Uganda Museum redevelopment bidding process starts

Thursday May 12, 2011

The bidding process for the redevelopment of the Uganda Museum into an ultra-modern building, the East African Trade Centre, has started.

The trade, tourism and industry minister, Kakinda Otafiire, revealed this at his farewell party held at the ministry headquarters in Kampala on Tuesday.

“We have reached the bidding stage. The tower is going to be built,” he said, adding that the current museum was “a museum piece” itself.

The Uganda Museum was built in 1953 and has never been expanded.

However, some people are opposed the redevelopment of the museum.

But Otafiire said those opposing the redevelopment of the museum are enemies of development.

The 60-storey centre will house the tourism ministry, the national museum, offices and shopping malls.

He said the trade centre will promote Uganda’s image in the tourism market because “it will have a range of quality services like office space, which are appealing attractions for tourists globally.”

Otafiire said the main objective of the project was to contribute to the growth, development and diversification of the country’s economy through sustainable income generation by the tourism sector.

By Aidah Nanyonjo: The New Vision News paper