The long-awaited promise by the Ugandan government to provide Kkoome Island with a modern ferry remains unfulfilled, leaving residents increasingly frustrated.
Despite the recent launch of a new ferry in Buvuma District, Minister for Works and Transport, Gen. Edward Katumba Wamala, had previously assured that the former ferry would be refurbished and allocated to Kkoome.
But two years have passed, and the community is still waiting. For the islanders of Kkoome, a group of 17 scattered islands in Mukono District, this delay is more than just a minor inconvenience.
Robert Kabengwa, a resident at Kkoome says the absence of reliable transport is stalling innovation and economic growth.
According to him, Kkoome’s fertile soils have the potential to contribute greatly to Uganda’s domestic production, with farmers growing quality coffee and upland rice, but poor transport links make it difficult to access essential materials or markets.
Obeid Nsubuga, the Kkoome Sub County Production Officer, highlights the islands’ agricultural potential. “We have the best soils in Mukono,” he says.
He adds that farmers are struggling to reach markets. The transport system is the biggest barrier to progress.
Suzan Bogeere Nsensebuse, the Marketing Officer for Bukanama Dairy Farm located at Ddamba, one of the islands making up Kkoome is concerned that the farm’s expansion is being hindered by transport difficulties.
“Our farm specializes in breeding high-quality South African Boer goats and milk-rich Guernsey cattle, but without a reliable ferry system, getting products to market remains a challenge. We have the products, but we can’t move them effectively,” says Nsensebuse.
Bukanama Farm Proprietor, Lawrance Busuulwa says the farm at the island began in 2004 on three acres with ten animals, but it has expanded to over 6,000 heads of cattle and over 15,000 goats sitting on 12 square miles.
The farm employs close to 300 people engaged in grazing both cattle and goats, planting fodder, maintaining the hedges and fences, and other petty jobs.
Every after two days 6,500 litres of milk is sold out to the market but such quantity is loaded on boats to the mainland. Busuulwa preserves his milk using giant coolers.
While Kkoome Island holds significant tourism potential, including being the only group of islands crossed by the equator and home to the Ngamba Chimpanzee Sanctuary, access remains limited to only those who can afford to fly from Entebbe Airport.
Dr. Fred Mukulu, the District Production Officer, is hopeful that a mini-solar grid project by Belgium-based Global Hitech Company yet to be established in the area will boost local development, but he admits that transportation remains a critical barrier.
Fatumah Ndisaba Nabitaka, the Resident District Commissioner, confirms that the lack of transport has stifled both economic growth and tourism.
“Many potential investors and tourists are put off by the prospect of using small boats,” she says, adding that without a proper ferry, they are missing out on great opportunities.
The health sector, too, has been impacted. The Makerere University Walter Reed Project (MUWRP) had made significant strides in improving the health of Kkoome’s 23,800 residents, spread across 17 fishing villages.
However, the uncertainty surrounding the project’s future after the USAID fund ban is adding to the community’s concerns.
For now, the people of Kkoome continue to wait for the promised ferry. But with each passing day, their hopes of better transportation, and the opportunities that come with it, continue to fade.
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