10 FACTORS THAT HAVE INFLUENCED THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE TRANSPORT SECTOR IN UGANDA

 Looking at the transport network distribution in Uganda, the southern half has more developed transport routes than the northern part; this is due to historical, physical and economical factors.

• The location of major economic resources like agricultural regions, mining centers, forestry, fishing, etc. for instance transport routes have been constructed to link areas with tourist attractions like water transport to Ssese islands, air transport to Kasese near Queen Elizabeth and Kampala-Mbarara road.

• Transport routes have been constructed to link industrial areas for raw-materials, labour, and manufactured goods transportation like roads linking Kampala’s Bugolobi, Kawempe and Nakawa industrial areas.

• The railway route was extended to northern Uganda to facilitate the marketing of cotton, tobacco, maize, millet, simsim, etc.

• Roads and railway have been constructed to link areas with a mineral resource like a railway line to Kasese to serve copper mines at Kirembe, road transport to Kabale for tin and wolfram mining, etc.

• Timber from Ssese islands have been transported by water to the main land via Bukakata. Roads have also transported timber and wood fuel from Mabira, Budongo, etc.

• The levels of technological resource i.e. the availability of skilled labour to extract the available resources like engineers have helped to extend Uganda’s transport system.

• The nature of relief i.e. mountainous areas tend to remain remote like in Kisoro and Bundibugyo because it becomes difficult to construct transport routes and in flat and gentle relief like in Mpigi, Wakiso, Kampala, Jinja there are developed transport networks.

• Large water bodies like Victoria has facilitated water transport development through ports like Port Bell, Bukakata, Jinja, etc. however waterfalls and rapids like on R. Nile have blocked water transport.

• Influence of climate i.e. areas in Uganda that receive heavy rainfall make it hard to construct and maintain roads like in Mukono and Kapchworwa.

• Industrialization and urbanization leads to development of efficient, reliable, modern and well maintained transport network. This explains why Kampala city has got the best transport system in Uganda.

• Government policy encourages or discourages transport network extension. Today the government of Uganda is emphasizing the development of water transport to reduce on transport costs. Also the government puts a lot of money in the ministry of works to establish transport routes though it’s affected by corruption.

• Availability of a large capital base to invest in the development of modern transport network. It should be noted that the construction of transport routes is very expensive.

• Historical factor of early colonialists who constructed many roads in the central region for administration and a railway line to link raw-material collecting centers like the Jinja-Kasese railway line to collect copper ores.

• The Arabs and Missionaries also helped in the construction of roads in parts of Buganda, Busoga, and Bunyoro to help them spread their religion.

• Political instability

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