Better late than never! Tarmacking of Jinja roads begins

President Yoweri Museveni has fulfilled his seven-year-old pledge to tarmac roads at the Jinja Agricultural Show Grounds and Bugembe Cathedral Road in Bugembe Town Council in Jinja district.

The tarmacking of the roads to cost shs4.4bn.was on Friday commissioned the minister of works and transport Monica Ntege Azuba.

Tarmacking of the Bugembe Cathedral Road will cost sh1.bn whereas tarmacking of internal roads at Jinja Agricultural Show Grounds will cost sh2.5bn.

The two were presidential pledges made by Museveni in 2014 after locals complained to him over too much dust and mud that was affecting their businesses.

Bugembe Cathedral Road in Bugembe town council. Photo by Geoffrey Mutegeki

"Because of meagre resources and the budgeting process, we couldn't work on these roads immediately after the pledge was made. But I'm happy that the road is going to be worked on," Azuba said.

Jinja Agricultural Show Grounds roads works which in total is 3kilometers are expected to be complete in a period of seven months, whereas the Bugembe road network which covers 2km will take five months.

The construction works will be carried out by the Ministry of Works using the force on account model under the Urban Roads Resealing Unit.

The Bugembe Town Council Mayor Stephen Wante said Bugembe is the headquarters for Busoga Kingdom, hosting the Palace, the Lukiko building and it is home to Holy Cross Headquarters in Uganda.

It also hosts Busoga Diocese Headquarters, Bugembe Islamic Institute and Bugembe Football Stadium.

"The road is going to improve the value of land, attract more businesses which would not be established here because of dust and mud and this will lead to job creation and better incomes," Wante said.

The secretary-general Uganda Farmer Federation (UFFE) Mugoya Awali Ogonzaki said that the improvement to the showground will facilitate the fulfilment of the management's desire to turn the showground into a modern agricultural training centre.