Kampala Unveils Ambitious 5-Year Strategic Plan to Revitalize the Capital

Kampala, Uganda

Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) has officially launched its Five-Year Strategic Plan for FY2025/26 – FY2029/30, under the theme:
“Revitalizing Kampala into a Well-Functioning City.”

The launch event, held at Mayor’s Garden, was graced by top-level government and city leadership, including Lord Mayor Erias Lukwago, the KCCA Executive Director, officials from the National Planning Authority (NPA), and was officiated by Jane Kyarisima- Deputy Head of the Ministry of Public Service.

The new strategic blueprint lays out a bold vision of transforming Kampala into “a vibrant, attractive, livable, and sustainable city”—a vision that speaks to the hopes of millions of residents grappling with the daily challenges of urban life.

🚧 Addressing Pressing Urban Challenges

In her presentation, the KCCA Executive Director,Sharifah Buzeki emphasized that the five-year plan was developed through wide consultations and is focused on solving Kampala’s most urgent urban development bottlenecks.

These include:

Road infrastructure upgrades across all five city divisions

Solid waste management, particularly the overwhelmed Kitezi landfill, and the transition to the Buyala landfill

Improving drainage and flood control systems

Expanding access to markets, healthcare, education, and other public services

Strengthening public transport and traffic decongestion

The plan seeks to unlock funding, partnerships, and innovations needed to sustainably tackle these issues while laying a solid foundation for long-term city resilience.

🧭 Strategic Vision and Pillars

The plan is anchored on a forward-looking vision of Kampala as vibrant, attractive, livable, and sustainable.

It revolves around four key strategic pillars:

1. Inclusive Economic Growth & Job Creation – Boosting Kampala’s role as an engine of national productivity.
2. Efficient Urban Infrastructure & Services – Upgrading roads, waste systems, drainage, public amenities, and smart transport.
3. Urban Governance & Citizen-Centered Service Delivery – Enhancing accountability, decentralization, and community engagement.
4. City Resilience & Environmental Sustainability – Adapting to climate change, improving risk management, and securing natural resources.

🗣 Stakeholders Speak

In her keynote address, Deputy Head of the Ministry of Public Service urged KCCA to focus on implementation discipline, measurable results, and public accountability.

“Let this not be just another document. Let it be a living tool to transform lives and the city itself,” said Jane Kyarisima.

Lord Mayor Erias Lukwago lauded the planning process but warned against bureaucratic delays and funding gaps that have derailed previous strategies. He called for a “whole-of-government and whole-of-society” approach to implementation.

The Deputy Executive Director of the National Planning Authority (NPA) commended KCCA for aligning the plan with Uganda’s National Development Plan (NDP 4), but stressed the need for performance monitoring and integrated budgeting.

📍 Why This Plan Matters

Kampala faces enormous urban pressures:

A growing population of over 4 million

Increasing waste production and declining landfill capacity

Severe traffic congestion

Climate vulnerabilities including flooding and heat islands

Youth unemployment and informal settlements

If executed faithfully, the plan offers a pathway to modernization, improved service delivery, and better quality of life for city residents. But it will require political will, financial commitment, inter-agency coordination, and above all, citizen engagement.

📝 What Happens Next?

Need for Kampala Physical Plan Implementation Sector and division-level action plans will follow in the coming months

Annual performance reviews will track progress

A public dashboard is expected to be developed for citizen transparency

The transition from Kitezi to Buyala landfill will be a key priority in early implementation phases

KCCA has committed to engaging communities, civil society, private sector actors, and development partners in turning the strategic vision into reality.

As Kampala stands at a turning point, The Urban Gazette will continue to track how this plan translates from paper to progress.