Labour Day: Inside Mbale park’s daily influx of young workers

At the break of dawn, before Mbale City fully wakes, the Mbale-Kampala road, which leads to Mbale-Sino Industrial Park, is already alive.

Thousands of young men and women move from either direction of the road, most of them on foot and a few others on boda bodas, from their respective villages within Mbale city and neighbouring areas to the park.

By the time the factory gates open at 7am, the area is packed. Lines begin to form as security guards carry out checks to allow the workers to enter. The air fills with a mix of anticipation and quiet anxiety.

Among the crowd is Beatrice Logose, a 22-year-old and a Senior Three dropout, who now works as a crane operator in UniSteel Investment Uganda Limited, one of the factories operating in the park, which opened in 2018.

“I am going to work and I'm happy because at first, being a school dropout, I never imagined anyone would employ me but when I came to the park seeking employment, I was given. After acquiring skills, I can now operate a crane and other heavy machines,” Ms. Logose says.

The UniSteel factory, worth 100 million US dollars, covers an area of 140,000 square meters and it has nearly 500 local employees. It has an annual production capacity of 700,000 tonnes.

It produces high-quality rebar, wire rod and other steel products to fill the gap in Uganda's refined steelmaking technology.

Ms. Logose adds that although they work with machines, their safety is guaranteed through use of improved technology and personal protective gear such as gumboots, gloves, helmets, overalls, safety shoes and belts.

“We use high-tech machinery like cranes, like forklifts, I think to make sure that us, employees do not labor too much to do the work. For instance, each pellet is approximately five tons, which cannot be lifted by a human being,” she says.

Ms Logose is one of the over 13,500 employees who work in the park. The park, which was commissioned in 2018 with a total investment portfolio of $600m (Shs2.2 trillion), sits on 619-acre land.

It currently has over 82 factories with 62 operational, producing a variety of goods, including glass, textile, household detergents, mobile phones, smart televisions, baby diapers, clothes, LED bulbs, tubes, electrical meters and socks.

Ms. Brenda Nagudi, working at Chint Meters Electrical (U) LTD as an electrical engineer, says they are provided with rings to protect them from electric shocks as they carry on their duties.

“The working environment is generally friendly, especially for us women. We work from 7:30am up to 6pm and we are paid on time,” she says.

She says she has learnt how to assemble, solder, and repair electricity meters, skills she now uses even within her community to earn more money.

“Although I completed a course in electrical engineering, I initially lacked practical skills in meter production, which I have since acquired through training at the factory,” she says.

Chint Meters and Electrical (U) LTD, which is a joint venture between Chint, Tiantang and Kampala Electric Mart, produces single phase meters with an annual output of 300,000 units.

Ms. Lilian Namuddu, who works as an inventory manager at Chint Meters and Electrical (U) LTD, says accidents are rarely registered because the workers are provided with protective gear. “The accidents are quite rare because we wear full PPE when we are handling the meters,” Ms. Namuddu, a graduate of Bachelor of Science in Engineering from Makerere University, says.

She adds that employees earn income and also benefit from NSSF, insurance, and overtime bonuses, something which has improved productivity among employees in the park.

“We have insurance and NSSF because they never used to pay for me in NSSF where I previously worked. We also get incentives for working overtime,” says Ms. Namuddu.

As Uganda celebrates International Labour Day on May 1, 2026 under the theme, “Safeguarding Uganda’s progress: Empowering the workforce and promoting decent work for competitive enterprise,” some workers in the parks have also demanded action on the minimum wage bill, saying this will enable them to get decent pay.

Ms. Ariana Nanyanzi, a Senior Four dropout from a rural village of Bulubandi in Iganga District, who works as an excavator operator, says she earns Shs900,000 per month, the money she says is enough to take care of her needs.

“It’s a lot of money because I have no family yet and no child. I use part of the money to support the education of my siblings. I am happy and I have made the excavator my dream machine,” she says.

After dropping out of school due to lack of fees in 2021, Ms. Nanyanzi joined a busy garage in Mbale-Sino Industrial Park to work as a mechanic. She started as a spanner girl.

Working as a mechanic, Nanyanzi navigated the male-dominated space with confidence, fixing vehicles and in the long run, earned respect from clients and colleagues alike.

“At first I worked as a spanner girl. The mechanics, all of them men, used to send me to bring different types of spanners. Some used to ridicule me and others supported me until I learnt the trade,” she says.

After two years as a mechanic, Nanyanzi, whose childhood dream revolved around machines, shifted from the garage to the department of machines where operating excavators was the main trade, within the same industrial park.

“I picked interest in the excavator machines. Many of my colleagues, who were all men, told me I cannot handle what they called a man machine but I told them I will handle it. I decided to join the department of machines and I was given a master to try my luck,” she says, with a beaming smile.

Ms. Rose Nambozo, another employee, says after numerous searches for jobs within Mbale City, she finally got a job at Mbale Sino Industrial Park.

“Before joining the industrial park, my situation was bad. When I started working, my condition started to improve and I am now able to provide my children with education, medication, pay rent and also provide myself with basic needs that I need as a woman, which was not the case before,” she says.

Ms. Nambozo says the establishment of the park is a blessing to the single mothers and school dropouts in the region.

“I appeal to single mothers and entire women to come and apply for the jobs so that they are productive,” she says.

She says the park gives mothers a 3-month maternity leave and also provides pads to the girls and women working in the park.

Mr. Moses Mugoya, a human resource administration manager, says the welfare of the workers is key to growth of factories.

“A worker is the heart of the factory. If we need results, we have to ensure the welfare of workers. We also recruit able and competent workers,” he said.

Daily Monitor also learnt that factories in the park have also put in place strategies and technologies to control emission of gases into the air to mitigate pollution.

For instance, the wastewater which the factories generate from the production processes is treated and reused by factories for more production and for other uses such as cleaning printing glasses and mixing chemicals.

Last year, President Museveni commissioned four more factories including Unisteel Investment Uganda Limited, Nice Textiles Uganda Limited, Xinlon Textile and Garment Technology Co LTD and Timber Paper Industry Co LTD.

Mr. Kennedy Mushemeza, the public relations manager for Sino-Uganda Mbale Industrial Park, said park administration prioritizes the safety of workers through the use of modern technology.

“So for that matter, we use cranes and forklifts or other lifting machinery. In the electric companies or factories which are dealing in electronics, we make sure that our employees are protected from electric shock,” he said.

He said the recruited workers undergo fresh training which equips them with skills for their future sustainability.

“A person who came without a skill after dropping out of school due to unknown factors can be trained in tailoring or even in electronics, electrical engineering, welding, painting, construction, among others,” he said, adding that employees are paid according to their skills and productivity, with more skilled and productive workers earning higher wages.

Mr. Laurent Zhang, the administration manager of the park, said out of 13,500 employees in the park, 65 percent are female.

“Employees undergo continuous training, especially in high-tech factories such as phone and television assembly plants, as well as textile and electronics manufacturing units, to ensure long-term sustainability,” he said.