Vendors Lose Hope in UGX 32bn Nebbi Market Project

Nebbi  Market Vendors will have to wait longer to see the construction of the 32 billion Shillings Market.

The construction of Nebbi modern market was supposed to have started in 2021 according to the project design presented by the municipality leaders.      

With the influx of traders coming from the nearby districts of Arua, Madi-Okollo, Zombo, Buliisia, Pakwach and DR Congo, the vendors anticipate that the current Nebbi main market has become small and congested forcing other vendors to sell their goods in the open.

One of the vendors dealing in silverfish Beatrice Kitu says they were told by Municipality authorities that, vendors operating in the main market will be temporarily relocated to the taxi and bus terminals to pave the way for the construction of a modern market but up-to-date work on the bus and taxi terminals stalled.

“We are not being updated on what is going on, regarding the construction of Nebbi modern market which has taken quite several years to get started and yet the current market has become small and congested”, Kitu said.  

Nebbi Municipality is one of the 18 municipalities countrywide that was earmarked to benefit from the second phase of the Market AgriculturalTrade Improvement Project [MATIP-2] under which eight modern markets are to be constructed but, the vendors have lost hope due to the delays of the projects.  

Jatex  Opio, the Chairman of the Nebbi  Market Vendors’ Association says on daily records, they receive about 40 -50 new people who want to get space in the market, but, they are turned away because there is limited space. 

Opio adds that, though the project is geared at improving local revenues in the municipality and decongests the market which accommodates over 7,000 traders, the project has failed to address the plights of the traders hence affecting the business opportunities of the traders.

“Last year as leaders of the market vendors, we registered over 2,000 vendors who are fully registered under our association and all needed business space in the market, the daily population that comes to the market is overwhelming and this calls for an urgent intervention by the government in addressing the market demand challenges", Opio said.

The Mayor of Nebbi Municipality Geoffrey Ngiriker says, all the processes for the construction of the market have been finalized and are waiting for the President to append his signature to kick start the construction works.  

He said the 32 multi-billion shillings Nebbi modern market project, if completed, will serve the population of about 10000 vendors and this will solve the issue of both space and revenues for the municipality.

“We are looking at widening the revenue base of the municipality by creating more revenue sources and Modern Market would be another boost to the council at the moment, the council gets around 500m to 700m revenues and targeting above 1 billion shillings if the market is constructed because more traders will get attracted”, Ngiriker said.