Kabale residents renovate buildings marked for demolition

Kabale, Uganda | URN | Several residents in Kabale Municipality, whose houses were marked for demolition under the enforcement of the Trade Order Act, have begun renovating the structures despite warnings from authorities that the buildings will still be demolished.

In February 2026, the government started implementing the Trade Order by removing vendors from walkways, road reserves, and other unauthorized public spaces, while also targeting buildings constructed without approved physical plans or declared unfit for occupation.

In April this year, Kabale Municipal authorities identified structures earmarked for demolition and marked them with the letter “X,” directing owners to voluntarily pull them down before the enforcement exercise scheduled to start on Monday, May 11, 2026. However, a survey conducted by our reporter in the Northern and Southern divisions, as well as parts of the Central Division, found several residents renovating houses that had already been marked for demolition.

Among them were Edisa Muheirwe and Wilson Bende, who said they had decided to renovate their homes despite the warnings. Muheirwe explained that her house is used as a residence and not for commercial activities, adding that she has nowhere else to relocate if the building is demolished.

She appealed to the government to grant her more time to enable her to raise money to construct a permanent house. Bende said he had already spent more than two million shillings on renovations, noting that the planned demolitions have left him uncertain about his future.

Another resident, Jack Nkamwebonera, described the planned demolitions as unfair, saying residents are being forced to spend huge sums of money renovating their homes only for the same structures to later be destroyed. Nkamwebonera argued that the government should instead prioritize improving roads and other services rather than demolishing people’s houses.

He said residents in areas such as Bugongi continue to struggle with dust caused by poor roads despite investing heavily in their homes.

However, Eric Sunday warned that residents renovating buildings already marked for demolition are wasting both time and money because the municipal enforcement exercise will proceed as planned next week.