Parliament Probes Shs1.2tn Entebbe Expressway Contract

What the report says

Parliament has opened a broad inquiry into the Kampala-Entebbe Expressway, focusing on alleged contractual and financial problems tied to the toll road’s operations and revenue systems, according to Nile Post. The Committee on Physical Infrastructure, chaired by Mwine Mpaka, questioned former Works and Transport Minister Gen Edward Katumba Wamala and former UNRA executive director Allen Kagina over the government’s dealings with French tolling firm Egis Road Operation and the decision to keep the arrangement in place despite reported disputes.

Kagina told MPs she had raised 29 concerns about Egis during her tenure, while lawmakers also pressed officials on missing or uninstalled equipment, including weigh-in-motion scales, and on whether the expressway’s tolling and traffic-management technology gives government full control over vehicle counts and revenue data. The committee also raised concerns about subcontracting by Pinnacle Security, the lack of complete access to the software used in toll collection, and why the Uganda Revenue Authority was not brought into the process.

The inquiry further examined project account withdrawals of Shs975 million on May 8 and Shs970 million on May 28, which MPs want explained and reconciled. The road, a 51-kilometre link opened in 2018 after construction began in 2012, cost about $476 million and was partly financed by a China Exim Bank loan. Parliament is now looking at whether toll income and operating costs are sufficient to support the expressway’s financial obligations and whether the current system is transparent enough to safeguard public revenue.