UNRA suspends Mityana-Mubende roadworks
A section of the Mityana-Mubende road near the bridge at Kakungube swamp in Kassanda District. The construction of Mityana – Mubende Road has been temporarily suspended due to financial constraints. Photo | Barbra Nalweyiso
What you need to know:
- The Shs395 billion project, which kicked off in April 2021, was expected to be completed two months ago, but it is currently 50 percent complete.
The construction of Mityana–Mubende Road has been temporarily suspended due to financial constraints.
The Shs395 billion project, which kicked off in April 2021, was expected to be completed two months ago, but it is currently 50 percent complete.
Energoprojekt Niskogradnja, a Serbian civil engineering and contracting company, was undertaking the works.
In an interview on Wednesday, Mr Allan Sempebwa, the acting Uganda National Roads Authority (Unra) spokesperson, said: “The contractor has not abandoned the project as some people are claiming. The challenge we had was largely due to cash constraints and that has affected the progress of work and productivity.”
He added: “However, we will be resuming that project soon, especially managing the surface improvement on the road, drainages and all other aspects of the project”.
Mr Ssempebwa did not give a specific date when the works would resume and did not reveal how much money is currently needed to complete the project.
He, however, said the contractor is trying to ensure that he manages the safety component on the road including dust suppression.
“We have a lot of traffic on that road even the dust suppression efforts may not be bearing much fruit because of too much traffic and the current hot weather. So, the contractor is going to be sprinkling water every hour to address that,” he said.
Mr Ssempebwa called for caution when using the road.
A tour of the project site on Tuesday revealed that no visible civil work is going on and the contractor parked some of the equipment at Kakungube swamp in Kassanda District.
Mr Ashraf Nkanja, a resident of Kakungube Trading Centre, said when it is windy, the dust impairs the visibility of motorists leading to accidents.
“Our people die every day at Kakungube swamp. Three school-children have been killed in the past three days by speeding vehicles,” he said.
Mr Antony Ntomaga, a security guard protecting the road construction equipment at Kakungube swamp, said accidents mostly occur between 10pm and 11pm when motorists can hardly see the road signs at the bridge which is being erected.
“Our lives are also in danger while guarding the equipment and we are now sleeping inside the excavator. One time, I was almost hit by a speeding lorry after the driver lost control of the vehicle. I pray that the road works resume and we get away from here,” he said.
Background
President Museveni officiated the groundbreaking ceremony for the project on January 6, 2021while on a campaign trail in Mityana.
The 86km road is being upgraded to a Class II standard paved road, with asphalt concrete surfacing on both carriageways.
The road will also have a lane width of 3.5m with dual carriageways in the major towns of Mityana, Naama and Mubende.
