The deteriorating state of key roads in Jinja, including Tobacco Road—the main access route to the city’s industrial hub—and the Jinja-Kampala Highway, has sparked frustration among manufacturers and local leaders.
During a dialogue with officials from the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Cooperatives, manufacturers expressed deep concern over the government's delay in rehabilitating these crucial roads, which they say has significantly disrupted business operations.
Many industrialists are now relocating to other cities with better infrastructure, threatening Jinja’s status as a key industrial center.
Jinja City Speaker Bernard Mbayo highlighted the dire impact of the poor roads on businesses, urging the government to prioritize their rehabilitation.
"Before we became a city, Jinja had a road network of about 200Km but when new parts were annexed unto the City in 2020, we are operating on 516Km of roads, but the money we get under USMID enables us to construct only two kilometres and this means it will take us more than 200 years to complete the entire road network of roads" Mbayo said.
Mbayo emphasized the need by the central government to come with an emergency intervention as a solution to the deteriorating roads
"As a matter of fact, for us a local government we cannot manage to construct all the roads without government's hand," Mbayo stated.
Businessman Daudi Migereko echoed these concerns, warning that continued inaction could lead to further economic decline in the region.
"It takes me 10 hours to travel to and from Kampala, this is unacceptable. It is most likely to affect the NRM votes in the region, so i implore government before we go into elections something must be done on Jinja-Kampala highway," Migereko said
He stressed that Kampala being a capital City, it is also a business centre so all businessmen cannot avoid going to Kampala to transact business but the road is becoming a big stumbling block which consquently affect Uganda's economy.
In response, Trade Minister Francis Mwebesa acknowledged the concerns raised and pledged to present the matter to the Cabinet for urgent consideration.
"We came here to listen to all your grievances which we shall table to cabinet to be discussed and shall be solved," Mwebesa assured the gathering.
State Minister for Industry David Bahati, also assured manufacturers that the government is committed to improving infrastructure to support industrial growth.
"We have listened to all the challenges in the sector including taxation, electricity and Masese road, government shall act sooner than later," Bahati said
Eddy Ssenkumba, Vice Chairman of the Uganda Manufacturers Association, emphasized the need for swift government intervention, stressing that a well-maintained road network is essential for attracting and retaining investors in Jinja.
The dialogue provided a platform for manufacturers to directly engage policymakers, with hopes that the government will take immediate action to address the worsening infrastructure and restore Jinja’s competitiveness as an industrial hub.
Uganda manufacturers Association pledged to organise similar engagements in different parts of the country to collect members views and concerns ought to be handled by government and other relevant authorities