The National Water and Sewerage Corporation (NWSC) is seeking parliamentary approval for a funding request of Sh421.9 billion to enhance water supply across the Kampala Metropolitan Area. The appeal was made by Engineer Silver Mugisha, the NWSC Managing Director, during a meeting with Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Thomas Tayebwa, at the Katosi Water Treatment Plant.
The Katosi Water Works (KWW) project, located in Katosi town on the shores of Lake Victoria in Ntenjeru Sub-County, Mukono District, received Parliament’s approval for two loan requests totaling Euros 300 million in 2011. However, to meet the increasing demand for water in the Kampala Metropolitan Area, an additional Euros 105 million (approximately Sh421.902 billion) is now requested.
Eng. Mugisha highlighted that the KWW facility currently produces 100,000 cubic meters of water per day, significantly less than the Ggaba Treatment Centre’s output of 230,000 to 240,000 cubic meters per day, resulting in a total of 340,000 cubic meters. The corporation aims to expand distribution networks to optimize the Katosi Water Treatment Plant, where only 52 percent of its capacity is currently utilized due to limited networks.
Emphasizing the underutilization hindering potential revenue, Tayebwa urged NWSC management to expedite necessary paperwork for Cabinet approval before seeking Parliament’s consent. The Katosi Water Treatment and Distribution project, initiated in 2019 and completed in 2021, addresses the water needs of the rapidly growing population in the Kampala Metropolitan Area, estimated at 3.846 million people.
The plant, with a treatment capacity of 160 million liters and plans to increase by an additional 80 million liters by 2035, falls short of its full potential due to limited distribution networks. Currently, NWSC will be accepting bids for the construction of a 15 million liters water reservoir on Kanyanya Hill, with the aim of supplying water to various areas, including Kabulenga Hill in Wakiso District, Gayaza Road, Matugga, and Kawempe.
Jointly funded by the Government of Uganda, KfW of Germany, the European Investment Bank, the French Development Agency, and the European Union Infrastructure Trust Fund, the Katosi Water Treatment Plant project had a total cost of Euros 84 million, approximately 852.5 billion Shillings. The NWSC emphasizes the urgency of securing funding to unlock the full potential of the water infrastructure and meet the water demands of the growing population in the Kampala Metropolitan Area.