Kiteezi landfill collapse victims to get Shs4.3b compensation- KCCA

Members of the Safe and Dignified burial team from the Uganda Red Cross Society carry a body that was recovered from Kiteezi landfill garbage on August 14, 2024.

Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) has earmarked Shs4.3 billion to compensate families affected by the Kiteezi landfill collapse, which occurred last year.

Speaking to journalists during the end-of-year message at City Hall on Tuesday, KCCA executive director, Ms Sharifah Buzeki, revealed that the authority is undertaking wide-ranging reforms in garbage management, governance and urban renewal.

“We have Shs4.3 billion ready to compensate the Kiteezi victims, and so far out of 96 people who registered, 75 are ready to receive their compensation,” she said.

She said the compensation which has taken over a year to happen is intended to restore dignity to the affected families, and that government is committed to ensuring that it reaches the intended beneficiaries.

"The compensation process is ongoing, with verification mechanisms in place to ensure transparency and fairness," she said.

She revealed that only victims who submitted the right documents would be compensated.

“We want to be sure that the right people are compensated and that the process is clear, accountable and just. By the end of tomorrow, those who were screened will be getting their money through their individual accounts," she said.

Garbage management

According to her, the Kiteezi disaster has inspired KCCA’s intensified push to reform solid waste management, as one of the city’s biggest challenges.

"Garbage management remains a major issue for a fast-growing city like Kampala, and we are strengthening the entire chain from collection and transportation to disposal with safety, environmental protection, and sustainability at the centre," she said

She added that KCCA is working closely with private waste collectors, division authorities, and communities to reduce illegal dumping and improve efficiency.

“This cannot be managed from City Hall alone. Divisions and communities must be part of the solution,” Buzeki said.

Kiteezi collapse

The Kiteezi landfill, located in Wakiso District, has served as Kampala’s main waste disposal site since the mid-1990s.

Originally designed as a controlled dumping site, Kiteezi gradually became overstretched as Kampala’s population and waste volumes grew.

Over the years, concerns were raised about poor drainage, inadequate engineering safeguards, encroachment by surrounding communities, and delayed relocation of residents living close to the landfill.

The situation worsened following prolonged heavy rains, which triggered a partial collapse of the waste mound, burying homes and killing residents in nearby settlements.

The tragedy sparked public outrage and renewed scrutiny of Kampala’s waste management systems and the safety of communities living around the landfill.

Other key issues

As part of broader service delivery reforms, KCCA last year devolved six key functions to the city’s five divisions, empowering them to take charge of day-to-day operations.

“When we took office, the divisions were largely powerless. They could not make decisions or act,” Buzeki said.

“By July 1, 2025, we devolved the functions provided for in the law, and divisions are now able to operate independently.”

Buzeki also highlighted KCCA’s five-year accountability framework aligned to the Fourth National Development Plan (NDP IV), noting that planning documents have been deliberately taken to the grassroots.

“These documents will guide our journey over the next five years,” she said.

Ms Buzeki said KCCA is investing in beautification and urban greening, describing Kampala as “the soul of the nation.”

Over the past year, the authority has improved landscaping along State Square, Nile Avenue, Ginger Road, and Kampala Road, distributed over 3,000 seedlings to schools, planted fruit trees during the Kampala City Festival, and rehabilitated selected green spaces.

She urged residents to protect the city’s greenery and take ownership of Kampala’s transformation.

On August 10 last year, a tragedy befell residents of Kiteezi following the collapse of the landfill under its own weight and killed at least 34 people coupled with burying of livestock and houses, according to police.

Then executive director of KCCA Dorothy Kisaka, her deputy David Luyimbazi and the director health services, Dr Daniel Okello were arrested and charged with 34 counts of manslaughter and 21 counts of occasioning grievous harm by rush and neglect.