investors and facilitating industrial growth.
Ssekitoleko said investors, workers, transporters and other users of the park should have regular opportunities to raise operational challenges so they can be addressed before they become bigger problems.
Services needed
These include tarmacked roads, sanitation facilities, healthcare services, parking spaces, adequate lighting, designated boda-boda stages, firefighting services and markets.
He said such facilities are essential to the smooth operation of an industrial park that employs thousands of people and handles large volumes of cargo.
The shortage of public toilets, he said, has become particularly critical, with some truck drivers reportedly resorting to using polythene bags because of the lack of suitable alternatives.
Ssekitoleko said investors, workers, transporters and other users of the park should have regular opportunities to raise operational challenges so they can be addressed before they become bigger problems.
Concerns over roundabouts
While improvements to the road network are necessary to accommodate increasing traffic, Ssekitoleko said some users have questioned whether the designs of new roundabouts, particularly around the Jinja Road area, can adequately cater for heavy trucks and container traffic.
“Where road designs create difficulties for truck movement, adjustments may be necessary, particularly as traffic volumes increase,” he said.
Weighbridges
He also raised concerns that locating a weighbridge close to a major roundabout on one of the park’s busiest routes could worsen congestion if trucks are required to queue.
However, Ssekitoleko said the concerns should not be interpreted as opposition to weighbridges, but rather as a call for a balanced approach to infrastructure development.
While improvements to the road network are necessary to accommodate increasing traffic, Ssekitoleko said some users have questioned whether the designs of new roundabouts, particularly around the Jinja Road area, can adequately cater for heavy trucks and container traffic.
He urged authorities to listen to local leaders and other users when planning future investments, saying such engagement would help ensure industrial expansion is matched by the roads, sanitation, healthcare, safety, transport and other services needed to support the industries and communities Namanve was established to serve.
The Mukono Resident District Commissioner Fatuma Ndisaba said local authorities were not adequately involved in the original planning and were not given the necessary maps and information to prepare for future management of the park.
“A park is not a short-term investment. A park is a 50-year investment,” she says, raising questions about who will become its long-term caretaker.
Ndisaba wants a wider meeting involving the Uganda Investment Authority, Mukono District and Municipality, police, railway authorities, the Ministry responsible for Kampala metropolitan affairs and investors.
The proposed meeting, according to the RDC, would seek to establish what was originally planned for the industrial park, identify what has changed and agree on who is responsible for delivering and maintaining critical infrastructure.
Jamada Kajoba, the Mukono municipality spokesperson, says UIA has operated independently and has not sufficiently involved the municipality or district physical planning authorities in decisions affecting the park.
He says UIA does not routinely submit its plans to the municipality or district, making it difficult for local authorities to ensure that the original plans for roads, drainage, roundabouts, parking and other infrastructure are implemented.
Efforts to obtain a comment from UIA Director General Robert Mukiza were unsuccessful, as he did not respond to repeated calls made to his known telephone number.