Police to get Shs1 trillion housing units
KAMPALA. The Finance ministry has resumed negotiations with private companies that seek to construct more than 7,300 housing units for the police after President Museveni assented to the Public-Private Partnership Act.
The plan for the housing project, which was started in 2010, stalled when successful bidders declined to finalise the transaction until the enabling laws that would guarantee their investment were in place.
Police will give out chunks of its city barracks land to investors in exchange for construction of housing units for their officers in a project estimated to be worth more than Shs1 trillion.
Mr Jim Mugunga, the project manager, said the government has set up a public private partnership (PPP) committee that enables the formal set up of the PPP Unit that will adapt rules and regulations that operationalise the PPP Act.
“We have commenced negotiations on all police lots, including Kibuli and Naguru barracks. But as you know, PPP is private-led and investors are usually slow because they want to make sure they don’t lose their money,” Mr Mugunga said yesterday.
The law
In 2014, the PPP law was passed by Parliament and the President assented to it, paving way for further negotiations.
Ms Ahadi Consortium won the redevelopment of three lots covering Nsambya, Naguru-Ntinda, Kira, Wandegeya, Mabuwa and Acacia plots.
Naguru police land covers 58.9 hectares, and Nsambya barracks, which is of the same size, is the biggest police barracks in east and central Africa.
Although Mr Mugunga didn’t give the exact date when they expect to end the negotiations, he said in a month’s time, they will have cleared the major hurdles.
Police have increased their personnel by 15,000 officers yet no new housing units have been constructed.
Many new officers are either sleeping in dormitories, tents or squeezing themselves in condemned building in barracks.
