Companies that collect waste in Kampala City will continue to work until at least June 2020. This is the decision of the Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA), which acts as the City Council of Kampala. The companies Nabugabo Updeal Updeal Join Venture, Homeklin Uganda Limited and Kampala Solid Waste Management Consortium had completed their mandates. The Ugandan City Council has therefore decided to extend their mandates after five years of service.
“As responsible citizens, we must take responsibility for the waste we produce and pay for its collection. Concessionaires are encouraged to sort waste at source and mobilise communities to manage waste responsibly…. ”, says KCCA.
In Kampala City, waste collection in public administrations, markets, schools, taxi fleets and hospitals is the exclusive domain of KCCA. Household waste management is carried out by the three concession holders who share the city. Despite the efforts made, waste management remains a problem in Kampala, a city with a population of more than 1.5 million people. According to recent municipal statistics, people produce between 1,200 and 1,500 tonnes of waste per day. Public utilities only manage to collect 400 to 500 tonnes per day. This means that 60% of waste is not collected.
They are found at the end of the chain in gutters, preventing rainwater drainage and causing flooding. Even more worryingly, this waste can easily be found in Lake Victoria, which provides drinking water to the city of Kampala. For KCCA, this situation is mainly due to insufficient logistical resources. “Kampala needs about 65 trucks to collect the waste generated daily by the population,” says Andrew Kitaka, KCCA’s interim general manager. At the moment, 15 trucks are collecting waste in the Ugandan capital. However, he says the city will soon receive three more trucks thanks to the Lake Victoria Environmental Management Project (LVEMP II). It is being implemented by the Ugandan Ministry of Water and Environment. The objective is to reduce the pollution of the lake that causes the growth of invasive plants such as water hyacinth.
On the other hand, there is the situation of the Kiteezi landfill, located near the city of Kampala. “To effectively manage the landfill site, KCCA needs 13 billion Ugandan shillings (more than $3.5 million) to purchase the necessary equipment and leachate treatment materials,” said Jennifer Musisi, former KCCA Executive President.
Jean Marie Takouleu