At least 600 kilometers of roads across the country are in such poor condition that they require full rehabilitation, The Daily Star has learned. This revelation was made by Musa Ecweru, the Minister for Works and Transport.
The minister was responding to a series of tragic road accidents that occurred this month, including a fatal bus crash on the Kisoga–Nyenga Road, a bus collision along the Pakwach–Arua Road, and an accident at the Busabala Flyover that claimed the life of Rajiv Ruparelia.
As of the 2024/25 financial year, 1,880 kilometers of paved roads require periodic maintenance, while 615 kilometers have already deteriorated to the extent that only full rehabilitation can restore them. This backlog is the result of years of consistent underfunding for road maintenance.
“The current budgetary allocations are far below what is needed to complete critical road development, rehabilitation, and maintenance projects on time,” said Minister Ecweru.
In the 2025/26 fiscal year, Shs 682 billion has been allocated to national roads—far short of the Shs 3.15 trillion required—resulting in a funding gap of Shs 2.472 trillion. Budget allocations have dropped significantly, from 90% of the required amount in the 2022/23 fiscal year to only 20% in 2025/26.
The Shs 3.15 trillion budget is intended to cover several urgent needs, including: Domestic arrears of over Shs 1 trillion, which continue to accumulate interest daily; Land acquisition for ongoing and new road projects, including those externally financed.
Others are; Urgent maintenance, rehabilitation, reconstruction, and upgrading of key road links and Bridge and ferry development projects, including emergency repairs on structures damaged by adverse weather over the past two years.
According to the minister, the Ministry of Works and Transport has prioritized paying arrears and acquiring land for ongoing works. However, most projects have received insufficient funding.
The Mityana–Mubende road requires Shs 130 billion but received only Shs 21 billion; Kampala–Jinja road needs Shs 90 billion but was allocated just Shs 7 billion; Mbarara–Ishaka road, despite its poor condition, received no allocation at all.
Minister Ecweru warned that failure to provide additional funds could cost the government even more. Interest on delayed payments alone could total Shs 48 billion.
“It is much cheaper to carry out periodic maintenance, such as resealing and local repairs, than to wait for a road to deteriorate to the point of requiring full rehabilitation,” he noted. “Periodic maintenance costs range from Shs 646 million to Shs 1.14 billion per kilometer, whereas full rehabilitation costs range from Shs 2.28 billion to Shs 2.66 billion per kilometer.”
