Uganda has signed a contract with Japan’s Zenitaka Corporation to build a new bridge at Karuma, paving the way for the replacement of the ageing crossing over the River Nile on the Kampala–Gulu highway.
The Karuma Hydropower Station is Uganda’s flagship, 600 MW underground hydroelectric plant located on the Kyoga Nile in Kiryandongo District, approximately 270 km from Kampala. Commissioned on September 26, 2024, it is the largest power project in East Africa
The deal was signed on Friday at a ceremony at the Keio Plaza Hotel in Tokyo by Eng Isaac Wani, commissioner for national roads at Uganda’s Ministry of Works and Transport, and Zenitaka’s Osamu Tanabe
Ground is due to be broken in September, with construction starting in October 2026.
The project is funded by the Japanese government through the Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica) under a grant agreement signed in March last year, in which Japan committed about 4.9bn yen (about 121bn Ugandan shillings) towards the works. The overall project has been valued at about 550bn shillings ($150m).
The new crossing will be a 240m elevated cable-stayed bridge built about 12m higher than the existing structure, which was constructed in 1963, a year after Uganda gained independence.
The old bridge — a narrow, single-carriageway crossing with sharp curves and no pedestrian lanes — has been the site of several major accidents and has been closed to traffic on a number of occasions in recent years for emergency repairs, disrupting the flow of goods and people between central Uganda, the north, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Speaking at the signing, Eng Wani said the new bridge would restore safe and efficient movement along the Kampala–Gulu highway, strengthen regional connectivity and support trade and investment. He thanked Japan and Jica for their continued support and pledged government backing to ensure the project is delivered on time.
Uganda’s ambassador to Japan, Tophace Kaahwa, said Japan’s support demonstrated the strong relations between the two countries and called for the partnership to be deepened. The ceremony was also witnessed by Uganda’s solicitor general, Pius Perry Biribonwoha, with the Ugandan embassy in Tokyo coordinating the engagements.
Zenitaka is no stranger to Uganda. The firm was one of the contractors that built the Source of the Nile Bridge in Jinja, the 525m cable-stayed crossing commissioned in 2018, which the new Karuma structure is expected to resemble. The company and project consultants Oriental Consultants Global pledged to deliver the bridge to the highest engineering standards and within the agreed timeline.
The Karuma crossing, about 257km north of Kampala, is a critical gateway between central Uganda and the north, and the government expects the new bridge to cut travel delays, improve safety and boost regional trade.
