Introduction/Preamble

“If a country posses adequate manpower, we should draw on it and appoint our own national experts. Additionally, even if these experts are more skilled, we should still recruit and finance more local power and expertise. It is better to have a project that is technically only eighty percent successful but completely integrated in the local environment and thus sustainable, than one that scores hundred percent in technical terms but which we know will not be sustainable once experts withdraw.” Quoting the late Prince Claus of the Netherlands, former Honorary chairman of SNV; a visionary outlook expressed as early as 1988.

At a time when the Ugandan Government inaugurated policies, strategies and legal frameworks geared towards poverty reduction and socio-economic development, a paupers’ firm now known by the names Nabugabo Up deal Joint Venture; formerly ‘Nabugabo Shauriyako United Traders’ was born, the aim of which was to manage an independent self help garbage collection unit in minimization of City Council Garbage collection work force. The need of the self help arose when garbage in Kampala city had become a nuisance following the US President Clinton’s visit in 1998. Garbage became a nuisance and a challenge to authorities. It was the talk of the day in the capital, both by media and the locals. The city council of Kampala was challenged by the illiteracy of citizens regarding solid waste management. However, by this time Nabugabo - Shauriyako was deeply engaged in sensitizing the public on solid waste disposal.

Over 5,000 dustbins were distributed free of charge within Kampala central Division by the firm. City council authorities were stimulated by the approach and campaign on garbage disposal, which the firm practiced. The firm intensified its operations in Kampala central, sensitizing the public on the new ‘solid waste management ordinance 2000’, the use of dustbin regarding door to door garbage collection system, payment for service and advantage of private garbage collectors.

Currently the firm covers 20 parishes, and 105 villages on a pilot system (assessing cost recovery, because of the low income zones). The firm employs its own enforcement officers working in collaboration with KCC enforcement officers, whose main work is to ensure that there is no street dumping, littering in open spaces, vandalism/misuse of garbage bins i.e. burning, stealing bins, and misuse. Recent studies indicate that generation of solid waste in Kampala Central Division is estimated at approximately 2 kg per capita per day, with the commercial areas being the biggest generators. Waste was usually collected in skips that were placed at selected locations within the district by the city council. But due to inadequate management of skip repair and replacement, refuse was often littered indiscriminately and often accumulated at different locations in the division. Kampala central division was at this time operating a total of 8 refuse trucks and 144 skips(Large roadside garbage containers). The trucks and most of the skips were purchased in 1993 and are now costly to maintain. Results from the pilot project however indicate that it is possible to have a ‘skipless‘ refuse collection service in slum communities, with skips only restricted to institutions.
Municipal solid waste (also referred to as refuse) is defined to include waste from households, non-hazardous solid waste from industrial, commercial construction and institutional establishments (including hospitals), market waste and street sweeping. All municipal solid waste collected in Kampala is currently disposed of by land filling. KCC operates one landfill site located at Kiteezi, Nangabo sub-county, Wakiso district. Hazardous industrial and medical wastes are not accepted for disposal at the municipal landfill site. The municipal waste stream is estimated to be predominantly organic (70-80%) while the rest is inorganic material such as glass, paper, metals, construction and demolition waste, below a table shows indicative components of Kampala’s waste stream.

The city’s Population capacity

Kampala city is one of the 68 districts of Uganda. It’s the country’s capital and the only urban district in Uganda. It covers an area of approximately 176 sq km. The population of Kampala was 774,241 at the 1991 census. Provisional results of the 2002 census put the night time population of Kampala at 1,208,544 million, indicating a growth rate 4.13% per annum over the past 11 years. The Kampala Urban study (1994) estimated Kampala’s population to grow at a rate of 4.9 percent per annum between 1994 and 2004 resulting in an estimated population of 1.5 million in the year 2004. The average household size was 5 persons and the per capita income is estimated at US$ 300 per annum.

NUJV MISSION

To contribute the provision and delivery of quality, sustainable and customer-oriented garbage collection services efficiently and effectively in order to improve Kampala City’s Cleanliness

NUJV PHILOSOPHY

NUJV’s philosophy is to promote and achieve better life in the community to live in healthy environmental condition through a participatory approach in the promotion of cleanliness, environmental health and sanitary services.

PRINCIPAL OBJECTIVES

NUJV considers the following as its specific objectives:

• To provide services to the urban community by way of collecting garbage (solid waste) for better health and environment;
• To sensitise the urban community regarding garbage collection and environmental protection;
• To generate income for the members and the people employed by the company for better standards of living;
• To contribute revenue to the treasury through the services rendered.

ACHIEVEMENTS

Since its formation, the NUJV been able to: -

• Sensitize the public on the New Solid Waste Management system i.e. (Door to door system) to all residents in Kampala Central. The system is progressing and the population is responding positively.
• Remove 180 KCC big garbage containers in 2003, deployed on roadsides these were too small and inconveniencing those near the by. They were replaced by door-to-door garbage collection. Former street boys and girls who used to scavenge on the garbage where taken up as garbage collectors and supervisors. Turning them into responsible people who earn a living now the have families.
• Contribute to revenue of KCC and Central government through taxes paid by our company. The company pays the workers forwarded to the company from KCC.
• Create more employment opportunities to over 4000 Ugandans.

The major Challenges

According to a report released by the Uganda National Household survey 2002/03, the proportion of Ugandans living below the absolute poverty line has risen from 34% in 1999 to 38% in 2002/03. The figures were obtained by interviewing more than 10, 000 households sampled country between June 2002 and may 2003 .The poverty problem is hindering local people living in the urban slum areas to comply with paying subsidies for smooth running of garbage disposal, this has resulted into the clogging of water and septic drains thus an increase of infectious diseases and a threat of another severe outbreak of the cholera epidemic.

In circumstances where the high bed truck (we have only one) is broken down, the container stays in the place for days. Another reason we have substituted these areas by supplying polythene to the people, whereby we agree on time and when our available trucks arrive a whistle is blown and people bring in their trash.

Nabugabo Updeal is critically sensitizing the community on the method of skippless disposal, which has been cited to ease sustainable hygiene and expenditure, and has been welcomed, by the community as the only way to maintain proper solid waste disposal. Whereas we have struggled to maintain proper garbage disposal, sabotage from small garbage collection companies which do not have the capacity of taking garbage up to Kiteezi damping site. This has resulted in the decline of our own working capacity as these companies always empty in places where we have critically earmarked ‘NO-DUMPING’ which areas previously proved a menace of littered garbage in the city. This has also strongly affected our Revenue as regards collection, transition and final disposal. This situation if not maintained would lead to catastrophes. We critically seek your assistance to designate places for these other firms; the expression remains awful to the community as who is responsible for garbage maintenance in the city. The bidding was open to every party and we where chosen to do the job, an example of this would be ‘giving one lady to two men, whereas it is only one of the two who paid for the dowry! The controversies exposed in public show an uninformed and un-intellectual structured network. We therefore seek your help to save the city from going back to the previous garbage situation.

Mechanical break down, change of political climate, peoples cooperation (willingness to pay subsidies) changes of climate e.g. rainy season, infections like contagious diseases have all hindered smooth operation. The firm has battled to maintain safety of health by applying waste nets to ensure safety for the public followed by close supervision to avoid littering and open dumping. And now we are focused on capacity strengthening, fighting environment pollution and helping improve poor people’s health.