West Nile investors cry out to Government about poor roads.

Local investors in West Nile are demanding that the government improves the poor state of roads if the sub region is to become a key investment area. The Investors made the appeal in Nebbi district, during the first West Nile investment summit organized by Uganda Investment Authority.

According to them, cost of running business has increased because of poor state of the road networks in the area. Without a proper network of transportation, business is not bound to flourish as expected.

Vincent Okaba, the proprietor of Roke Fuel Station in Nebbi district says that although government has embarked on the establishing industrial parks, better road infrastructure network is one of the key pre-requisites to enhance development in the region.

He says the local investors have been suffocating with the high cost of maintaining vehicles due to the poor state of roads which leave their vehicles in poor mechanical conditions.

In 2015, while addressing his supporters at Bar Okoro in Paidha Town, President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni promised to tarmac the Nebbi-Goli road to link Uganda to DR Congo which has since not been fulfilled.

Currently, the Karuma-Olwiyo-Pakwach-Nebbi-Arua highway road is in sorry state with several potholes, poor drainage which has not only affected smooth flow of traffic but has turned to be a death route.

However, the Minister of Finance Matia Kasaija who was the chief guest at the investment summit on Saturday apologised over the poor state of the Karuma-Olwiyo-Pakwach-Nebbi-Arua road and pledged government support towards its repairs.

He says government delayed to repair the road due to funding challenges but they now have money to undertake the works