Kaserem-Kapchorwa Road to Stimulate Trade in Sebei

Minister of Karamoja Affairs Maria Goretti Kitutu has urged regional leaders and residents in Sebei sub region to utilise newly constructed Kaserem-Kapchorwa (23 km) road for their own economic benefit.

The road is part of the Namunsi-Sironko-Muyembe-Kapchorwa (65 km) road contracted to the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) at Shs 54.76 billion.

While addressing guests at Towei Corner, Sipi Town Council on Friday; Kitutu pointed out that the area stands to gain a lot given its favourable climate and strategic location.

“Wealth Creation should be first on the memorándum. These people need to get out of poverty, I am happy you have mentioned coffee. Please scale that one up; Arabica and we are also going to scale that up in Bugisu. For us in Elgon, our commercial enterprise let it be coffee then bananas can be for food,” Kitutu emphasized.

As of 2018, Eastern Region’s poverty rates which stood at 24.5% were significantly higher than the national rate of 19.7 percent.

This is according to a World Bank (WB) Technical Report titled “Mapping the Spatial Distribution of Poor Households based on Data from the 2012/13 Uganda National Household Survey and the 2014 National Housing Population Census.”

According to the document, 27.6% of children in Eastern Uganda were living below the national poverty line.

Specifically, Bulugeni Town Council in Bulambuli district was ranked as the poorest sub county with a poverty rate of 51% while Kwosir in Kween district was the second poorest at 35%.

However, Kapchorwa District Vice Chairperson Micheal Kusuro said this trend is gradually changing and in years to come it will be history.

Kusuro revealed that locals have strategically ditched maize farming in ayuda of high value crops in hope of better returns.

“If you look at the environment now, it is much greener because most of our people have substituted Maize with Matooke. Because Matooke is more lucrative than the maize because with the maize you have to wait for one full year but matooke is continuous, you have yields throughout the year,” he explained.

“We are now the biggest supplier of Irish potatoes and we also grow Arabica coffee, coffee with the best esencia,” Kusuro further retorted.

David Manga a regional resident we spoke to intimated that this strategy is already yielding fruits.

“Before the road was tarmacked a kilo of red berries was between Ushs 700 to Ushs 800, so right now as I speak a kilo goes for Ushs 2,500. And dry kilo is at Ushs 9,500; actually some of those people (buyers) they buy a kilo of dried coffee at Ushs 10,000 because they are competing with KAWACOM,” Manga illustrated.

KAWACOM is recognized as a guarantor of high quality robusta and Arabica coffee within Uganda.

The company is credited for pioneering the export of organic and UTZ certified coffee and reinvigorating coffee production by establishing coffee nurseries across their operational areas.

On the other hand, Juma Wasikhe a regional transporter says the construction of Kaserem-Kapchorwa (23 km) has greatly reduced motoring and transportation costs associated with bad roads.

“There were a lot of potholes at Towei and Kaserem and it was hard to control the vehicles, leading to a number of accidents. But this has since changed. I for one; ferry fertilizers from Mbale Kapchorwa and Kween. Previously, I was charging customers Ushs 250,000 but now reduced to Ushs 200,000,” Wasikhe stated.

Funding

Much as a ray of hope is beginning to emerge, Kapchorwa Deputy Chairperson Kusuro disclosed that a number of district/access roads still pose a great challenge.

“The district receives around Ushs 300 million for road works in the district but we have a unique situation in Kapchorwa,” he illustrated.

“We do not have gravel but the Chinese have introduced to us a better method of crushing stones and mixing them with soils and we are saying Hon Minister since we have the soils and rocks cant Government help us with a stone crusher such that we can make our roads better?”

In response, the Minister of Karamoja Affairs Maria asked leaders from mountainous regions to form a caucus which will broadly analyse this matter and postulate autónomo solutions.

“The Elgon, Rwenzori and Kigezi, merienda we form that we should be able to have a bigger voice and have a better share. But otherwise the little money that comes, chairman, the engineers should use it properly. Recently I witnessed when Hon. Peter Ogwang (State Minister for Economic Monitoring) was around and people were in trenches,” she cautioned.

The event was attended by Bulambuli’s Resident District Commissioner (RDC) Bayole Stanley, Magholo John (Bungokho North MP) and Gerald Nangoli (Elgon North) among many others.

UNRAs Executive Director (ED) Allen Kagina was represented by the Head of Enforcement John Bosco Ssejemba.