By Dr. Chris Baryomunsi
MINISTER OF STATE FOR HOUSING & URBAN DEVELOPMENT
HOUSING: The government of Uganda through National Housing and Construction Company (NHCC) has established a production facility that will deal in affordable building materials for housing units in concrete, steel, aluminum and wood.
This will help save on the money that has been going to private firms/ suppliers who are at times very expensive. In the same vein, Government has also established a Housing Quality Control Laboratory and a Housing Skills Development Centre.
The government has also embarked on a process of fully repossessing NHCC and plans are underway to capitalize the company for purposes of being in position to put up affordable housing units for all Ugandans.
With the government planning to acquire 100 percent, the company will be able to be the main national implementing agency for social housing for all public servants, low-cost/affordable mass housing and slum upgrade/redevelopment in all cities and urban centers.
It will also ably attract funding from government budgets and attract financing guarantees from government for multilateral project financing. Some of the key achievements include completion of housing estate projects of 200 units at Namungoona, 176 units at Mbarara Municipality and 100 units at Naalya – Wakiso. In the last five years, 200 houses for landslide victims under the Kiryandongo Resettlement Project were also constructed and 900 houses for the Bududa landslide victims. 46 houses have also been constructed in Buliisa for PAPs under the Oil refinery resettlement project in collaboration with the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development.
“Presidential pledges consisting of four individual housing units; 8 staff houses and classroom blocks have been constructed for education institutions in Adjumani, Moyo, Katakwi, Ngora, Alebton. Under the Education Infrastructure for Karamoja region project —classroom blocks and staff houses have been constructed in 3 Schools,” the report further highlights.
The Ministry in collaboration with the Ministry of Defence and Veteran Affairs (MoDVA) has also developed a project proposal for the construction of 30,000 institutional houses for the UPDF. Technical support has also been offered to MDAs involved in housing development e.g. OPM, Uganda Police, Posta Uganda LTD, CEDP, IRA, UAC, MoD and NCS OAG and 2 Local Governments of Nwoya and Amuru District.
In the last five years, government also managed to complete designs for 10,000 low cost units Satellite City at Bukerere – Kiira Municipality- Wakiso; 15,000 low cost units at Kireka – Kasokoso – Kampala; 10,000 low cost units – Namungoona ;500 medium cost units at Naalya- Kampala; 4000 medium cost units at Lubowa – Wakiso; 200 medium cost units – Municipality; 100 low cost units -Tororo Municipality; 500 medium cost units at Luzira- Kampala cost units at Kireka – Kasokoso – Kampala; 120 medium cost units at Bukoto – Kampala; and 320 medium cost units at Bugolobi – Kampala.
To reduce urbanization pressures from the main city, the ministry has also gazetted Eco-satellite Cities, which include Nakigalala, Nsimbe, Mpaata, Buziranjovu and Bwebajja—aplan for Nakigalala eco-satellite city has been completed.
The Ministry is working with MFPED and BOU to be able to provide mortgages for housing development. Government recapitalized Housing Finance bank ltd to be able to provide mortgages for housing development. We are working with Local investors to invest in housing development through provision of incentives like free land and technical advice among other. All these interventions are being backed by the National Housing Policy which provides a framework for necessary development in the country.
SET BACKSHigh cost of building materials, and high cost of mortgage financing coupled with the high interest rates on loans has greatly affected the housing sector, according to the report.