KAMPALA. Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) is seeking new investors, both local and international, with proven experience and technology to collect and manage solid waste in the city.
Daily Monitor has learnt that government directed KCCA to contract new service providers under Public-Private Partnership (PPP) to collect solid waste and turn it into reusable products.
Currently, there are three local companies who were contracted by KCCA to collect and deposit garbage at Kiteezi landfill.
Kiteezi landfill has since been filled up, but KCCA recently acquired 135 acres of land in Dundu, Mukono District.
The companies currently collecting solid waste in Kampala are Nabugabo Updeal Venture, Homeklin (U) Ltd and Kampala Solid Waste Management Consortium (KSWMC).
However, according to KCCA, the companies have a shortage of funds, equipment and manpower to ably carry out their duty.
Under the proposed arrangement, contracted companies will be required to construct a new landfill in Dundu, Mukono District and also build a treatment plant to turn the garbage into reusable products.
While meeting stakeholders and some of the prospective investors in Munyonyo on Wednesday, the KCCA executive director, Ms Jennifer Musisi, said: “Many service providers come with good concept papers yet they actually don’t have the capacity to do the work. Solid waste management in the city is still a big problem because we are financially constrained and that’s why we need investors with capacity both in technology and resources to help us out.”
However, Ms Musisi said once the companies that have won the contract commence work, KCCA will continue monitoring their work.
“Before I retire from this position as executive director, I want to leave behind a clean city with better services which will benefit all the people who visit and reside in it,” she said.
Partnership
KCCA has partnered with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and World Bank to implement the project.
The procurement process of the prospective companies is expected to be finalised before end of next year. The current companies, which collect garbage, would either be phased out or work under the new companies that have better capacity to collect and manage solid waste.
Section 17 of the Kampala City Council (Solid Waste Management) Ordinance 2000 states that the council shall, either by its agents, servants or licensed collectors, ensure that solid waste in the district is collected and conveyed to treatment installations or approved disposal sites.
Mr Christopher Olobo from the International Finance Corporation said before the contract is awarded to the successful companies, there will be terms and conditions to guide the deal.
“In the first place, we shall request for qualifications, review previous experience and managerial skills and then have competitive dialogue before bids are submitted and after this, we shall evaluate the bids and then come up with the best companies,” Mr Olobo said.
He noted that nine months after signing the contract, investors will be required to have completed the first step of building the landfill, make sure that all transfer stations are operational in 12 months, have the landfill constructed after two years, and then have the treatment plant constructed after three years.
But Ms Lilian Masembe, one of the participants at yesterday’s meeting, called upon KCCA not to rush to sign the contracts with the new companies without doing enough research about the project.
According to available statistics from KCCA, at least 50 tonnes of solid waste are collected from Kampala City daily and deposited at Kiteezi landfill.
According to the Statutory Internal Audit Report for the third quarter of Financial Year 2016/17 that was released by the KCCA director of internal audit, Mr Moses Bwire, a copy of which we have seen, it was found out the current companies collecting solid waste are incompetent.
