City short of 73,000 security lights - govt

The Minister for Kampala Affairs, Ms Beti Kamya, has said the city is facing a shortage of 73,000 security lights due to outdated technology and theft.
While meeting a team from Phillips Lighting and Signify at her office in Kampala yesterday, Ms Kamya said of the 4,000 security lights required in the city centre, only 2,000 have been installed but some are not working.
“We need street lights because the city is dark. We have the problem of quality, the lights we have installed get stolen. The cost of repeating the investment is bogging down the city,” she said.
Asked what they have done to protect the lights from vandalism, Ms Kamya said they have tried to work with police to apprehend the suspects.
Mr Mahesh Iyer, the chief executive officer of Phillips Light, led the team in the meeting with Ms Kamya and the Minister of Education to introduce a new lighting arrangement for city streets and rural schools.
Mr Anil Damani, the chief executive officer of Dembe Group, said they are currently training Kampala Capital City Authority staff how to install and maintain the lights.
He said they would map all the lights so that when any of them is spoilt, it is easy to tell its location.
“We can install security cameras on the pole, we shall also have telecom companies using the poles for internet. Advertising companies can put billboards on the poles that will be lit by the lights so that we have one pole serving several purposes,” he said.