Uganda’s road crisis: billions in debt, businesses in ruin

On a dusty afternoon in Najjera, the unfinished Kiwatule–Kira–Kiwogoma road tells two stories at once: one of promise, and another of disruption.

Cars crawl over uneven humps, traders shield their goods from choking dust, and residents wonder how much longer they will have to wait for a road project that was supposed to change everything. For business owners like a local bar operator, who asked not to be named, the dream of development feels distant.

“Who is going to drive their car through this muddy road just to drink a beer at Shs 5,000 and then spend Shs 10,000 to wash the car?” he asked, shaking his head.

“Things are not working out. Business is really down.”

A road stalled by land

The 13-kilometre road, launched in September 2024 by Chinese contractor CHICO, was designed as part of a World Bank-funded plan to improve transport links across the Greater Kampala Metropolitan Area.

The promise was bold: a four-lane highway to ease the congestion choking Kira and its booming suburbs. But nearly a year later, progress has slowed. According to Eng. James Joloba, executive engineer of Kira Municipality, the main obstacle has not been technical capacity or funding, but land.

“We have experienced some delays because we are not compensating landowners,” Joloba explained.

Instead, officials have been urging residents to voluntarily hand over their land. So far, about 90 per cent of landowners have signed consent agreements, but holdouts remain. On the Mbogo–Cyprian Kizito stretch, drainage and earthworks continue, with overall construction at 70 per cent. Joloba insists that goodwill from residents has kept the project moving.

“We have a five-year budget of over Shs 178 billion, and we’re two and a half years in,” he said.

“So far, we’ve worked on 11.3 kilometres. The Kyanja–Kungu–Najjera road is over 80 per cent complete.”

He stressed that the nationwide suspension of road projects due to lack of government funds has not affected this one, since it is World Bank-backed and bound by strict timelines.

The price of progress

While engineers wrestle with land acquisition, traders and residents are paying the price of disruption. Shops, lounges, and markets that once thrived along the road have been emptied out.

“Migos Lounge, Gibbs, La Venti, they’ve all closed,” the Najjera bar owner said.

“Even Octopus is about to shut down. Do you expect customers to drive on bumpy roads after drinking?”

Others spoke of losses tied not just to access, but to dust. Nalwanga Joan, a clothing trader, said dust control measures have backfired.

“When we display clothes, we don’t want them wet or dusty,” she said. “We asked contractors to spray carefully, but instead they splash everything. Customers don’t want to buy wet clothes.”

For fish vendor Nakanjako Jane, dust has turned into a daily crisis.

“If you leave fresh fish out for 30 minutes, it turns brown,” she said.

“We keep washing, but how long can that last? Development is good, but it’s killing our businesses.”

Even restaurants designed to shield food cannot escape the impact. One pork joint owner said his daily sales had plunged from 50 kilograms to barely 10.

“We keep most of it in the fridge now. Dust settles on everything,” he explained.

Residents like Musisi Jacob have changed their routes entirely.

“Whether it’s dust in the dry season or mud in the rainy season, I’ve abandoned that road,” he said. “I now use Nalya–Kyaliwajjala. Otherwise, you wash your car twice a day, or arrive at work covered in dust.”

A nation’s roads in crisis

The delays in Kira are part of a larger problem. Earlier this month, Works and Transport minister Gen. Edward Katumba Wamala announced the suspension of 27 major road and bridge projects across Uganda due to funding gaps.

Projects like the Kampala–Mpigi Expressway and the Kampala–Jinja Highway have stalled as the government struggles to cover arrears and mounting interest claims from contractors.

For 2025/26, Uganda needs Shs 3.15 trillion to keep roads on track, but only Shs 682 billion was allocated. Parliament attributed the suspension to delayed payments and ongoing land acquisition disputes, which have slowed progress on critical infrastructure works.

These include the Masindi–Biiso and Kabale–Kiziranfumbi oil roads, the Kampala–Mpigi Expressway, and the Kampala–Jinja Highway. For the 2025/2026 financial year, Uganda faces a road funding gap of Shs 2.47 trillion. Of the Shs 3.15 trillion required, only Shs 682 billion was allocated.

In addition, the government is weighed down by arrears of Shs 1.07 trillion from previous years, alongside rising interest and monthly cost claims from contractors. Land acquisition remains another major obstacle.

An estimated Shs 443 billion is needed for compensation and access to construction sites, delaying many donor-funded projects. Minister Katumba also warned that Uganda’s road network is deteriorating rapidly. He noted that 1,993 kilometres require urgent maintenance and 260 kilometres need full rehabilitation.

“If not addressed, these roads will degrade further and eventually require rehabilitation, which costs approximately Shs 2.59 billion per kilometre—three times the cost of periodic maintenance,” he said.

“This could result in a preventable fiscal loss of up to Shs 180 billion.”

The funding shortfall, paired with an estimated Shs 443 billion in land compensation needs, has slowed progress on vital oil roads, highways, and urban upgrades. Katumba warned that without urgent maintenance, nearly 2,000 kilometres of roads risk falling into disrepair, costing three times as much to rebuild later.

The suspension of construction projects has triggered penalties and interest charges from contractors and funders, further increasing Uganda’s debt burden and draining public funds.

In the 2024/2025 national budget, the government allocated Shs 9 trillion for interest payments to creditors, including the World Bank, the Exim Bank of China, and several commercial banks, a sharp rise in debt servicing costs.

Over the last two financial years, interest payments have surged by Shs 1.42 trillion (about $375.8 million), climbing from Shs 4.69 trillion ($1.23 billion) in FY 2022/2023 to Shs 6.11 trillion ($1.6 billion) in FY 2023/2024.

Deputy speaker of parliament Thomas Tayebwa added that delayed payments are bleeding public funds.

“In 2023 alone, Shs 26 billion was paid as penalties to contractors. The government is losing Shs 285 million every day to interest and penalties, yet no one is held accountable,” he said.

For the residents of Kira, those national figures translate into daily struggle. They see their livelihoods eroded while waiting for promises of smoother roads and brighter lights. Some have shut down entirely, others have moved, and those who remain cling to hope that the project will finish before their businesses collapse.

“We want development, yes,” said fish vendor Nakanjako. “But at this rate, we may not survive to see it.”

In a country juggling debt, land disputes, and the politics of infrastructure, the Kiwatule–Kira–Kiwogoma road has become more than just a construction site.

It is a symbol of Uganda’s uneven progress, where the cost of building is borne most heavily not by governments or contractors, but by ordinary people trying to live and work along the way.

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