KCCA Unveils Major Waste Management Reforms Ahead of National Cleaning Day

The Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) has unveiled a comprehensive waste management strategy ahead of the National Cleaning Day scheduled for Saturday, August 29, 2026, with the authority promising a more structured and sustainable approach to garbage collection and evacuation across the capital.

The reforms are intended to improve the city's capacity to handle the enormous volumes of waste generated daily, eliminate illegal dumping and ensure that the National Cleaning Day exercise becomes part of a continuous sanitation campaign rather than a one-day intervention.

KCCA Executive Director Hajjat Sharifah Buzeki said the authority had taken several measures following guidance from Government communicated by Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja during a meeting held on August 12, 2026.

Kampala currently generates an estimated 2,000 to 2,500 tonnes of waste every day, creating significant pressure on the city's existing waste collection and disposal infrastructure.

To bridge the gap between waste generation and evacuation capacity, KCCA has licensed nine private waste collection companies, with each company assigned to designated areas of the city.

Eight of the nine companies have already obtained operational permits from KCCA and collectively have the capacity to evacuate about 1,469 tonnes of waste per day. The ninth collector is expected to contribute an additional 200 tonnes daily once its operational zone is finalised.

KCCA itself currently has a waste evacuation capacity of approximately 500 tonnes per day.

When the capacities of the licensed private collectors and KCCA are combined, the city expects to have the ability to evacuate more than 2,100 tonnes of waste daily, bringing it significantly closer to the volume of waste generated.

Buzeki said the new arrangement was designed to introduce order, accountability and efficiency into Kampala's waste management system.

“We are putting in place a system that gives Kampala the capacity to evacuate the waste that we generate every day. This is about bringing order, accountability and efficiency into waste management,” Buzeki said.

Nine private collectors assigned to city zones

The approved companies have been assigned specific areas to improve accountability and make it easier for residents to know who is responsible for collecting their waste.

They include Nabugabo Updeal Joint Venture Ltd for Central Division, Hill Top Enterprises Ltd for Kawempe South, YoWaste Ltd for Kawempe North, MTSL Energies Ltd for Lubaga South and Bigseal Holdings Ltd for Makindye East.

Others are Ecoserv Ltd for Nakawa West, De Waste U Ltd for Nakawa East and Biohaz Waste for Makindye West. 

The ninth collector will be allocated an operational zone after completion of the ongoing allocation process.

The new system is expected to serve Kampala's 857 villages through designated waste collection points, clearly defined collection schedules and household monitoring mechanisms.

KCCA Deputy Executive Director Benon Kigenyi said the authority wanted residents to have clear information about where their waste should be taken, when it would be collected and which service provider was responsible.

He said Division Town Clerks, local leaders, ward administrators, solid waste officers and licensed private collectors would work together to establish collection points and schedules within communities.

Bring-to-truck model introduced

One of the major changes under the new system will be the introduction of a “bring-to-truck” approach.

Instead of residents dumping waste on the ground while waiting for collection trucks, households and businesses will be expected to take their waste to designated collection points where it can be loaded directly onto authorised trucks.

According to KCCA, the model is intended to reduce the accumulation of garbage in communities and prevent waste from being dumped along roads, drainage channels and other unauthorised locations.

Buzeki also urged residents to separate waste at source, particularly organic and inorganic waste, to facilitate recovery, recycling and proper disposal.

The authority has warned that unauthorised waste collectors using tuk-tuks, wheelbarrows, bicycles and handcarts will not be permitted to continue operating outside the approved system.

KCCA argues that some informal waste collection practices have contributed to illegal dumping because waste collected from households is sometimes disposed of at unauthorised sites.

“We cannot continue to have a situation where waste is collected from a home and then dumped somewhere along the road or in a drainage channel. That defeats the whole purpose of waste collection,” Buzeki said.

Approved waste collection charges

Under the new arrangement, waste collection charges will vary depending on the category of waste generator.

Residents in informal settlements classified as urban poor will pay Sh1,000 per 50kg bag, while other domestic households and commercial premises will pay Sh3,000 per 50kg bag.

Institutions such as schools, churches, mosques and temples will pay Sh40,000 per load.

Kigenyi explained that the rates were approved by the KCCA Council in October 2024 and are intended to make waste collection affordable while enabling service providers to sustain their operations.

He said the charges are based on the polluter-pays principle, under which individuals and institutions that generate waste have a responsibility to ensure that it is properly managed.

KCCA, however, will continue to handle waste generated from Government common-user facilities, including public markets, KCCA taxi parks and KCCA health centres.

Government backs waste management reforms

The waste management reforms are also being supported by additional Government investment.

Government has committed funding for 10 new garbage trucks during the 2026/27 financial year.

It has also allocated Sh13 billion to commence Phase One of the development of a waste management facility at Buyala, which will focus on material recovery and waste repurposing.

The planned facility is expected to contribute to a broader shift from simply collecting and disposing of waste towards recovering useful materials and promoting recycling and repurposing.

The investment is seen as an important component of efforts to address Kampala's long-standing waste management challenges, particularly as the city continues to expand and generate increasing volumes of solid waste.

National Cleaning Day to be part of a sustained campaign

KCCA says the National Cleaning Day on August 29 should not be viewed as an isolated event.

The authority plans to continue its weekly Weyonje/KCCA clean-up activities as part of a sustained campaign to improve sanitation and cleanliness throughout the city.

Kigenyi emphasised that the objective was not simply to remove accumulated garbage on National Cleaning Day and then return to the same conditions afterwards.

“The issue is not simply to collect garbage on National Cleaning Day and then return to the same situation the following week. We are putting in place a system that should continue beyond August 29,” he said.

The approach is expected to create a permanent framework through which residents, businesses, institutions, local leaders and waste service providers can collectively take responsibility for keeping communities clean.

Residents urged to take responsibility

Despite the increased investment and expanded collection capacity, KCCA officials acknowledge that infrastructure and trucks alone cannot solve Kampala's waste crisis.

Buzeki said residents, traders, businesses and institutions must take responsibility for the waste they generate by using authorised collectors, observing collection schedules and avoiding illegal dumping.

“A clean Kampala cannot be achieved by KCCA alone. It requires every household, every trader, every institution and every business to play its part. Our responsibility is to provide the system, enforce the standards and ensure that the service is delivered,” she said.

The authority expects the new system to reduce illegal dumpsites, improve the speed of waste evacuation and create greater accountability among both waste generators and service providers.

With the August 29 National Cleaning Day approaching, KCCA's message is that the exercise should mark more than a temporary removal of accumulated garbage. Instead, it is intended to launch a more organised waste management system in which every household and institution knows how waste should be handled, who is responsible for collecting it and where it should ultimately go.

The success of the reforms will ultimately depend not only on the availability of trucks and licensed collectors, but also on enforcement, public cooperation, regular collection and responsible waste disposal by Kampala's residents.