As President Museveni prepares to launch his re-election campaign tour in the Kigezi Sub-region from November 24 to 26, local leaders are calling on him to use the visit to address a series of long-standing government pledges they say are crucial for boosting tourism, infrastructure development, and economic recovery in the area.
Kisoro District LC5 Chairperson Abel Bizimana said residents expect the President to provide concrete updates on previously promised flagship projects, particularly in the tourism sector.
He highlighted the expansion of Kisoro Airstrip, the tarmacking of key tourism access roads in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, and completion of the Nteko–Buhoma road, which connects Bwindi to Queen Elizabeth National Park.
“Bwindi recently earned Uganda global recognition at the TOURISE Global Tourism Awards in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. It is only fitting that roads leading to this world-renowned park are upgraded,” Bizimana said.
He added that progress has stalled on the proposed Kisoro Industrial Park, despite the district already handing over 620 acres of titled land to the government.
Leaders also want updates on the establishment of the John Kale Institute of Science and Technology, a project meant to honour the late father of former IGP Gen. Kale Kayihura, for which land has similarly been allocated.
In Rubanda District, stakeholders are urging the President to fulfill the pledge to construct the Batuma Memorial Airstrip.
Canon Ivan Mbabazi, Chairperson of the Kigezi Tourism Cluster, said the project is critical for attracting high-end tourists who prefer quick air travel to reach sites such as the Ruhija sector of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park.
“The land was offered, and Batuma Holdings even committed to covering 30 percent of the project cost. This unfulfilled pledge continues to hurt the tourism industry,” Mbabazi said.
Meanwhile, the agricultural sector is grappling with its own set of unmet commitments. Frank Byaruhanga, Chairperson of the Tea Farmers Association in Southwestern Uganda, criticized the government for failing to implement the President’s directive on paying nursery bed operators who supplied tea seedlings.
He warned that delayed payments risk eroding political support for the NRM in both Kigezi and Ankole.
The tea industry in Kigezi employs an estimated 160,000 people across the value chain. In August, President Museveni directed Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja and the Ministry of Finance to raise Shs 310 billion to revitalize the sector, including Shs 112 billion earmarked for unpaid seedling suppliers.
According to Byaruhanga, Kigezi Regional Tea Nursery Bed Operators alone are owed Shs 76 billion.
“Failure to honour these payments is affecting livelihoods and could influence political dynamics during the electoral process,” he said.
Other long-standing presidential pledges in the region include the establishment of an Iron Ore Processing Factory in Muko, Rubanda District, and the long-awaited tarmacking of the Muhanga–Kisiizi road and the Muhanga–Kamwezi border road in Rukiga District.
As the President’s campaign trail reaches Kigezi, leaders and residents say they hope his visit will bring renewed commitment and concrete timelines for the projects that have remained on paper for years.