Published on 28/12/2024
Newly appointed Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) Executive Director Hajat Sharifah Buzeki wasted no time outlining her vision upon arrival at City Hall.
Buzeki’s agenda focuses on tackling urgent urban challenges while building a foundation for sustainable growth. With a strategic plan in hand, she identified 11 critical priorities to transform the city.
“The first days in office are crucial in setting the tone for the desired transformation to meet the city population’s expectations,” she said in a statement as soon as she received news that President Yoweri Museveni had appointed her the new boss at the City Hall.
The appointment of Buzeki, who has been the local government ministry commissioner in charge of human resource management and that of her deputy, Benon Moses Kigenyi will wait for formalisation by the public service ministry.
Both officials worked at the public service ministry, where Buzeki served in the department of inspection and quality assurance and in the department of human resource policies and procedures before she was moved to the local government ministry early this year.
Buzeki’s key priorities include; waste management and use of innovative methods in handling the volume of waste generated in Kampala city.
“The waste management practices that will reduce pressure on the landfill and are ecosystem friendly like recycling, and re-use will be preferred,” she said, adding that she and her team would ensure cleanliness and beautification of city spaces.
The second key priority will include ‘urban planning and infrastructure improvement to ensure guided development in the city’.
She will also focus on addressing traffic congestion in the city.
“Implement short-term measures like digitally optimising traffic flow, improving intersections and making city roads motorable”.
“Public safety and security is key; Kampala city should be a livable city for all of us”.
She added, “I intend to collaborate with the Police and other security agencies and street committees to enhance safety in high-risk areas, particularly addressing street crime and areas with limited Police presence”.
About regulating public spaces, Buzeki said, “I intend to develop programmes to ensure safety and proper regulation of informal markets, street vendors and other public spaces, ensuring they are organised, secure and accessible”.
She also has a vision of hosting town hall meetings and other forms of public engagement to understand the concerns and needs of residents.
“Transparency and listening to residents will help me foster active citizen participation in transforming the city”.
The sixth priority is about inclusive governance: “I will prioritise policies that promote inclusivity, ensuring that marginalised groups, including women and youth, are engaged and planned for. We need everybody onboard to develop the city,” she stated.
Revenue realisation
She also intends to revitalise the city economy to enhance revenue realisation.
“We will support small businesses and come up with initiatives to support local entrepreneurs and businesses, particularly those in informal sectors, by offering training, access to finance, infrastructure support and encourage them to formalize their businesses to narrow the informal sector,” she said, adding that this will be done through anchoring on programmes like Emyooga, PDM (Parish Development Model) and GROW (Generating Growth Opportunities and Productivity for Women Enterprises), among others.
According to Buzeki, she intends to work towards digitalising revenue management to limit physical interactions between taxpayers and collectors and minimise wastage along the revenue collection chain.
“In addition, we will enforce trade order, improve management of markets and trade, develop plans to make markets habitable, and improve market occupancy to facilitate organised trade in the city”.
On environmental sustainability, the new ED wants to promote green spaces and tree planting as a key strategy.
“We intend to initiate campaigns to protect and improve on and create more green spaces, and conserve parks in the city,” she explained, adding that her other priority would be to regularly maintain the city drainage system.
She also intends to explore the use of suction trucks in flood-prone areas as we redesign the city.
“After taking over office, more areas of focus will be revealed through the initial meetings that I intend to hold with the different directorates, divisions, political leadership, and the different interest groups in the city,” she said.
Coming with an open mind
She added, “To my staff in the city, I have to manage the transition, I come with an open mind and will give everyone who is willing to work for the development of the city a chance as we endeavor make Kampala a preferred destination”.
Buzeki also intends to strengthen anti-corruption efforts by implementing clear anti-corruption measures and increasing public transparency in all areas of the city’s governance.
“Let us join hands to improve the city’s infrastructure, safety, and overall livability while laying the groundwork for sustainable long-term growth,” she appeals.
Among the key tasks Buzeki accomplished include championing the cascading of the balanced scorecard approach to managing performance in the local governments.
She has also spearheaded the documentation of service delivery standards for services offered in local governments, revamped the inspection function of the Government, and headed the Technical Committee on the Review of 2010 Edition of the Uganda Public Service Standing Orders giving rise to the 2021 Edition.
“I championed the Application of the Balanced Scorecard in assessing performance of Public Service Institutions”.
Buzeki also served as a technical advisor to Makerere University on human resource management and labour harmony.
She holds a master’s degree in public administration and management from the Islamic University in Uganda (IUIU), an administrative officer’s Law Course from the Law Development Center (LDC), a Postgraduate Diploma in Human Resources Management from IUIU, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Social Sciences from IUIU.
She is a member of the Chartered Human Management Policy Analyst, Human Resource Managers Association of Uganda (HRMAU), Uganda Public Service Human Resource Manager’s Network (UPSHRMNet) and an alumni of Female Future Leadership programme.
