Mukono Municipal Council has approved a supplementary budget of Shs1.355 billion, including Shs125 million from local revenue to make final payments for two pieces of land at Katikolo, as the municipality moves to secure additional property for the expansion of the landfill.
The supplementary budget and work plan for the 2026/2027 financial year was presented to council by Hassan Kisuule, Secretary for Administration, Finance and Planning, and was unanimously approved by councillors.
The Shs125 million allocation provides fresh funding for the Katikolo land acquisition at a time when questions remain over the land already purchased, the parcels that are yet to be secured and the total amount spent under the earlier acquisition programme.
The decision effectively means that Mukono Municipality is turning to its own locally generated revenue to complete part of the land acquisition after the earlier government funding for the project was largely committed.
Town Clerk Francis Byabagambi previously explained that the municipality had the land required for the project valued by the Chief Government Valuer at approximately Shs150 million per acre, after which government released about Shs4.5 billion to facilitate the acquisition.
Byabagambi said the money had largely been spent, with only about Shs10 million remaining, which was returned to the Treasury.
However, a municipal land acquisition report obtained earlier indicates that the municipality had secured 30.8794 acres out of a targeted 32 acres, with compensation agreements amounting to approximately Shs4.489 billion.
The same report identified 31 parcels measuring 8.507 acres, with an estimated value of Shs1.103 billion, that had not yet been acquired at the time of reporting.
The report also listed Mukasa Jeremiah as having an outstanding balance of Shs53.899 million, while compensation for Kafeero Moses and Nabulya Hadija remained subject to valuation addenda for a structure and a dug well respectively.
In addition, Shs68.005 million relating to Twaha Lule and Zaitun Nantume had reportedly been approved but had not reflected on their accounts at the time the report was prepared.
The municipality has since explained that some of the apparent payment gaps were caused by banking problems, incomplete documentation and disagreements over property valuations.
Byabagambi said some landowners who had agreed to sell lacked Tax Identification Numbers or bank accounts needed to receive government compensation, while some payments had bounced back because of problems with beneficiaries’ accounts and returned to the municipal treasury.
The new Shs125 million allocation is therefore significant because it provides a clearer indication that the municipality still has land acquisition obligations at Katikolo despite the earlier Shs4.5 billion allocation.
Senior Municipal Planner Hillary Murungi previously identified land belonging to the Mutegeki family as among the properties considered critical to the project because it is expected to accommodate one of the planned lagoons.
Murungi said the municipality intended to prioritise acquisition of such land using local revenue after some owners initially declined to accept the compensation offered.
The decision to use local revenue also comes amid continuing questions over the location and value of land already acquired.
During a recent tour of the Katikolo site, officials were unable to clearly identify on the ground the two acres reportedly secured using Shs600 million that had earlier been provided in connection with the landfill.
The municipality’s land acquisition status map shows the existing landfill at about 7.6 acres and indicates an additional two-acre portion. However, the exact location of the additional two acres could not be clearly demonstrated during the site visit.
Environment Officer George Masengere had previously indicated that the two acres had been secured, while officials have also said the overall project requires substantially more land.
The Shs600 million figure has attracted particular attention because it implies a cost of approximately Shs300 million per acre, if the money was indeed used to acquire two acres. This differs significantly from the Shs150 million per-acre rate cited by Byabagambi as the Chief Government Valuer’s assessment.
The difference does not necessarily establish an irregularity because individual properties may attract different values depending on their location, tenure and developments. However, it raises the need for the municipality to reconcile the different figures through the underlying valuation and payment records.
The latest council decision gives the municipality an opportunity to clarify those questions as it commits additional public money to the same acquisition exercise.
The Shs125 million approved for the two remaining pieces of land is only a fraction of the Shs1.103 billion estimated value of the 31 parcels that the acquisition report said had not yet been secured. It is therefore unclear from the council decision whether the Shs125 million will settle all outstanding claims for those parcels or only specific final payments.
That distinction will be important because municipal officials have previously maintained that the municipality has secured more land than originally planned, while the acquisition report showed that several parcels remained outstanding.
The council’s decision also comes as Mukono continues efforts to clarify its land boundaries. A recent boundary-opening exercise involving the municipality and the Ministry of Lands is intended to establish the municipality’s territorial extent and address areas where boundaries have remained unclear.
The boundary question is relevant to Katikolo because former municipal leaders have previously claimed that the municipality historically held more land at the site than the approximately 7.5 to 7.6 acres currently associated with the existing landfill.
Former mayor George Fred Kagimu has previously said records he found during his tenure indicated that municipal land at Katikolo exceeded 10 acres and recommended opening the boundaries to establish whether portions had been encroached upon.
The latest allocation therefore leaves the municipality with two related tasks: securing the land it genuinely needs for the landfill expansion and demonstrating that previous land acquisition expenditure was properly matched to identifiable parcels, owners and valuation records.
The supplementary budget itself confirms that the Katikolo acquisition is not yet entirely closed. By approving Shs125 million from local revenue for two final land payments, council has acknowledged that additional municipal resources are required to complete the exercise.
The immediate question is whether the additional expenditure will finally settle the remaining strategic parcels and allow the landfill expansion to proceed, or whether further land and compensation obligations will emerge.
For residents and councillors, the bigger issue remains the same: how much land has Mukono Municipality actually secured at Katikolo, how much has it paid for it, and how much more will local taxpayers have to contribute before the project has all the land it requires?
The answers will require the municipality to reconcile the earlier Shs4.5 billion government allocation, the Shs4.489 billion in reported compensation agreements, the Shs125 million newly approved local revenue, and the remaining parcels and outstanding compensation identified in its own records.
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