BUSEGA-MPIGI EXPRESSWAY: Engineers defend design changes behind rising project cost

Engineers brief IGG Justice Aisha Naluzze Batala and her team on changes made to the Busega-Mpigi Expressway design during an inspection visit. Kampala, Uganda | URN | As public debate intensifies over the rising cost of the Busega-Mpigi Expressway, senior engineers at the Ministry of Works and Transport have defended the project’s redesign, insisting the changes reflect the transition from an outdated concept to a modern, resilient expressway designed to meet current and future transport needs. The expressway, a flagship project intended to ease chronic congestion along the Masaka Road corridor and improve connectivity between Kampala and southwestern Uganda, has come under scrutiny amid claims of irregularities and escalating costs.

However, engineers familiar with the project say much of the criticism stems from a limited understanding of the project’s technical evolution and the reasons behind the redesign. “A lot of what is being said is not true. Those saying these things are just playing to the gallery, but everything on this project is well documented,” one senior engineer told journalists.

On Monday, a team of engineers accompanied the Inspector General of Government (IGG) on a detailed site visit, walking through sections of the alignment, structures and wetlands to explain the design modifications firsthand. The visit formed part of the ministry’s efforts to promote transparency at a time when public confidence in major infrastructure projects remains under scrutiny. The Busega-Mpigi Expressway was first conceived around 2010 under the then Uganda National Roads Authority (UNRA).

Godfrey Bihemaiso, Assistant Commissioner for Road Construction and Rehabilitation at the Ministry of Works and Transport, the original concept differed significantly from the project now being implemented. “The first design was more or less like the first phase of the Northern Bypass, if you remember it,” Bihemaiso said during the site visit. “It was not even intended to be tolled by design.

There were no flyovers, no interchanges, no link roads and several other features.” Records obtained by URN show that the original design was approved by financiers in 2016 at an estimated cost of Shs547.543 billion. However, a subsequent appraisal by the development partner found that the design fell short of contemporary safety, capacity and environmental standar…