Thank you for keeping us in check, KCCA tells NMG
Left to right: Nation Media Group-Uganda (NMG-U) General Manager Commercial Sam Barata, NMG-U Managing Director Susan Nsibirwa, Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) Executive Director Dorothy Kisaka, KCCA Partnerships Manager Julie Bukirwa, and KCCA spokesman Simon Kasyate after the meeting at the KCCA offices in Kampala yesterday. PHOTO | STEPHEN OTAGE
What you need to know:
- The KCCA executive director says the authority is forging partnerships with different organisations to help address the issues affecting the capital city.
Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) has hailed the Nation Media Group-Uganda (NMG-U) for constantly raising issues affecting the city residents, saying it has become an avenue through which they are getting feedback from the public.
Ms Dorothy Kisaka, the executive director of KCCA, said NMG has been instrumental in providing constructive criticism for the Authority.
Ms Kisaka called on NMG-U to join the list of partners helping the Authority achieve the Smart City status.
“To think in a day you can influence four million people is impossible. What messaging are you putting in the media to build a Smart City? What are the pillars to advance technology to improve service delivery instead of pothole exhibitions?” she asked.
She made the remarks while meeting Ms Susan Nsibirwa, the NMG-Uganda managing director, at the KCCA offices in Kampala, yesterday.
Ms Kisaka said city residents need good infrastructure and support for their well-being and the Authority has begun forging partnerships with various institutions to create synergies to address the issue.
Ms Kisaka expressed her satisfaction with the vision and initiatives of the Nation Media Group to encourage city residents to actively participate in city development.
“Leadership isn’t a catwalk. You need to build synergies and strategic partnerships. The capital city is the major thing for development. Sixty-five percent of the GDP [Gross domestic product] is here. What messaging are we doing for the city to positively influence the people?” she asked.
Ms Kisaka said when she assumed office, she was surprised to learn that most city residents think KCCA’s mandate only stops at the maintenance of roads and city buildings.
She explained that KCCA operates seven health facilities, 79 Universal Primary Education (UPE) and 22 Universal Secondary Education (USE) schools, 16 markets, transport business, and engineering services which all require partnerships.
Ms Kisaka added that the media is a key partner in ensuring that the city residents take advantage of all these services.
Ms Nsibirwa said when she was appointed the NMG-U managing director, one of key deliverable areas she was tasked with was to ensure cordial working relations with government institutions to avoid acrimonious relations.
She said the NMG mission statement does not encourage acrimony between the media house and government institutions.
“Our mandate is to create value for our stakeholders. If Kampala is a Smart City then it is mutually beneficial to all of us, and we all benefit,” she said.
Ms Nsibirwa said when there are issues between the two, there are ways of airing them out without offending the affected parties and that is how NMG would like to start relating with KCCA.
