Minsa Kabanda, the minister of metropolitan affairs for Kampala, has pleaded with market vendors in Nakawa and Bugolobi to abide by the president’s mandate on markets.
They are also being urged by Kabanda to run their enterprises in compliance with the Market Act 2023.
According to the Market Act 2023, whether permanent, temporary, or seasonal, all public and private markets must be managed, administered, registered, and licensed by the KCCA.
This decision was reached by the woman on Friday while she was checking the markets to make sure the market leaders that the Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) had selected were performing their tasks as required.
In order to oversee revenue collection, security, rubbish collection, and maintaining adequate hygiene in the markets as required, KCCA hired administrators and market masters in each city market.
Along with other KCCA representatives, the minister was accompanied by Dorothy Kisaka, Executive Director, and Sheila Birungi, director of women and community service.
The merchants were instructed by Kabanda to cooperate with the new market administrators and masters in accordance with the President’s directive.
According to Kabanda, “We are inspecting markets to see how you are coping with the new administrators.”
The minister also urged the shopkeepers to use government initiatives like Emyooga and the Parish Development Model (PDM) to escape poverty.
landlords versus traders
Concern was expressed by the traders—mostly landlords—about their disputes with tenants regarding lockups.
They claimed that when the markets were given to the traders, the landlords had the option of paying for and owning the lockups in the markets.
They claimed compensation from the government for their stalls and lockups.
They continued by saying that disputes between them and the renters had existed ever since the markets underwent recent modifications.
President Yoweri Museveni stated in his directive on markets from November 2022 that landlords shouldn’t be present since they are taking advantage of the traders.
The landlords assert that they are prepared to turn over the stalls in exchange for payment of the capital they invested in them.
Twasigwa says he was given a stand and is a founding member of the Nakawa Market Co-operatives. She claimed that she had operated a maize business at the market for the past 40 years.
Former Bugolobi Market chairman Salim Miro voiced worry about the tenant-landlord conflict, noting that some of the vendors had paid their rent during construction. He thought the government ought to come up with a deal that ensured they would receive excessive compensation.
KCCA
Kisaka instructed the traders to assist the administrators and masters of the market in running it on a daily basis.
They should approach KCCA officials at the market if they experience problems with rubbish collection, subpar cleanliness, insecurity, or anything administrative, she advised.
She assured the dealers that everything would continue as previously with their SACCO leaders and welfare administration.
Birungi advised the traders to address their grievances with the new managers, who would then bring them up with her directors.
