The government is considering relieving Kampala of waste dumping in favour of recycling and material recovery as it seeks an alternative to the Buyala landfill in Mpigi District.
The move follows President Museveni’s directive to find an alternative waste disposal system after concerns were raised about the proximity of the Buyala landfill to the newly launched Kampala Storage Terminal (KST).
The President last week flagged off the construction of the 320-million-litre terminal, which is expected to increase Uganda’s fuel storage capacity to 360 million litres.
He said the government should consider technologies that can process waste and generate energy rather than maintaining conventional dumping sites.
‘We have been debating converting waste into manure. This has been one of the many proposals. Now, one smart proposal I got, which would solve all this, was the one of incineration and generating electricity using the steam from there,’ President Museveni said.
‘We shall not allow a dumping site near here. That is suicide. That’s very dangerous,’ he added.
State Minister for Kampala Kabuye Kyofatogabye said the government was considering modern waste-treatment technologies, including incineration, as part of efforts to address the capital’s growing garbage problem.
‘He directed us to look for alternatives, but more so to insulate garbage as a future plan,’ Mr Kyofatogabye said.
He said the government’s plan was also intended to protect wetlands from pollution associated with poorly managed waste.
‘We are working within that advice. It was more of a guidance that, for the future, we should safeguard our environment, especially wetlands, bearing in mind that garbage is also an environmental hazard,’ he said.
Mr Kyofatogabye said the government hoped to expedite the establishment of a modern waste management facility and have a recycling solution in place within the next year.
Despite the directive, waste collectors said they were still using Buyala because no alternative disposal site had been officially designated.
Mr Abu Ssonko, a director and project manager at Nabugabo Updeal Joint Venture, a garbage collection company, said: ‘We are still waiting for the final decision from the authorities to come up with a new site where we can dump garbage, but for now, we are still using Buyala.’
He urged the government to urgently identify and gazette an alternative site, saying collectors were ready to comply once a new facility was provided.
KCCA spokesperson Daniel Nuwabine said the planned facility would move the city away from conventional dumping by incorporating material recovery and other waste-treatment technologies.
‘This is a waste management facility that involves material recovery and not just a dumping site. Government has already committed resources for preliminary works towards a modern facility,’ Mr Nuwabine said.
He said KCCA’s long-term goal was to establish a facility where garbage could be processed and converted into useful materials.
KCCA estimates that Kampala generates between 2,000 and 2,500 tonnes of waste daily, while between 1,200 and 2,000 tonnes are transported out of the city.
KCCA secured 230 acres at Buyala on February 14, 2025, when it signed a land acquisition contract for the landfill.
However, the government had earlier acquired 300 acres in the area in 2008 for the Kampala Storage Terminal.
Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja had said Cabinet would consider where government could secure land for an alternative waste disposal site following the development of the oil storage facility.