The Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development has assured Parliament that Kampala will no longer experience power outages caused by vandalism by the end of November 2026, following plans to connect the city to electricity supplies from both Owen Falls and Karuma hydropower dams.
The assurance was given by the Minister of State for Energy, Sidronius Okaasai, while responding to concerns during a parliamentary debate on a report investigating persistent electricity outages across the country.
Okaasai described the current power interruptions in Kampala as temporary, saying government was implementing measures to stabilise electricity supply and improve reliability.
However, Kole South Member of Parliament Boniface Okot questioned the country’s electricity reliability, revealing that Uganda had already recorded 107 hours of power interruptions by mid-2026, exceeding the 81-hour target set by the Electricity Regulatory Authority (ERA) for the entire year.
Meanwhile, the Leader of the Opposition, Joel Ssenyonyi, criticised government agencies over accumulated electricity arrears amounting to Shs269.84 billion as of September 30, 2026.
Ssenyonyi argued that the unpaid electricity bills had affected the Uganda Electricity Distribution Company Limited’s (UEDCL) ability to invest in the electricity sector and improve service delivery.
He warned that unreliable electricity supply was disrupting business operations, healthcare services and educational activities, with consumers continuing to bear the consequences of frequent power interruptions.
In response, Okaasai defended UEDCL’s performance and appealed to Ugandans to remain patient as government works towards achieving universal electricity access by 2032.
He explained that government was prioritising electricity connections to productive sectors, including industries, agriculture, mining and scientific institutions, as well as schools, before progressively extending wider access to households as additional resources become available.
The minister’s assurance comes amid growing parliamentary concerns over electricity reliability, mounting unpaid bills and the impact of persistent power interruptions on Uganda’s economic and social activities.
By Alex Magala
11th Nov 2026
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