The recently built Kitgum Main Market was inaugurated by President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni yesterday.
During Uganda’s 61st Independence Anniversary festivities, which were held in Kitgum District and had as their theme “Sustaining a United and Progressive Nation: Taking Charge of Our Future as a Free Nation,” the President officially opened the market.
Kitgum Main Market is one of the Market Infrastructure Developments constructed under the Markets And Agricultural Trade Improvement Programme-2 (MATIP-2), which aims to improve the economic and social infrastructure in urban markets, encourage additional agricultural commodity production and marketing, increase vendor incomes, create more job opportunities, and improve customer satisfaction.
This intervention is based on the results of a feasibility study that the Government of Uganda commissioned in March 2008 to review and evaluate the infrastructure and operational status of local markets around the nation.
During the commissioning, the President was informed by the Minister for Local Government, Hon. Raphael Magyezi, that Kitgum Main Market was one of the 12 extra markets built under MATIP-2 and cost Shs24.55 billion (VAT included)
According to Hon. Magyezi, “The new Market of Kitgum has several facilities including, fruit and vegetable stalls, matooke stalls, meat lockups, dry and fresh fish stalls, assorted lockups/shops, saloons, bulk stores, cold rooms, market administration offices, and meeting and prayer rooms. It will be able to accommodate over 1,700 market vendors.”
The Minister also informed President Museveni of the market’s additional support features, which include parking spaces, utility rooms, control rooms, a solar power system, a CCTV system, fire extinguishers, banking, and SACCO facilities.
“The allocation of the new market facilities has been decentralized to the Urban Authority and Leadership of the Market to ensure that all registered vendors take first priority in the allocation of the new facilities in the market.”
A follow-up to MATIP-1, MATIP-2 was formally introduced in March 2016 and is intended to redevelop 12 markets in urban councils in various areas of Uganda as well as 3 high-level value-added facilities in Arua, Busia, and Soroti.
