Kampala officials tour Kiira Motors plant as city accelerates electric bus rollout
A delegation from the Kampala Capital City Authority visited the 100-acre Kiira Motors facility, examining local manufacturing capacity and laying groundwork for a Bus Rapid Transit system it hopes will ease the capital's chronic congestion.
Engineers, mechanics and road safety specialists from the Kampala Capital City Authority descended on the Kiira Motors manufacturing plant on Friday, signalling the city’s most concrete steps yet toward building a modern electric public transport network in the Ugandan capital.
The delegation, led by Eng. Jacob Byamukama and including traffic control officers and road safety expert Jemima Nalumansi, toured the company’s facility in Jinja and observed the full arc of vehicle production — from chassis fabrication and body assembly through painting, quality assurance and road testing.
“We wanted to see how buses are made, how long they take and how we are going to work together to support e-buses in Kampala,” Byamukama said during the tour.
Eight Kiira Motors electric buses are already operating in Kampala under the first phase of a broader rollout. The company says it aims to have at least 100 units deployed in the city by the end of the year, including vehicles expected to operate along the Entebbe route.
The visit also had a strategic dimension. The delegation assessed whether Kiira’s production line could supply 18-metre articulated buses required for Kampala’s planned Bus Rapid Transit system — a more ambitious mass transit project the city has long been preparing.
Eng. Richard Madanda, head of production at Kiira Motors, told officials the company has the capacity to meet that specification. “We can have the mechanics trained, and we also believe in data,” he said. “We have the capacity to do 18-metre buses.”
“We have the capacity to do 18-metre buses.” Eng. Richard Madanda, Head Of Production, Kiira Motors
The two institutions discussed a training programme for KCCA technicians and mechanics who will maintain future bus fleets, as well as plans for supporting infrastructure including bus depots. Madanda said Kiira Motors is prepared to run training alongside vehicle supply.
Kampala, which hosts more than four million people during the day, faces persistent traffic congestion that city officials say has become a drag on productivity and quality of life. Improving mass transit is central to KCCA’s strategy for reducing travel times across the capital.
Vincent Muhumuza, a quality assurance engineer at Kiira Motors, said safety and production standards remain a priority as the company scales up output. Kiira is currently producing both electric and diesel buses. The company also confirmed it is preparing to deliver a new team bus for KCCA FC.
For KCCA, the visit represented a tangible step toward a more organised public transport system, one built, at least in part, on locally manufactured vehicles.
