Rd project to open Musita-Lumino-Majanji-Busia country side

ISSUE 32, OCTOBER 2014 Ntungamo-Kagitumba Road upgrade kicks-off

Gravel Maintenance; UNRA Mpigi Station For hire, please contact us on: 0758 090 178 / 0772 534 722

Backhoe Loaders 1. JCB 3DX EXTRA 2. CAT 428E Excavators 1. JCB JS200HD 2. JCB JS120 3. CAT 320 Wheel Loaders 1. CAT 962G 2. JCB 432ZX Drum Rollers 1. JCB VM115 2. HAMM HD13 Lowbed for hire

WILSONS (U) LTD Spring Road, Bugolobi, SIA Amara Plaza, Bugolobi. Behind Tuskys Supermarket P.O. Box 34576 Kampala (U) Email: [email protected] Issue 32 OCTOBER 2014 Contents 6

6 Paved road to facilitate trade 8 Byabagambi hails British support on roads 10 Progress, -Kikagate-Murongo Bridge road project 7 11 New road to open Musita-Lumino-Majanji-Busia countryside

12 Gavel Maintenance; UNRA Mpigi Station 23 UNRA to deliver 4km Namanve Road 24 Roads in the News 26 Kamdin-Gulu Rd in construction gear 23 28 UNRA update; October 2014

10 19

7 17 18 The Roads Magazine 3 FOREWORD Ntungamo- Rd for broader trade

he upgrading of Ntungamo- particularly as the Ntungamo population whose Ruhaama-Kagitumba/ communities the road traverses is conscious of Mirama Hills gravel road to their self-development potential. UNRA national standards has Further heartening is the involvement of commenced, bringing to the TradeMark East Africa, among whose Tfore and highlighting a number of issues. stated objectives is to stream line and ease The project is a product of Uganda government transportation, thereby reducing the cost of policy of investing in roads infrastructure to ease doing business necessary for nation building. and facilitate trade and commerce and service This is in keeping with TradeMark’s belief delivery to all Ugandans. The British support in ‘increased physical access to markets, reflects the European Union’s infrastructure enhanced trade environments, and improved development support to this country in furthering business competitiveness--to contribute to regional economic integration in a buildup to the increased economic growth and subsequent greater eastern Africa and great lakes region poverty reduction’. Dan Kitakule Alinange market. TradeMark’s ideals are indeed those of the Head of Corporate Communications The road project is a shorter access to the European Union, ‘a desire for an integrated East Republic of Rwanda than the better known Africa with flourishing trade, strong investment Ntungamo--Katuna link, also supported and less poverty,’ hence its financial support. by the European Union, whose reconstruction is We are grateful to the British government that about complete. has made possible TradeMark’s support to this For the last six years, communities traversed by project. UNRA’s roads upgrading projects have seized the opportunities the efficiency of transportation offers to better their lives. Small-time producers have learnt to produce more and improve the quality of their produce for the market. Consumer goods manufacturers’ markets have broadened and the outreach of various service providers increased. In other words, the resultant benefits from this Dan Kitakule Alinange project need not only be inter-state but localized Head, Corporate Communications-UNRA

Mandate Vision Mission Grand Strategies

To manage the provision To efficiently To develop and • Improve the condition of the and maintenance of the manage a safe maintain a safe national roads network, to national roads network in and well-developed national roads ensure all year-round safe a more efficient/effective national roads network that fosters and efficient movement of manner and render network the economic people and goods advisory services to the development of • Improve institutional capacity and corporate governance. government on roads- Uganda.

UNRA’s strategic direction UNRA’s related matters

4 Issue 32 OCTOBER 2014

Rd project to open Musita-Lumino-Majanji-Busia country side PUBLISHER’S MESSAGE

ISSUE 32, OCTOBER 2014 Ntungamo-Kagitumba Road upgrade kicks-off Tororo-Mbale-Soroti Road; insults cease

lot has been said in regard to the learning of the causes of what one finds so the reconstruction of Tororo- offending. Gravel Maintenance; UNRA Mpigi Station

Mbale-Soroti Road along With a proper understanding of the issues Cover Picture which I am a regular traveler. at hand, one would then not need to expend Ntungamo-Ruhaama-Kagitumba Road Many voices, for the most energy crafting slurs and imputing improper up-grade. The presidential flag-off at Ruhaama Sub-County. Inset is Symbolic partA critical and bordering on slander, have been motives upon otherwise well-meaning result- ground-breaking. fault-finding, discouraging and derogatorily oriented organizations and individuals. Coordinator vilifying for the duration of the implementation For a good Tororo-Mbale-Soroti Road, I register JUSTIN.K. OJANGOLE [email protected] of this project. my gratitude to Dott Services Ltd, the Contractor 0772 408 915/ 0702 408 915 as indeed Uganda National Roads Authority Editorial, Photo Editing Not anymore as the more than 95mile project (UNRA) for this accomplishment. PAUL MUGABI comes to an end; the reason is that the road It is now up to us the road users to show cause [email protected] 0752 529 335 has been brought to a good condition. for our demand for a good road. SHARON M. OMURUNGI While it comes natural for one to express them- [email protected] selves with unbounded energy when their Sales & Marketing KOSTA OPOLOT feelings are stirred, I would rather think it should Justin K. Ojangole [email protected] be equally as natural to put one’s thoughts to Publisher GEORGE E.OMODING Contributors PRESIDENTIAL PRESS UNIT (PPU) JOEL OGWANG UNRA roads are ever WANYAMA ORLANDERSON improving; Kampala- Masaka Road. Design & Layout STEPHEN SEGAWA [email protected] 0772 589 190

For further information, Please contact: HAI Agency Uganda Limited JK Building after Tuskys Supermarket Ntinda P.O. Box 24413, Kampala Uganda Tel: +256 414 223507 / +256 772 408915 E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.haiagency.com

Monthly Publication

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the publisher. The publisher does not guarantee the accuracy of content from contributors and advertisers nor accept responsibility of any statements herein.

Values Key Success Factors • Safety • Attraction/retention of adequate • Research and development of • Customer focus skilled/experienced personnel innovative approaches/technologies • Accountability • Predictable and adequate financing • Performance measurement • Transparency • Business-like operations framework • Excellence • Effective utilization of available • Zero-tolerance for unethical • Integrity resources practices/corruption • Team work • Capacity of Local Contractor and • Good relationships/effective • Efficiency Consultants communication with key stakeholders

The Roads Magazine 5 Ntungamo-Ruhaama-Kagitumba Rd upgrade Paved road to facilitate trade

President has expressed Uganda’s gratitude to Britain and its Department for International Development, (DFID) for funding the Ntungamo-Ruhaama-Kagitumba Road upgrade from gravel to a paved surface. The President said at Ruhaama Sub-county grounds, the venue for the project’s ground breaking that by supporting, “This facility that will facilitate trade, the British government had taken the right decision. It is a good investment for Ugandans and the East African region as it is good for our partners in the United States of America and United Kingdom--they will buy more from us and we shall buy more from them.” He said the future of the world is through trade, “Recently traveling through Europe and USA, I found that there was an inadequate demand for goods and services, yet in African the demand is going up. The purchasing power is still low but growing.” President Museveni noted that the proportion of Ugandans in the money economy is still low; the 2002 census revealed that only 32% of the population was in the cash economy, the rest in subsistence, only growing food to meet domestic needs, without bothering about money. He therefore urged every family to engage in commercial agriculture and benefit from roads upgrade like this one.

1

6 Issue 32 OCTOBER 2014

4

3 5

1. An array of Zhongmei road construction equip- ment. 2. Applauding the Presi- dent after commission- ing Ntungamo-Kagitum- ba Rd upgrade. 3. An elderly partisan. 4. TradeMark’s Allen Asi- imwe, UNRA’s Angela Kiryabwire, UK High Commissioner Alison Blackburne and Trade- Mark’s David Stanton. 5. “Prophets of doom have been put to shame; the road project has taken off,’’ Ruhaama MP Janet Museveni.

2

The Roads Magazine 7 Ntungamo-Ruhaama-Kagitumba Rd upgrade

Byabagambi hails British support on roads Works State Minister John Byabagambi has said and Uganda government and people are grateful for Trade Mark East Africa and British Department For International Development (DFID) for supporting Ntungamo-Ruhaama- Kagitumba gravel road upgrade to tarmac. The road project, an artery of the Northern Corridor, is costing UShs75bn of which Uganda government contributing 50% and Trade Mark DFID the other 50% Zhongmei Engineering Group is the Contractor. Hon Byabagambi noted that the European Union and Uganda’s other development partners have assisted Uganda government rehabilitate the Northern Corridor Route. Malaba/Busia-Bugiri Road reconstruction has been completed earlier this year; Masaka-Mbarara Road was completed in 2012 and Kampala-Masaka Road completion is due before the end of 2014. Works on Mbarara Bypass are underway while Buteraneiro-Katuna section completion is due by June 2015. Ntungamo-Ruhaama-Kagitumba 37km road upgrade to will deliver a 7m wide road with 1.5m-wide shoulders and 2.75m-wide parking lanes. Built-up areas will have 3.5m-wide parking lanes and 2m-wide raised shoulders. The Minister gave government’s assurance that every project affected person shall be equitably compensated. ‘Deliver the road on time, at cost,’ Hon John Byabagambi seems to urge Eng. Han Dongling, a Zhongmei Executive. TradeMark support to Uganda roads

TradeMark East Africa’s Director General, David Ruhaama Sub-county road’s ground-breaking Stanton has noted that Ntungamo-Ruhaama- ceremony. Kagitumba road will be a strong link between “Prices in Uganda are high due to the high costs Uganda and Rwanda at the western end of the of transportation in the country…42 per cent of Northern Corridor Route. He congratulated Uganda the cost of goods in Kampala represent the cost of government for rehabilitating the northern corridor transport from Mombasa. Trade Mark East Africa into a viable transport corridor and noted that the is therefore keen on helping the government to investment in modernising transport infrastructure drive down these costs,” Stanton thus explained will trigger the region’s prosperity. TradeMark involvement in the road’s upgrade. TradeMark East Africa and the Department He also argued that this TradeMark East Africa for International Development (DFID) is support should significantly reduce the time and contributingUS$22m towards the upgrade cost of transporting goods to Rwanda through construction expected to last 18 months up to Mirama Hills one stop border post, “Freight costs/ April 2016. British High Commissioner in Uganda, kilometre in the east African region are more than Ms. Alison Blackburn and TradeMark East Africa 50% higher than those in the United States and Uganda Country Director, Ms Allen Asiimwe were Europe. For landlocked countries, transport costs among the dignitaries at the October 6, 2014 can be as high as 45% of the value of exports.”

TradeMark East Africa Director General David Stanton, “The road will promote trade.’’

8 Issue 32 OCTOBER 2014

British High Commissioner, Alison Blackburne

The British Department for International development (DFID) collaboration with Uganda has enabled UNRA to reduce the unit cost of a paved road construction from about US$1.2m/km to US$700’000/km. DFID facilitates UNRA’s engagement of an independent consultancy that evaluates its procurement process and functions as the benchmark of the procurement outcomes. This has ensured less than 5 per cent divergence from what the Independent Bid Evaluation (IDBE) recommends, hence improved the confidence of service providers in UNRA’s activities and reduced the frequency of challenges to UNRA’s processes. The procedure has increased the pace at which UNRA delivers services.

“DFID support has helped reduce roads construction costs,’’ UK High Commissioner Alison Blackburne.

The Roads Magazine 9 Progress, Mbarara-Kikagate-Murongo Bridge road project The 67km Mbarara-Kikagati-Murongo Bridge road project, This road’s upgrade project, a design and build contract is being inclusive of 7km Isingiro-Mabona loop has been a gravel road executed by China Communications Construction Company (in the South Western Uganda), through Mbarara and Isingiro (CCCC) Ltd with a construction period of 36 months. COWI A/S Districts to Tanzania at Murongo Bridge border, across the and COWI Uganda Ltd, in association with Multiplan consulting Akagera River. The road begins at the Mbarara Municipal Engineers are providing consultancy services for design review, Council signpost at the interface where the road construction and management of the work contract and construction works changes from paved to gravel. It effectively connects Uganda to supervision. Tanzania and Rwanda.

10