Kabale town gets sh3bn road touch-up

By Darious Magara       

KABALE - The government is tarmacking the main street of Kabale town at a cost of sh3bn.

The works have drawn mixed sentiments among locals, with those who work on the streets and on pavements and building compounds feeling inconvenienced while others talking of their excitement over the developments.

On the positive, potholes will be a thing for the past in the western Ugandan town, all the while also attracting business investments as well as more tourists.

Uganda Tourism Board executive director Stephen Asiimwe said Kigezi region contributes significantly to the tourism revenue.

“We have Lake Bunyonyi, national parks and games reserves and hotels,” he told New Vision, adding “they contribute significantly to the revenue basket of the tourism sector of Uganda.

He said the roads being worked on by government will supplement air transport by which tourists are travelling to Kigezi region. It is understood the region receives up to five flights daily.

Kabale main street, which had a lot of potholes, is now being tarmacked and expanded. It will have a new design, good drainage and walkways for pedestrians.

Ssalongo Byekwaso , the Uganda National Roads Authority (UNRA) area station manager said that at some point, the road has three lanes.  The remaining space, he added, would be used by Kabale Municipality to create a parking space.

The business community and the town’s mayor of Kabale town said the road will give tourism a mileage since it is the gateway to the tourism attractions in the region. Kigezi region comprises of Kanungu, Rukingiri and Kisoro which all were carved out of Kabale.

According to Byekwaso, the works – undertaken by RCC/SBI – will be complete by the end of this year, covering a distance of 2.5 km. The road starts from Rwakaraba (along Kabale- Kisoro highway) to Katuna Road roundabout. 

About 75% of the work is rated to have been covered. The project is funded by the European Union (EU) and the Government of Uganda.

Byekwaso said some of the locals had built in the road reserve and had to be cleared to pave way for the road expansion.

Kabale Municipality Mayor Dr. Pius Ruhemurana lauded government for finally setting aside funds to tarmac the road which had been a sorry state.

“We had been using murrum to cover the potholes on a wearing away tarmac done in the 1980s and now we thank government for funding and implementing the tarmacking of our main street.”

The mayor called on business people who had previously shunned the town to invest there.

Eng. John Byabagambi , the minister for works and transport, said government is committed to working on roads in the country irrespective of political inclinations.
 

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The works are projected to be complete by this year's end. (Credit: Darious Magara)

Some residents had attributed the delay in working on the road to politics. Mayor Ruhemurana subscribes to opposition party Forum for Democratic Change (FDC). But he refuted such claims, saying the delay was not politically motivated.

Minister Byabagambi also emphasized the same point: “We are working on the roads to serve all our people because Kabale town and other areas do not serve or is not used by only opposition or NRM party members.”

He said more funds had been allocated to the works and transport ministry in this financial year’s budget (2015/16) and they expect more funding for roads because the road infrastructure is a top priority for the government.

The minister underlined that the road has a direct link to development since business people have to use it to trade and that for Kabale, it will boost tourism as well as link Uganda to the Great Lakes region.

“Nobody wants a gateway to tourism to be ‘ramshackled’. Kabale and Kigezi region host mountain gorillas and Lake Bunyonyi which are a great tourism attraction,” he said.  

RCC/SBI managers said they had received cooperation from the residents and hoped to finish works on time.

Byekwaso made it clear there would be no compensation since no property had been destroyed. “We have designed the road with the Kabale Municipality land corridor and the road reserves and therefore will not compensate anyone.”

Eng. Ivan Mbabazi Batuma, the proprietor of Voice of Kigezi Radio and Bunyonyi Overland Resort, said they welcomed the tarmac which will boost tourism in Kigezi region.

“We are grateful to government for working on the tarmac in Kabale town but also pray that the tourism roads in Kigezi especially Kabale-Bunyonyi road be worked on soon” he added.

The businessman said he knows that Lake Bunyonyi Roads have been allocated funding in this year’s budget but appealed that it is actualized.

“The roads add comfort and beauty to the area and if they are not worked on as promised it hampers growth of tourism and trade.”

Kabale is a highland district and covers 1,827 square kilometres. It has a green topography with interlocking and heavily cultivated hills with spectacular valleys and great beautiful scenery.

“The altitude of the district ranges between 1,219 metres (3,999 ft) and 2,347 metres (7,700 ft) above sea level. This altitude makes it colder than the rest of the country” said Batuma.  The temperatures average about 18 °C (64 °F) during the day and fall to about 10 °C (50 °F) at night.

He said it is because of its cool temperate and beauty that Kabale is referred to as the ‘Switzerland of Africa’ which partly explains why several foreign tourists flock Kigezi.