Uganda to start building ships

By Vision Reporter

Uganda will soon have a ship building yard at Masese in Jinja Municipality and a modern maintenance and repair facility for vessels plying Lake Victoria from countries bordering the water body.

The $1.5m project that is supported by the Netherlands will improve water transport and lower costs for both imports and exports across East Africa. This was revealed at a meeting President Yoweri Museveni held with Cap. Peter Huizinga, the director in charge of Africa for Europe’s renowned ship building company, Veka Group, , at State House, Nakasero.

Huizinga was accompanied by the deputy head of mission of the embassy of the Netherlands in Uganda, Ambassador Hans Peter Van der Woude. Veka Group is Europe’s largest builder of inland vessels and is partnering with Ronbag Real Estates, represented at the meeting by the company’s local director Roy Baguma.

The first vessel to be constructed will have capacity of 2,200 tonnes and will ferry cargo between Mwanza and Port Bell. Museveni welcomed the investors and said their project will not only serve Uganda, but also all countries in the Great Lakes region. He also told them of government’s intention to build a marine school in Namasagali in Kamuli at the confluence of the River Nile and Lake Kyoga.