NEBBI — Traders and private developers in Nebbi Municipality are counting losses worth millions of shillings after a council-backed alternative market project stalled, leaving investors burdened with loans and uncompleted structures.
The project, located in Thatha Division, was initially established as a temporary alternative market ahead of the planned redevelopment of Nebbi’s old central market.
However, four years later, the Shs500 million project site remains largely abandoned, overgrown with weeds and used as grazing land.
The initiative dates back to 2020 when Nebbi Municipal Council secured funding from the African Development Bank for the construction of a modern market.
Anticipating the demolition of the old market, the council identified the former lorry park as the most suitable relocation site for affected traders.
Under a public-private partnership arrangement, traders and developers were allocated plots and promised 15 years of occupancy without paying rent to the municipality.
The arrangement attracted hundreds of investors who borrowed money from financial institutions and rushed to construct business premises.
According to Richard Oyirwoth, the chairperson of the Nebbi Business Community, work on the alternative market began in April 2021, with many developers investing heavily in anticipation of quick returns once traders relocated from the old market.
“My organisation, the Nebbi Transporters Association, borrowed Shs30 million from Centenary Bank. That is why we had to put up our structures very fast, hoping to make money quickly following the demolition of the old market,” Oyirwoth said.
He said expectations were shattered when the market redevelopment project stalled only months later, leaving many investors unable to recover their investments.
“More than 400 developers spent hundreds of millions of shillings hoping to get a quick return on investment. But when banks started demanding repayment, many organisations became financially crippled. Some collapsed entirely because they could not meet their obligations,” he added.
The prolonged delay sparked threats of legal action against Nebbi Municipal Council, with some developers accusing local authorities of exposing them to financial losses.
Municipal leaders, however, say the project's failure was beyond their control.
Howard Musa, the Leader of Council Business and Deputy Mayor of Nebbi Municipality, said all the requirements requested by the African Development Bank had been fulfilled before the project unexpectedly stalled.
“We had submitted all the requirements. They wanted a four-acre piece of land, a land title, and a completed site handover process. We provided all of that,” Musa said.
“Until now, we regret what happened because private developers invested a lot of money but did not get returns on their investments. We remain hopeful that the situation will improve.”
Local authorities are now pinning their hopes on the forthcoming Uganda Support to Municipal Infrastructure Development (USMID) programme, funded by the World Bank.
Nebbi Municipality Mayor Jakline Opar said the municipality is in the final stages of meeting requirements needed to benefit from the programme in the new financial year.
“I can confirm that Nebbi Municipality will soon benefit from the USMID project. When I assumed office two weeks ago, the process was about 60 percent complete, but we have already pushed it to 90 percent,” Opar said.
She noted that one of the key requirements was the recruitment of a principal engineer and a commercial officer, positions that have since been filled.
According to Opar, the stalled lorry park site where developers invested will be incorporated into the new infrastructure programme.
“USMID will take over the lorry park where private developers got stuck, and once the project is completed, those developers will be given first priority,” she said.
She added that the planned infrastructure package includes road construction, street lighting, a leisure and recreation centre, and other urban development components aimed at transforming the municipality.
For now, however, the dreams that once drove hundreds of investors to borrow and build remain unrealised.
The structures stand largely idle, the loans remain unpaid, and the weeds continue to grow across what was once envisioned as Nebbi’s future commercial hub.
