{"id":555,"date":"2026-05-18T14:00:08","date_gmt":"2026-05-18T11:00:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cedat.mak.ac.ug\/knowledgehub\/?p=555"},"modified":"2026-05-18T14:00:08","modified_gmt":"2026-05-18T11:00:08","slug":"makerere-don-urges-depoliticization-of-urban-planning-calls-for-nationalizing-city-land","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cedat.mak.ac.ug\/knowledgehub\/makerere-don-urges-depoliticization-of-urban-planning-calls-for-nationalizing-city-land\/","title":{"rendered":"Makerere Don Urges Depoliticization of Urban Planning, Calls for Nationalizing City Land"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Julius Mugaga Tukacungurwa.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Makerere CEDAT:<\/strong>\u00a0Urban planning in Uganda faces significant challenges due to rapid urbanization, inadequate infrastructure, and socio-economic disparities, despite efforts to implement comprehensive policies and frameworks.<\/p>\n

Uganda must remove politics from urban planning and consider nationalizing land in cities to curb chaotic growth, Associate Professor Kizito Maria Kasule Makerere University\u2019s Deputy Principal of CEDAT warned Thursday during a validation workshop for the Urban Expansion Planning Project.<\/p>\n

Recalling Kampala\u2019s transformation since 1989, he said areas like Kikumi Kikumi and Kiwunya Parish were once \u201cbanana plantations,\u201d but today \u201ceveryone is building, putting up the house anyhow, the way they want.\u201d<\/p>\n

He cited the failed Namungoona upgrade, where World Bank-funded planned housing was sold off and \u201cnew slums emerged\u201d nearby. \u201cWe have good plans when it comes to urban planning. Implementation is a problem. Implementation is a problem,\u201d he stressed. \u201cIf we want to have proper urban planning in this country, there is an urgent need to remove politics from all matters concerning urban planning. Without that, don\u2019t expect anything positive.\u201d<\/p>\n

He proposed radical reform: \u201cI strongly feel there is a need for the government to look into the matters of nationalizing land in urban centers\u2026 to allow proper planning.\u201d
\nHe cited, there is a need to be firm when it comes to the implementation of matters concerning urban planning.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the light of this, Makerere University has established a national knowledge hub to address unplanned urban growth, the Head Department of Urban and Regional Planning at Makerere CEDAT Dr. Kiggundu Amin Tamale announced.<\/p>\n

Key outputs include a digital platform under the new Makerere University Regional Center for Urban Research, Governance and Innovation, which serves as the project\u2019s fulcrum. \u201cToday we already have this knowledge hub in the form of a digital platform, functional and established under the Regional Center,\u201d he noted.<\/p>\n

The project trained 98 trainers of trainers on urban expansion planning and developed an online short course with African Urban Lab, offering certificates. It also built a practitioner network with the Urban Authorities Association of Uganda and produced a land management handbook for Greater Kampala.<\/p>\n

\u201cResearch is very critical. Information is very critical on whatever intervention that you want to implement, including urban expansion planning,\u201d he said, adding that the center aims to train city leaders and \u201cchange agents\u201d to improve competitiveness.<\/p>\n

In his presentation, Mr. Barabanawe Francis the Secretary General Uganda\u2019s Urban Authorities Association (UAAU) reported soon they will roll out urban expansion planning to all 11 cities, 31 municipalities, and 589 town councils after a seven-year pilot proved effective.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur operation in only these areas is because it was something new and experimenting it\u2026 But if you experiment something and it succeeds, then you roll over other areas,\u201d he said. The pilot registered success in Jinja, Mbale, Arua, Koboko, and Gulu, confirming the model works.<\/p>\n

He warned that developers are subdividing land rapidly: \u201cIf we don\u2019t move very fast, and put these roads in place, once they have done all this, where shall we now pass? It will be very, very difficult.\u201d With Uganda\u2019s 5.4% urbanization rate, \u201cwe must make sure we move very fast to precede them, to be ahead of them, and plan ahead of them.\u201d<\/p>\n

UAAU\u2019s plan begins with six new cities \u2014 Soroti, Lira, Masaka, Mbarara, Hoima, and Fort Portal \u2014 where 30-meter-wide arterial roads will link centers to peripheries. \u201cWe are going to construct roads, big roads for 30 kilometers in the periphery,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Town clerks, mayors, and physical planners are key to success: \u201cIf you have got a mayor and a town clerk, both of them are positive, there can be no problem.\u201d<\/p>\n

He urged town councils to at least budget 30 million shillings for planning, noting government will support implementation, monitoring, and evaluation to ensure Uganda\u2019s urban future is planned, not chaotic.<\/p>\n

On his part regarding the performance of Cities under this project, Eriaku William National UEP Program Coordinator revealed Arua is emerging as Uganda\u2019s fastest-growing city but faces critical gaps in land ownership, planning capacity, and road implementation.<\/p>\n

\u201cArua is currently the largest city in the country\u2026 it borders two international borders, DRC and South Sudan,\u201d he noted, yet only 8 of 100 planned arterial roads under its 30-year urban expansion plan are open.<\/p>\n

He stressed cities need road networks within 30 years. Comparing cities, Eriaku said Mbale \u201cused to be the cleanest city in East Africa, but this is no more,\u201d and Jinja \u201cused to be the industrialized town in Uganda, but this also is no more.\u201d<\/p>\n

Key challenges: one city lacks a physical development plan, most have no land officer or staff surveyor, and \u201cthey have only one physical planner.\u201d City-owned land is minimal; Arua\u2019s 401 sq km has almost no council land, \u201ca very bad indicator.\u201d<\/p>\n

The project pushed land banking and graders, with Arua acquiring 20 acres. Some cities resist pledging for land banking or budgets. Using 11 indicators, results will guide scaling to 11 cities, 31 municipalities, and 589 town councils.<\/p>\n

On behalf of the Commissioner Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development, Ssenyonjo Andrew revealed the ministry will mainstream urban expansion planning into national policy and ministry budgets to ensure city leaders finance and implement prepared plans.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat we are going to rely on this time around is to strengthen it and ensure that as we proceed, we are able to convince these leaders to be able to pass the budgets, which budgets are necessary for the urban expansion plan problem,\u201d the Ministry representative said. \u201cWhere the plans are and are being prepared, these plans have to be implemented. And their implementation requires financing.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Ministry is reviewing the National Land Use Policy, with urban expansion planning now specified in the Regulatory Impact Assessment. \u201cWe are hopeful that during the review process, we shall have urban expansion planning entrenched in the National Land Use Policy, which will be able to guide cities and other urban local governments.\u201d<\/p>\n

Starting July 2026, the Uganda Cities and Municipalities Infrastructure Development Program will direct its Institutional Strengthening Grant toward urban expansion planning. The Ministry is also collaborating with Cities Alliance in Arua and Koboko to ensure the implementation of the plans that we have prepared is flawless.<\/p>\n

For Mabala Samuel, Country Technical Advisor Cities Alliance, Uganda must abandon \u201cbusiness as usual\u201d and mandate 30-year urban expansion plans for all councils to curb chaotic growth.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s all about recognizing that urbanization is happening very fast and we don\u2019t have the capacity to respond,\u201d he said. \u201cUrbanization does not respect those administrative boundaries. It always goes beyond\u2026 we are not responding appropriately.\u201d<\/p>\n

Noting recent demolitions of road-reserve kiosks, he asked: \u201cCan that somebody who gave that directive\u2026 direct that all urban councils must have urban expansion plans 30 years from now?\u201d<\/p>\n

With over 60% of Ugandans in slums and 70% of GDP from cities, Mabala stressed planning drives growth: \u201cThe cities that are well planned serve as engines for economic growth, if we could only invest more in our cities, we would accelerate our transformation.\u201d<\/p>\n

He urged making new mayors \u201cchampions of the urban expansion plans,\u201d leveraging data, and tapping PPPs: \u201cUrbanization can be the most powerful driver of national development. The choices we make today will determine the path.\u201d<\/p>\n

Relatedly Derek Muhwezi the National UEP Mentor and Physical Planning Board President noted Urban authorities have capacity to prepare their own expansion plans without external support.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe need for planning for urban expansion before the expansion takes place is very important,\u201d he said. \u201cCapacity for the urban authorities to prepare their own plans without relying on support from others is very important.\u201d<\/p>\n

He stressed land banking and funding: \u201cUrban councils are part of the people. They must own their own land. Since the project started, some councils have started banking land.\u201d On financing, he added: \u201cYou cannot milk a cow that you don\u2019t feed. Without the Department of Physical Planning being supported, it\u2019s very hard to get a deal out of it. Councils don\u2019t need to wait for money from the Centre.\u201d<\/p>\n

The three-year initiative, funded by Cities Alliance and United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS), targets Mali, Jinja, Gulu, Arua, and Koboko Municipal Council amid rapid settlement growth where \u201cmany areas are still un-serviced\u201d and \u201clack the required infrastructure, like roads, power lines, water,\u201d he said.<\/strong><\/p>\n

source: https:\/\/umojastandard.com\/2026\/05\/07\/makerere-don-urges-depoliticization-of-urban-planning-calls-for-nationalizing-city-land\/<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Julius Mugaga Tukacungurwa. Makerere CEDAT:\u00a0Urban planning in Uganda faces significant challenges due to rapid urbanization, inadequate infrastructure, and socio-economic disparities, despite efforts to implement comprehensive policies and frameworks. Uganda must remove politics from urban planning and consider nationalizing land in cities to curb chaotic growth, Associate Professor Kizito Maria . . . Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"iawp_total_views":8,"footnotes":""},"categories":[39,40],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-555","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","category-blog","clearfix"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cedat.mak.ac.ug\/knowledgehub\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/555","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cedat.mak.ac.ug\/knowledgehub\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cedat.mak.ac.ug\/knowledgehub\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cedat.mak.ac.ug\/knowledgehub\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cedat.mak.ac.ug\/knowledgehub\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=555"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cedat.mak.ac.ug\/knowledgehub\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/555\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":556,"href":"https:\/\/cedat.mak.ac.ug\/knowledgehub\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/555\/revisions\/556"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cedat.mak.ac.ug\/knowledgehub\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=555"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cedat.mak.ac.ug\/knowledgehub\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=555"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cedat.mak.ac.ug\/knowledgehub\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=555"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}