Ishaka-Katunguru road in sorry state

RUBIRIZI- Ishaka-Katunguru road is an important route in western Uganda.
The 55km road stretches from Ishaka Division in Bushenyi-Ishaka Municipality, (Bushenyi District), snakes through Rubirizi District and connects to Kasese District at Katunguru Bridge (Kazinga Channel).
The road is used by tourists going to Queen Elizabeth National Park (in Rubirizi and Kasese). Lorries ply the road carrying cement from Hima Cement Factory (in Kasese), salt from Lake Katwe in (Kasese), timber (from DR Congo), cotton (from Rubirizi), cassava (from Kasese), Rice from (Kasese) and maize (from Kabarole).
Fuel trucks from Kampala and Mombasa heading to Kasese Town and Mpondwe on Uganda-DR Congo border, buses and taxis ply this road.

Between 200 and 300 vehicles use the road on a daily basis, according to Rubirizi Town Council chairman John Magyezi. However, the road is in a sorry state.
Right from the taxi stage at Ishaka Adventist Hospital up to Katunguru Bridge, the road has numerous deep potholes. There are many sections where the road has narrowed to the extent that overtaking is not possible. When two vehicles from opposite directions happen to meet on such spots one must stop to allow another to first manoeuvre.
Tarmac has largely peeled off. The described state is most evident at Kayembe Trading Centre in Kyamuhunga Igara West constituency in Bushenyi, Kalinzu forest, Rubirizi Town Council and Kyambura to Katunguru.
Kalinzu stretch has two bends covering a kilometre with many huge potholes. Drivers of heavy trucks say they spend about five minutes negotiating the potholes.
There is a section of 100 metres in Rubirizi Town Council near Lake Rutoto (Nkugutte) filled with potholes.

Kyambura Trading Centre to Katunguru Bridge is the worst section. From Kyambura Cotton Ginnery through Queen Elizabeth National Park to the bridge, drivers opt to drive in the park land leaving the main road because it is in immortorable state.
Mr Afani Mugabirwe who plies Kyambura-Katunguru road, says it used to take him 40 minutes before the road worsened but today it takes him one and a half hours.
Ms Faridah Kyomugisha, who has been vending gonja at Kyambura Trading Centre for five years, says the road generates a lot of dust due to potholes and murram used to fill the holes.
“This road has become too bad to the extent that our sales have gone down because of the dust,” she says.

She adds that President Museveni promised to work on the road when he was canvassing for votes in 2011 and 2016 but the promise has never been fulfilled even when he got overwhelming support.
“We want our MPs to pressurise Parliament to ensure that our road is worked on,” says Ms Kyomugisha.

Mr Elias Kabanyete, a resident of Rutoto Trading Centre and a dealer in crafts on Ishaka- Katunguru road, says: “For the last 10 years, the government and President Museveni have been lying to us that they are prioritising infrastructure but when you look at the state of this road it shows you that it is the same government that has increased poverty in the community.”
Rubirizi District vice chairman John Mubangizi says government needs to act. “What is on the ground is that our people are desperate since the road has been like this for many years. This district is a food basket for Ankole region but if we don’t have good roads we cannot easily access the market for our products,” he says.
The Chief Administrative Officer, Mr Nasser Mukiibi says: “Transportation of the goods like coffee and matooke as well as movement of tourists is really difficult.”
Bunyaruguru MP John Twesigye Ntamuhira criticises government for failing to fulfill its obligation to repair the dilapidated road.
“The road has been in poor state for the last 10 years but became worse in the last five years.

It was supposed to be reconstructed between 2008 and 2015 but government could not get a donor to top up funds. I feel much pain in my heart to see how people are suffering because of the poor state of our road. When you see the stretch from Lugazi Trading Centre to Katunguru you feel like crying,” says Mr Twesigye.
The Uganda National Roads Authority director for roads and bridge development, Mr Samuel Muhoozi, admits that the road reconstruction is overdue.
“Ishaka-Katunguru road is amongst the oldest colonial roads in Uganda which was constructed in the 1970s. But this time the road is indeed in a poor state and it is narrow. We are going to start reconstructing in the next two to three weeks from today because we have already awarded a contract to Motor Angel Construction Company from Portugal, which is currently working on Northern Bypass in Kampala,’’ Mr Muhoozi says.
He adds that the Shs103 billion road reconstruction project is expected to take 18 months.

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