UGANDA, Kampala | Real Muloodi News | The Minister of Lands, Housing, and Urban Development, Hon. Judith Nabakooba has requested slum landowners to collaborate with the government to execute a new slum policy to enhance people’s quality of life.
At a press conference on Monday, October 3, 2022, the lands minister said many residents in slum areas lack access to decent housing; an issue the new slum policy hopes to address.
She said: “We have a slum policy which provides for affordability, inclusiveness and engaging of all stakeholders in developing the slum areas. Since some of the slum areas belong to private individuals and others are government-owned – there is a need for coordination to find a lasting solution on how best to develop these areas [slums].”
According to UN-HABITAT, a slum household is defined as a group of individuals living under the same roof in an urban area who lack durable housing of a permanent nature that protects against extreme climate conditions and sufficient living space which means not more than three people sharing the same room.
Slum houses are congested and sub-standard, and usually lack utility supplies like water and electricity. Some don’t have toilets or latrines contrary to the Public Health Act of 1935 that requires that every new building have a provision for latrines before local authorities approve a plan for its construction.
If Ugandans are to have access to adequate and affordable housing facilities throughout the country, at least 2.4 million housing units must be built.
“This deficit has to be addressed through a multi-sectoral approach by various players, including financial institutions, real estate developers and housing cooperatives,” the minister said.
According to the minister, the ministry developed a National Physical Development Plan, which Cabinet is still considering, focused on resolving human settlements and other land use patterns.
“The Ministry of Lands together with the Ministry of Constitutional Affairs have already finalised the technical work on the Real Estate Bill. This is one of the Bills we are pursuing seriously because when you look at real estate, it is one of the growing sectors but it is not regulated. We, therefore, take the Real Estate Bill as due and urgent,” Ms Nabakooba said.
She added that the government was eager to work with developers in real estate to guarantee that Ugandans could afford good homes.
The minister’s statements were made before the National Habitat Day celebrations, which took place on October 7 at Speke Resort in Munyonyo with Speaker of Parliament, Ms Anita Among, as the honoree.
The government and Habitat for Humanity Uganda together organised the festivities and the national housing symposium.
Robert Otim, the National Director of Habitat for Humanity Uganda, praised the government for its support and legislation, which allowed for the renovation of over 200,000 homes, the transformation of over 1.5 million people’s lives, and the support of over 2,000 young people seeking vocational training in the housing industry.
The Ministry for Lands, Housing and Urban Development with Habitat for Humanity are to build quality affordable houses in informal settlements in different cities of Uganda.
Mr Otim said that they have developed procedures for how the people will acquire these houses and each house will cost USh18 million to low-income earners and USh35 to USh50 million to high-income earners.
However, the government has attempted to improve the number of slums in Uganda, but the initiatives fall short of their stated goal of giving slum inhabitants in Uganda access to affordable housing. One slum, Namuwongo, was developed to the advantage of the wealthy, and it is today a posh neighbourhood.
The Kasooli project in the Tororo area, according to Nabakooba, was one of the initiatives that gained momentum before coming to a halt when it became clear that the land on which the homes were constructed would be utilised for the standard gauge railway.
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