Arua’s changing skyline
IT is unbelievable; the once small town of Arua has changed completely, making it rival with towns like Kampala. Storeyed buildings start right from the beginning of the main street near the golf course, down to Enyau Kapiri to Arua Hospital which has a multi-billion complex nearing completion.
BY THOMAS PERE
IT is unbelievable; the once small town of Arua has changed completely, making it rival with towns like Kampala. Storeyed buildings start right from the beginning of the main street near the golf course, down to Enyau Kapiri to Arua Hospital which has a multi-billion complex nearing completion.
The trend does not differ when it comes to the streets and markets. Shopping malls and storeyed buildings have been constructed throughout the municipality.
Charles Asiki, the mayor of Arua Municipality, says: “The reason behind the mushrooming storeyed buildings is the need for space which is increasingly becoming limited in the central business district (CBD). But it is not yet a law for only storeyedd buildings to be built in the town. We are just encouraging developers to build.â€
It does not take anyone walking along these streets long to figure out the reason for this growth. The booming private sector has attracted banks, telecommunication providers, motor dealerships among other enterprises which demand for housing for their offices and workers.
This growth has spilled over to the residential areas, like the junior quarters which once was a green belt. It is now an upscale residential area with predominantly tiled houses.
Part of Barifa Forest has been cleared and used for construction of buildings.
Arua hill from which the district derived its name is now surrounded by fenced residential buildings. Charles Odipio, a migrant from Kampala, says: “Apart from the power which runs for 18 hours a day and the ongoing loadshedding, all the services and opportunities required of a town are available, especially the good buildings both for commercial and residential purposes.â€
Like other big towns and cities in the world, the municipality comprises people of different tribes and nationalities. The mayor says it is the proximity to the two countries of Sudan and Congo which attracts services and a large population.
He says they still need more investors in the district. The existing services and facilities are already stretched because they are serving not only Arua district but Southern Sudan and eastern Congo.
Asiki says: “It is unfortunate that this fast growth is not planned. It is just taking its own course. Recently we managed to open 22km of community roads which you see in the new residential areas.â€
He says more work needs to be done to direct this rate of development properly. Plans are already underway to get Arua planned such that in the next 10 years it becomes a city.
Property ownership is diverse in Arua. Some property is owned by institutions like banks, non-governmental organisations and the middle working class.
Peter Omony, a resident of Anyafiyo, says: “The rent of self-contained houses varies. A one-roomed self-contained house can be rented for sh160,000 and a two-roomed house at about sh300,000, while a house with more than three rooms goes for sh600,000 and above.â€
Martin Mubiru, a civil engineer in the town, says the cost of plots in Arua depends on the location. A 100x150 plot in the town goes for about sh50m or more. In residential areas a plot of 50x100 goes for about sh20m. He says for a shop or office space in the town, one may have to part with an average of sh700,000 for a space of 6x4 metres. This implies that a square metre of office space costs $13 (about sh29,000).
Mubiru says it is difficult to get some construction materials like sand, especially during the rainy season. Transport costs have increased to about sh60,000 per trip. He says it is still hard to get uniform bricks because of lack of standardisation.
Mubiru says hardware materials are available and supplied mainly by the Indian businessmen with some companies opening up warehouses for the region. For tiles, the whole district relies on one supplier.
“If investors invest in making construction materials like bricks and concrete products, it would be a great deal for the region. This is because it is a virgin area which is yet to be exploited given the high growth rate of the industry,†Mubiru says.
IT is unbelievable; the once small town of Arua has changed completely, making it rival with towns like Kampala. Storeyed buildings start right from the beginning of the main street near the golf course, down to Enyau Kapiri to Arua Hospital which has a multi-billion complex nearing completion.
The trend does not differ when it comes to the streets and markets. Shopping malls and storeyed buildings have been constructed throughout the municipality.
Charles Asiki, the mayor of Arua Municipality, says: “The reason behind the mushrooming storeyed buildings is the need for space which is increasingly becoming limited in the central business district (CBD). But it is not yet a law for only storeyedd buildings to be built in the town. We are just encouraging developers to build.â€
It does not take anyone walking along these streets long to figure out the reason for this growth. The booming private sector has attracted banks, telecommunication providers, motor dealerships among other enterprises which demand for housing for their offices and workers.
This growth has spilled over to the residential areas, like the junior quarters which once was a green belt. It is now an upscale residential area with predominantly tiled houses.
Part of Barifa Forest has been cleared and used for construction of buildings.
Arua hill from which the district derived its name is now surrounded by fenced residential buildings. Charles Odipio, a migrant from Kampala, says: “Apart from the power which runs for 18 hours a day and the ongoing loadshedding, all the services and opportunities required of a town are available, especially the good buildings both for commercial and residential purposes.â€
Like other big towns and cities in the world, the municipality comprises people of different tribes and nationalities. The mayor says it is the proximity to the two countries of Sudan and Congo which attracts services and a large population.
He says they still need more investors in the district. The existing services and facilities are already stretched because they are serving not only Arua district but Southern Sudan and eastern Congo.
Asiki says: “It is unfortunate that this fast growth is not planned. It is just taking its own course. Recently we managed to open 22km of community roads which you see in the new residential areas.â€
He says more work needs to be done to direct this rate of development properly. Plans are already underway to get Arua planned such that in the next 10 years it becomes a city.
Property ownership is diverse in Arua. Some property is owned by institutions like banks, non-governmental organisations and the middle working class.
Peter Omony, a resident of Anyafiyo, says: “The rent of self-contained houses varies. A one-roomed self-contained house can be rented for sh160,000 and a two-roomed house at about sh300,000, while a house with more than three rooms goes for sh600,000 and above.â€
Martin Mubiru, a civil engineer in the town, says the cost of plots in Arua depends on the location. A 100x150 plot in the town goes for about sh50m or more. In residential areas a plot of 50x100 goes for about sh20m. He says for a shop or office space in the town, one may have to part with an average of sh700,000 for a space of 6x4 metres. This implies that a square metre of office space costs $13 (about sh29,000).
Mubiru says it is difficult to get some construction materials like sand, especially during the rainy season. Transport costs have increased to about sh60,000 per trip. He says it is still hard to get uniform bricks because of lack of standardisation.
Mubiru says hardware materials are available and supplied mainly by the Indian businessmen with some companies opening up warehouses for the region. For tiles, the whole district relies on one supplier.
“If investors invest in making construction materials like bricks and concrete products, it would be a great deal for the region. This is because it is a virgin area which is yet to be exploited given the high growth rate of the industry,†Mubiru says.