MPs confirm digital number plate tracking works after live test

What the report says

Ugandan lawmakers have said a live test confirmed that the country’s digital number plate system can track vehicles. According to Nile Post, the Parliamentary Committee on Physical Infrastructure carried out the demonstration on Friday, October 2, at the Police Command Centre in Naguru after members had raised questions about whether the tracking feature in the Intelligent Transport Monitoring System was working as intended.

The committee, chaired by Mwine Mpaka, used vehicles fitted with their own digital plates rather than relying on a staged example. Screens at the command centre displayed the cars’ locations as they moved, which MPs said showed that the system was functioning. Mpaka said the exercise established that both cars and motorbikes can be tracked, while adding that the committee still wanted improvements to the system.

The test followed a briefing on September 30 from Security Minister Jim Muhwezi, who told lawmakers that the tracking system was already operating nationwide and had helped recover stolen vehicles. Police ICT director AIGP Felix Baryamwisaki also told MPs that 337 of 375 stolen motor vehicles had been tracked and recovered, while the recovery rate for motorcycles was much lower, at 174 of 782.

Nile Post reported that the digital plates are part of the ITMS project being implemented under a 10-year agreement with Russia-based Joint Stock Company Global Security. The scheme has faced scrutiny over cost, delays and contractor capacity, and Parliament’s inquiry is continuing as MPs examine those issues alongside the tracking results.