Ms Allen Kagina, the Executive Director of Uganda National Roads Authority, has said their agency is very effective and efficient, hence does not deserve to be phased out.
According to Kagina, unlike many Government entities that are a duplication and wasteful, UNRA is not one of them and ought to be spared from the merging exercise.
UNRA is one of the 77 government agencies that are supposed to be phased out as part of interventions to reduce the cost of public administration and minimise duplication of roles.
“When we cast our eyes to see what the next 10 years are like, we have expressways radiating out of Kampala, we have flyovers in the city and we have bridges further downstream. Can the Ministry of Works handle this?” Kagina said.
UNRA’s top managers led by Kagina were meeting MPs on the infrastructure committee last week.
UNRA managed told MPs that plans to merge UNRA with the Ministry of Works and Transport have greatly demoralised their staff and affected their productivity.
Charles Kizito, the head of corporate strategy at UNRA, also raised concern that for the financial year that has just ended (2020/2021), UNRA has incurred a debt of sh368b which would have to be forwarded to the new financial year.
“Every year we do more work than the money allocated to us. The outcome of the inadequate and untimely disbursements results in perpetual debt carried over in new financial years mainly accrued from works contracts. The underfunding has also been the reason for the rapid deterioration of the condition of the road network, increased maintenance backlog and increased safety concerns on the roads,” Kizito said.
Bugabula County South MP Maurice Kibalya said: “We shall put our efforts together to prevent UNRA from being merged with the Ministry of Works and Transport. The issue of mergers was not properly planned.”
Tororo Woman MP Sarah Opendi also said UNRA should not be merged with any other entity, but suggested the need for UNRA to build its capacity to construct roads so that beyond awarding contracts and supervising construction projects they can also directly carry out construction activities.