Rethinking municipal waste management in urban centres

By Wejuli Junior Mike

As cities across Uganda and the wider African continent rapidly urbanize, one of the most urgent yet often neglected crises is the exponential rise in municipal solid waste. This surge is driven by increasing urban populations, changing consumption patterns, and the widespread use of non-biodegradable materials such as buvera (plastic bags).

Compounding this is the looming threat of climate change, which intensifies the environmental toll of poor waste practices and exposes the fragility of urban ecosystems. Weak enforcement of environmental policies, such as the poorly implemented ban on buvera, minimal fines for illegal dumping, corruption with calls from the so-called “big people”, and limited citizen engagement continue to undermine efforts.

Waste generation in Uganda’s urban centres now far exceeds the capacity of local authorities to manage it. While households are often encouraged to segregate their waste—organic, recyclable, and hazardous—such efforts are futile when garbage trucks mix all waste during collection. This contradiction reflects a deep systemic failure in the municipal waste management process.

The Kitezi landfill, located outside Kampala, is a striking case in point given that is has degenerated into an overburdened and hazardous dumping ground. Originally meant to last, the site has shown the effects of a faulty system and climate change.

Currently, the site releases toxic leachate into soil and water systems, emits climate-warming gases like methane, and poses grave health risks. The Kitezi crisis lays bare the consequences of neglecting urban waste management. But it also presents an opportunity to reimagine our systems and adopt modern, climate-conscious solutions.

Way forward

1. Establish separate waste collection systems in all urban divisions.
   All municipal authorities should deploy colour-coded bins and invest in waste trucks with separate compartments to ensure that household-level waste segregation is not reversed during collection.
2. Reduce plastic bag usage major cities by enforcing the buvera ban the same way it was for the sachet alcohol. The National Environment Management Authority should collaborate with city councils and private producers to promote and subsidize reusable packaging while imposing penalties on retailers who violate the ban.
3. Formalize and train at least 70% of informal waste pickers.
   Kampala Capital City Authority and municipal councils should register informal workers, provide them with safety gear, and train them in waste sorting and handling, thereby turning waste into a livelihood opportunity.
4. Increase urban waste recycling and composting rates by 50% through public-private partnerships. The government should incentivize private companies to set up recycling and composting plants and introduce a reward system for communities that separate and supply clean waste streams.
5. Integrate smart waste infrastructure into all new urban development plans. Urban planning authorities must ensure that every new estate or housing project includes space and systems for proper waste segregation, temporary storage, and easy collection.
6. Launch a nationwide community waste awareness campaign. Through radio, schools, and community leaders, the government and NGOs should promote messages about waste reduction, proper disposal, and environmental conservation to drive behaviour change at the grassroots level.

The burden of unmanaged waste in urban areas like Kampala is not only an environmental and health hazard but also a governance failure. From the overflowing Kitezi landfill to streets littered with plastic during rainy seasons, the evidence is clear. Waste is not just a sanitation issue and it is a climate, health, and development crisis.

The writer is a Public health intern at Wakiso district local government