KIRYANDOGO.
By Joseph Kiggundu
Government has finalized plans to erect a new bridge over River Nile at Karuma along the Kampala-Gulu highway.
Design has been released and according to Dr Morris Odoch Odrua, Senior Engineer Civil Bridges and Structures at the Ministry of Works and Transport (MoWT), the construction works will last three years.
“We are in the process of getting the contractor going. Almost everything is ready, what is remaining is the tiniest part,” he confirmed during the inspection of the site last week.
Explaining more about the new bridge, Mr Odrua said it will have a lifespan of 120 years and will be an extradosed elevated bridge, combining both beam and cable. The new bridge will tower 12 meters above the old one.
The project for the 240 meter long bridge will start from an access road of 800 meters from the Kiryandongo side to straighten the curves. Across the river, another 640 meters shall act as access road on the main road in Nwoya District.
“Because we want to eliminate the curves, it will be straight, like the one in Jinja, meaning that it will also facilitate high speeds compared to the current one which must be approached cautiously because of the curves on either side,” he added.
Mr. Odrua also revealed that the old bridge shall not be demolished.
“It will be maintained for security purposes but also as a secondary option to the new one, for light traffic like motorcycles. The very same way we left the old Jinja bridge operational,” he added.
In March 2025, Mr Inoue and Finance Minister Matiya Kasaija represented Japan and Uganda respectively at the grant agreement signing ceremony in Kampala, where it was revealed that Shs.125bn ($35m) will fund the project.
The existing Karuma bridge was constructed in 1963 with a lifespan of 50 years, but has been limping on under a “maintenance and service life” program as government looked to construct a new bridge.
In 2024, the bridge was fully closed for three months (September-December) to carry out rehabilitation and maintenance works, following cracks which had developed on its beam structure.
In December 2025, the government of Japan, which also funded the construction of the New Nile Bridge in Jinja, revealed that everything is now in place to begin construction of the new Karuma bridge in June this year.
Mr Yoichi Inoue, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica) Chief Representative, confirmed this to the media on the proposed site.
“We are proud to say that the project is getting started, and we shall deliver a magnificent project like the one we delivered in Jinja,” he said.