By Our Staff Reporter

KAMPALA, UGANDA | 10th October 2026
The Government of Uganda has ordered the immediate eviction of all people illegally occupying railway land and the demolition of unauthorised structures across the country to pave the way for the rehabilitation of the national railway network.

The directive follows concerns raised by President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni during the 10th Cabinet meeting held on September 28, 2026, over the failure by Uganda Railways Corporation (URC) to protect railway reserves.

In a letter dated September 29, Minister of Works and Transport Fred Byamukama instructed the URC Managing Director to remove encroachers and demolish illegal structures without further delay.

The minister explained that railway corridors had been surveyed and demarcated as far back as the 1980s and 1990s, but poor enforcement had allowed private developments to occupy land reserved for railway operations.

Where boundaries are unclear, the Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development will provide qualified surveyors to establish the correct railway boundaries.

Byamukama also directed URC to stop leasing railway land for private investment as government increases funding for railway rehabilitation.

The directive comes as Uganda moves to restore its approximately 1,266-kilometre metre-gauge railway network, much of which has remained inactive for years.

Government is pursuing major rehabilitation projects, including the Kampala–Malaba railway corridor, supported by approximately US$301 million in African Development Bank financing, and the Tororo–Gulu railway line.

The projects are expected to reduce cargo transport costs, ease pressure on roads, improve regional trade and strengthen Uganda’s connections with Kenya, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Parliamentary reports have raised concerns about thousands of cases of encroachment on railway land, highlighting the challenges facing URC in protecting public property.

However, the ministerial directive does not specify when evictions will begin, which areas will be affected first or how many people could be displaced.

Attention now turns to Uganda Railways Corporation and relevant government agencies to implement the directive while observing lawful procedures and protecting the rights of affected communities.