Committee to verify list of Mbarara Central Market vendors

Mbarara, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | A committee has been formed to verify the list of vendors that will occupy Mbarara Central Market.

The committee was set up after a number of vendors complained missing on the list that was displayed last week.

Nyombi Muhammed the chairperson of the vendors Association says the committee comprises vendors from the different departments of the market.

He says the allocation of lockups/stalls will commence after the committee finishes its work.

Asse Abireeba the Mbarara City Clerk says the committee has pitched camp in the market to listen to complaints from the vendors.  He says the 18-man committee comprises 14 vendors, two city officers, and two from the ministry of local government.

Robert Mugabe Kakyebezi the City Mayor wants the verification committee to consider vendors who were in the old market.

Raphael Magyezi the Minister of Local Government says the verification team has only one week to validate the lists and submit the findings to the Ministry.

Two weeks ago, Roko Construction Limited handed over the 21 Billion Shillings four-storied market located on Buremba Road Market to the City Authorities after the completion of construction works.

The market has about 485 shelters for vendors’ stalls, a Police post, a Children’s care Centre, an office block, and water harvesting tanks among other facilities.

Magyezi had earlier directed the city leaders to display the list of the rightful vendors. He said that the rightful vendors are those that were initially in the old market before the reconstruction started in 2017.

Muhammed Byansi, the Mbarara City South Councilor faults the ministry officials for sidelining the city council authorities when drafting the lists.

Construction of the 21 Billion Shillings four-storied market started in July 2017 after more than 700 vendors were relocated to Independence Park.

Roko Construction Limited has finally handed over the market to the city authorities after the completion of construction works.

The government awarded Roko the contract in 2018 at a cost of 21.11 Billion shillings under The Markets and Agricultural Trade Improvement Project (MATIP) with funding from the African Development Bank.

The market located in the middle of Mbarara city along Bishop Wills and Mbaguta streets has about 485 shelters for vendors’ stalls, a police post, a children’s care centre, an office block, and water harvesting tanks among other facilities.

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