Roads Before Buildings

Aug 24, 2002

JINJA HAS set a deadline for landlords to paint their premises. The mayor of the town, Uganda’s second largest, has warned that premises that would not have smartened up by August 31 would be closed.

JINJA HAS set a deadline for landlords to paint their premises. The mayor of the town, Uganda’s second largest, has warned that premises that would not have smartened up by August 31 would be closed.This is a good move, following especially hot on the heels of a similar drive launched in Kampala recently. Ugandan towns had acquired a reputation for shabbiness that was unrivalled in eastern Africa. Already, Kampala has taken on a neater look; many of the small trading centre suburbs look brighter. It is amazing how many landlords had neglected maintenance of what are presumably good cash cows. Many buildings leaked, had the paint pealing, the woodwork rotting, the plaster cracking. Yet rents should adequately cover maintenance.But alongside the lack of building maintenance, the state of the roads contributes to shabbiness. Many previously paved roads have lost the tarmac coating and are now dusty lanes. Painting a building when the road running alongside it is in similar state of disrepair will not be helpful, as the dirt will simply spoil any decent paintwork. The mayor, hopefully, has similar plans for many of Jinja’s poor roads.Ends

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