Uganda has launched a Shs694 billion (about €145 million) water and sanitation project meant to give more than one million people in Wakiso District and nearby areas west of Kampala a reliable supply of safe drinking water, Uganda Broadcasting Corporation reported on 4 November 2026.

The National Water and Sewerage Corporation (NWSC) announced the Wakiso West project this week after signing a consultancy contract. NWSC Managing Director Dr Silver Mugisha said it is expected to provide "over 1 million people with uninterrupted access to safe, reliable drinking water," according to PML Daily.

Many households in these western suburbs now live with rationing and irregular taps, because Kampala's main treatment plants sit on the city's east side and water has to travel a long way through an ageing network.

What will be built

Water will be drawn from Lake Victoria at Bwerenga, where a new treatment plant will clean 62.5 million litres a day. The plan also includes:

• 94.2 km of transmission pipes and 78.5 km of secondary pipes;
• five reservoirs, at Kaga, Nsangi, Nanziga, Mpigi and Bukasa, storing more than 15.25 million litres together;
• pumping stations at Buloba, Katende, Maya and Ssekiwunga;
• solar installations at selected sites, generating at least 2,945 kilowatts.

The areas to benefit include Kyengera, Nsangi, Kajjansi, Kasanje, Kiringente, and the Wakiso and Mpigi town councils.

Reaching informal settlements

About 160,000 of the people served live in informal settlements. For them, the project plans 941 community water dispensers and yard taps with electronic prepaid meters, along with a faecal sludge treatment plant in Kajjansi able to process at least 400,000 litres a day. Dr Mugisha said these steps are intended "to make safe water more accessible and affordable, particularly for underserved communities."

That matters because people without a tap often pay a lot for water. Residents of Kyengera told the outlet they buy well water at Shs1,000 to Shs2,000 a jerrycan.

What still needs to happen

This is the start of the planning stage, not the end of construction. The consultancy, worth about Shs47.5 billion, goes to a joint venture of NIRAS (Denmark) and Fichtner (Germany), with Ugandan firms M&E Associates and Alliance Consultants as sub-consultants. They will design the works, prepare tender documents and later supervise construction.

The design phase, funded by a grant from Impact Fund Denmark, is due to take 20 months, with the main works contract planned for month 19. Supervision of construction is expected to run 30 months, followed by a 12-month defects period, and will be paid for by a concessional loan with a 50 percent grant element. The reports do not give a date for when the taps will flow, so people in Wakiso will wait some years yet.

Why it matters

Safe water that arrives reliably, and a way to treat waste properly, protect families from disease and save time and money. Pairing water supply with sanitation, and designing for people in informal settlements, shows where progress is hardest and most needed.

Learn more

• Uganda Broadcasting Corporation: Government launches Shs694b water project
• PML Daily: NWSC launches Shs694bn Wakiso West water project

Sources: Uganda Broadcasting Corporation, "Government launches Shs694b Water project to serve over 1 million in Kyengera, Wakiso, Kajjansi and Mpigi," 4 November 2026; PML Daily, "NWSC launches Shs694bn Wakiso west water project to end supply shortages for 1m people," 3 November 2026.

How you can help

These nonprofits work to bring safe water, sanitation and hygiene to communities in need:

• UNICEF Uganda supports water, sanitation and hygiene services for children and families across Uganda.
• WaterAid works with communities and governments to bring clean water, toilets and hygiene to people in Africa and beyond.
• charity: water funds community water projects that give people in developing countries access to safe drinking water.