President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has pledged wide-ranging infrastructure and service delivery interventions in Buvuma District after local leaders raised concerns over persistent development challenges affecting residents of the island district.
During a campaign rally in Buvuma, the NRM district chairperson, Fred Wandera, said the district remains largely isolated from basic services despite its strategic location on Lake Victoria. He cited the lack of electricity on the main island, inadequate infrastructure across key sectors, and limited access to clean and safe water for domestic use and irrigation.
Wandera noted that although Buvuma is surrounded by water, residents have been unable to harness the resource productively due to the absence of modern water systems and weak lake management mechanisms. He also raised concerns over delayed land compensation, explaining that many residents who surrendered land for oil palm growing have not been fully compensated.
Other priorities highlighted included the need to establish boarding sections in seed schools to cater for learners from scattered islands, upgrading Buvuma Health Centre IV into a general hospital, and improving the district’s road network. Currently, Buvuma has only one kilometre of tarmac road.
Buganda Region Vice Chairperson Haruna Kasolo echoed concerns over delayed compensation for oil palm landowners, noting that the issue has stalled expansion of the project and delayed construction of an oil palm processing mill. He added that farmers who have begun harvesting are forced to transport produce to Kalangala for processing, raising operational costs.
In response, President Museveni acknowledged that Buvuma is among the districts not yet connected to the national electricity grid. He said the government would address the challenge through a phased approach, beginning with the establishment of mini solar grids within six months to power trading centres, followed by extending power cables across the lake from Mayuge within a year.
The President also pledged to tarmac roads on the main islands, upgrade Buvuma Health Centre IV into a general hospital to serve as a referral facility for the district’s eight Health Centre IIIs, and construct three boarding secondary schools to improve access to education for children from remote islands.
To address water shortages, Museveni announced plans to establish solar-powered water pumping systems in Bugaya, Lubya, Lyabaana, Lwajje, Ddembe, Banka, Kiwololo, Zzinnga, Kiganda and Kisekka.
On land compensation, he assured residents that all outstanding claims would be resolved, saying he had received a comprehensive report on the matter, which the government would act upon.
Turning to fishing on Lake Victoria, Museveni admitted that the deployment of the army following the closure of fishing factories had not fully achieved its objectives. He said poor fishing practices persist and must be addressed before reviving fish processing plants, adding that improved practices would pave the way for establishing a fish factory to boost livelihoods in the district.
The President further pledged government support to local savings and credit cooperative organisations (SACCOs) and committed to procuring a ferry to improve transport connectivity between Buvuma and Mayuge District.
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