Lack of equipment, funds hinder Kigezi road repairs

Leaders in Kigezi have attributed the poor road network in the sub-region to the lack of proper road equipment and the region's hilly terrain, which is prone to mudslides during the rainy season.

The leaders said the road equipment allocated to their districts are not suitable for the rocky landscape, which is characterised by steep slopes and hills.

They said for road maintenance and the construction of new roads to succeed, each district should be equipped with heavy-duty machines, such as excavators and bulldozers.

“The spare parts for the road equipment that we received from the government wear out quickly because of the hard rocks. We are spending a lot of money repairing it since the wear and tear is high because of the rocky landscape,” Mr Abel Bizimana, the Kisoro District chairman, said during an interview on Monday.

He added: “Although over 300kms of district roads are accessible, we appeal for the timely release of the road funds and the central government should separately fund the repair and maintenance of the district road equipment since it is an expensive venture.”

The Rubanda District chairman, Mr Stephen Kasyaba, said: “Most of our roads are in bad shape. During the rainy season, stormwater destroys them after silting the small culverts installed for drainage purposes. Government should allow us to use part of the road fund to buy big culverts that can stop the stormwater from destroying our roads.”

Hiring equipment

The Kanungu District Council speaker, Mr Frank Byaruhanga, said they spend a lot of money hiring excavators to open and maintain roads on steep slopes and rocky landscape and thus the need for increased funding from the government.

The Kabale District engineer, Mr Januario Bagamuhunda, in a report said: “We have 370km of district roads in Kabale, 173kms are in good condition, 137.8kms in fair condition, 21.4kms in poor condition while 37.8kms are in bad condition.”

He added: “While we appreciate the road equipment received from the central government that included two graders, a wheel loader, vibro roller (compactor), two tipper trucks and a water bowser, we desperately need a bulldozer, an excavator, a low bed truck and a supervision vehicle if the status of roads in our district is to be improved.”

Funding

Mr Bagamuhunda said the Shs1 billion allocation from the central government and the Shs80 million from the district council meant for road maintenance is too little, especially with the hilly and rocky environment in the district.

“Road maintenance contracts awarded for specific road projects from the Ministry of Works in our district are heavily funded compared to the funds allocated to us for all the roads in the district. For example, the contract to maintain a 5km road in Buhara Sub-county was awarded by the Ministry of Works at Shs600 million,” he said.

He added: “Kitibya road, 6.8kms and a bridge in Kyanamira Sub-county was also awarded to the contractor by the Ministry of Works at Shs2.2 billion. It sounds like a miracle for us to use the Shs1 billion allocation from the central government to maintain 370kms of district roads in Kabale District.”