Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja has directed the Ministry of Works and Transport and SBC Construction Company to ensure that Kabalega International Airport in Hoima is fully completed by December 2026, ruling out any further extension of the project timeline.
Nabbanja issued the directive during a Cabinet inspection visit to the airport on Sunday evening, where government officials assessed progress on the long-delayed infrastructure project.
She said government would not accept additional extensions beyond the current schedule, noting that the original completion timeline had already been extended several times.
“We want the airport complete by December this year. Afcon teams are supposed to come and do inspections early next year, so when you talk of having it complete by March next year, this will affect Uganda in the hosting of Afcon which we cannot allow,” Nabbanja said.
The Prime Minister warned that any further delay could negatively affect Uganda’s preparedness to host the Africa Cup of Nations, stressing that the Confederation of African Football (Caf) is expected to conduct inspection visits early next year.
She added that all necessary facilities must be completed within the set timeline to avoid compromising Uganda’s international commitments.
During the tour, Vice President Jessica Alupo and several Cabinet ministers accompanied Nabbanja, including the Minister for Works and Transport, Fred Byamukama.
Byamukama informed the delegation that the airport construction was at 98 per cent completion, a status he said had remained unchanged since 2023.
He said what remained was the delivery and installation of key equipment, including a generator, fire trucks and the control tower, adding that once these are in place, the first phase of the project would be fully complete by July 31.
“We received the funds, and now we are recruiting staff to ensure that we get it started. By July we shall be 100 per cent complete for the first phase to handle cargo,” Byamukama said.
He explained that the airport was initially designed mainly to support cargo operations, particularly for oil and gas equipment, which required a smaller cargo terminal at the time.
However, he noted that government is now preparing to commence a second phase of development, which will involve construction of a larger passenger terminal capable of handling over 500,000 passengers at peak capacity and up to one million passengers annually.
According to Byamukama, the second phase is scheduled to be completed by March next year under the contractor SBC Construction Company.
But Nabbanja rejected the timeline, insisting that government cannot wait until March 2026 for completion, especially given Uganda’s obligations related to AFCON preparations.
“I’m going to invite the ministry officials and the contractors to my office in Kampala and give them new directions. We want it complete by the end of this year,” she said.
She further emphasized that CAF inspectors are expected to assess Uganda’s readiness early next year, making December completion critical for compliance.
Construction of Kabalega International Airport began in 2018, with initial expectations that it would be completed by 2023.
However, the project has faced repeated extensions over the years, leading to the current revised deadlines.
