Nabbanja Orders Completion of Kabalega International Airport By December

Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja has issued a firm directive for the Kabalega International Airport in Hoima to be fully completed by December 2026, explicitly ruling out any further delays to the long-stalled project. The directive came during a recent Cabinet inspection visit where officials assessed the airport's progress.

Nabbanja stressed that additional extensions are unacceptable, particularly given Uganda's upcoming hosting duties for the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON). She noted that inspection visits by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) are scheduled for early next year, making timely completion essential to avoid jeopardizing the nation's hosting commitments.

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We want the airport complete by December this year. Afcon teams are supposed to come and do inspections early next year, so when you talk of having it complete by March next year, this will affect Uganda in the hosting of Afcon which we cannot allow.

The Minister for Works and Transport, Fred Byamukama, reported that the airport's construction is currently at 98% completion. He detailed that the remaining tasks involve installing key equipment like generators, fire trucks, and the control tower. The first phase, designed primarily for cargo operations, is expected to be fully complete by July 31. A second phase, involving the construction of a larger passenger terminal, is slated for completion by March 2026, though the Prime Minister's firm deadline suggests an accelerated timeline may be necessary.

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We received the funds, and now we are recruiting staff to ensure that we get it started. By July we shall be 100 per cent complete for the first phase to handle cargo.