KAMPALA–At the ongoing annual symposium for Uganda Architects, which kicked off this morning, the professionals are asking Government to establish new building regulations which match with the modern times.
The 10th annual symposium, which is held at Golf Course Hotel, participants are arguing that the building regulations Uganda is using were inherited from colonial government.
“All the post-independence Governments adopted the colonial building regulations but currently they are relevant. We have over 30 million, moving from rural set up into urban setting,” said Willis Otto, the President Uganda Society of Architects Association.
Some of the old regulations, Otto cite one of the regulations which dictate that when constructing the house when front side must face the main road, the latrines should be constructed certain meters away from the main house.
New trend
Other architects are asking whether a modern house should have garage.
Having garages seem to be phased out in the city suburbs. Many factors are pushing to phase out building garages, as Muhammad Nsereko another city architect explains.
He says many of the dwellers buy small plots of land, running away from the expenses of monthly renting.
“Also tented cars are cheaper than constructing garages,” he added.
The architects also want the Building Controlling Act, 2013, be implemented, to make the National Building Review Board functioning.
Once it starts to operate, the board is supposed to set up the fees for architectural plans submitted to the municipal councils or Kampala Capital City Authority.
“Currently, each council charges its own fees. The board to look at all those issues,” Otto argued.
The symposium has also attended by officials from the ministry of works , 41 municipal councils, Uganda Law Society, university students and other players from the construction sector, under theme, ‘the implementation , to sustainable build environment.’
While opening the symposium, General Katumba Wamala, the state minister for works said the symposium is a good forum to exchange ideas.
He said the theme is timely and falls under his ministry’s mandate of managing the public works and developing standards, for construction sector.
