A growing number of young and elderly men are crossing from Rwanda into Uganda carrying dozens of empty jerrycans on overloaded bicycles, creating a booming informal trade that has become a source of survival for many families.
Every morning, cyclists emerge through the Mirama Hills border route into Ntungamo Municipality balancing towering stacks of empty yellow jerrycans before distributing them to Rwampara and Rukungiri districts.
Some residents say the trade stretches as far as Kasese District, sparking curiosity and concern over the increasing movement of the containers.
The cyclists, both young and old, begin their journeys at midnight from Rwanda and travel long distances into Uganda in what has quietly become one of the most visible informal businesses in the area.
For many traders, the business is more than transporting plastic containers. The empty jerrycans, sold between Shs5,000 and Shs6,000 each, have become a key source of income and survival.
One of the traders, Ndyomugabo Hagizimana from Rwanda, said he transports up to 70 jerrycans on a single bicycle during overnight trips into Ntungamo.
“I ride these jerrycans from Rwanda to Ntungamo. My bicycle has 70 jerrycans. What I have earned from this jerrycan business is buying goats,” Hagizimana said.
The traders say bicycles remain their preferred mode of transport because they can carry heavier loads than motorcycles despite the exhaustion and physical strain involved.
However, the growing number of bicycles carrying the jerrycans has raised security concerns among some residents who fear the movement could be exploited by wrong elements.
One resident, Perez Rumanzi, said authorities should pay closer attention to the cross-border movement.
“When they penetrate villages, they might even gather others who are left behind who have not passed through the borders. This is a threat that people are not looking at that must be countered at security level,” Rumanzi said.
Ntungamo Resident District Commissioner Miriam Kaagaiga assured the public that the traders are known to authorities and that the business is operating legally.
“Our brothers and youth in the business of carrying jerrycans from our neighbouring country Rwanda on Mirama Hills bringing them to Ntungamo — people were scared saying that people carrying jerrycans are many on bicycles, but I want to assure the public they are safe,” Kaagaiga said.
She added that the jerrycans are cleared through the Uganda Revenue Authority before traders park along Rukungiri Road to sell them and later continue to Rukungiri and Rwampara districts.