By Jimmy Twist
02 June 2025
Mbarara City –Mbarara City council authorities have pardoned fish vendors by reducing the prohibitive rental fees for lock-ups in the new Mbarara Central Market.
Following an existing stance between fresh fish vendors and Mbarara city council authorities on how much should each vendor pay, the council has reduced the rental fees from Shs 100,000 to Shs 70,000 starting with effective July 2025.
According to Milton Mugizi, internal auditor the issue of fish vendors started in 2021, when they complained that the rent fees asked for their lockups were high compared to the return on investment.
“When you go to level 3, 20 stalls are not occupied, and the 15 fresh fish vendors were assessed to pay Shs 100,000 but they are defiant and decided to pay Shs 50,000. Then for the 26 assessed fowl cages, the vendors are paying Shs 25,000 instead of Shs 30,000 approved rates,” Mugizi said
Justine Natukunda, attending her fish stall at Mbarara central market. Joshua Nahamya
He added that “they even petitioned to the minister of local government Rapheal Magyezi who sent us a permanent secretary Ben Kumumanya to harmonize but as landlords we failed to agree because the new market act 2023 stipulates that it is the landlord who has the mandate to assess and set the rent fees”.
“We did not even avail to them the tenants’ agreement like any other vendors in the market until last week when they issued a fresh petition to council asking for fresh rent reductions. I went with the market master and found out that chicken vendors [foul cages] and fish vendors though assessed according to the approved rates are paying less than what was assessed,” Mugizi stated
He also highlighted that the said fresh fish vendors have arrears that total to Shs 600,000 thus recommending the accounting officer to take immediate action.
“The arrogance of fresh fish vendors has caused other market vendors to resist payment of rent fees. When you go to level 4, occupants are not compliant with the payment of council fees. They are ever with a lot of complaints” adding that the fresh fish vendors should be forced to pay the assessed amount or else be evicted from the market premises.” Mugizi noted
He also recommended the accounting officer establish an investigation into the market vendors’ Sacco which closed in 2019 with members’ savings.
Eunice Asiimwe, councilor representing female PWDs confirmed that the revised rental fees were approved by the joint multipurpose committee during a council meeting on Friday as requested by the fish vendors.
“Before the councilors anonymously embraced the new rental rates on Friday, this matter was extensively discussed during our joint multipurpose where I happen to be the chairperson of that committee.” Asiimwe said
Meanwhile, the councilors recommended the town clerk terminate the contract between the city council and Kawaida Investments Ltd over the MTN paintings in the market stressing that the MOU was illegally signed without the council minutes.
“I want to agree with the town clerk that the MOU is for 5 years but the conditions may not have been met which call for revoking. We are not aware of the 5 years MOU; we don’t even know when it was signed and when it’s ending because it doesn’t have the date.” Ronald Taremwa Bamuhaira, Secretary for Finance and Administration submitted
Responding to the concerns, Mbarara City Town Clerk Justine Barekye asked the fish vendors to pay the arrears worth Shs 600,000 before commencing to Shs 70,000 rental fees effective 1st July 2025.
“The 15 fresh fish vendors operating in Mbarara central market should clear all their arrears in three installments up to June 2025 at monthly rental fees of Shs. 50,000, then effective 1st July, 2025, they should all start paying Shs 70,000 per month not Shs 100,000 as it was approved before,” Barekye stated
On the election of new market leaders, the town clerk asked the vendors to wait for the missing guidelines to operationalize the amended Market Act, of 2023.
“As we were guided, I cannot implement this Act because I don’t have the regulations in place. However we are having a meeting with the permanent secretary and the minister on Wednesday next week over MATIP markets. We are submitting the challenges we are facing in these markets and one of them is lack of regulations.” Barekye noted
Fish vendors’ voice
Abbas Nsengimana, a fish vendor in the central market said the revised rental fees are still high thus challenging the city council to make further reconsiderations.
“For them they are seated up there they don’t know what we are going through here. Let them come on ground make assessment based on an informed point of view rather than depending on here says to decide on the amount we should pay for their premises,” Nsengimana stated
He added that most of their monies go to the utility that is water and electricity bills. “First of all we don’t pay Yaka by ourselves, it is the council which tendered electricity to Save Electricity Company Ltd [Magola], and every day we are charged a unit of Shs 10,000. Water we pay Shs 20,000 multiply by a month and see whether we are making business here,” Nsengimana said
He also wondered why their colleagues in Masaka, who are near Lake Victoria, the main source of fish, pay Shs 20,000 rent compared to Mbarara vendors who encounter high transport costs in their business.
“My humble appeal is that let the rent fees be Shs 50,000 so that at least by evening we can get some take home package rather than just working for the city council.” Nsengimana noted
Justine Natukunda, another fish vendor and a mother of 5 children said that the high costs of operation in the central market will not allow their children even to report back to school.
“The situation is worth it, as I said some schools have already reported but my children are stuck at home. I have even failed to raise books at least for them to return back to school. So when you hear them saying that they have reduced for us, as our bosses they don’t know what we are facing in this market,” Natukunda explained.
She added that some of her colleagues in the business have already packed and they are at home waiting for the next action.
“Over 20 people have so far closed their stalls; they are at home and they don’t know what awaits them next. Why because the business has turned sour for them, previously we would buy a kilogram of fish between Shs 70,000-80,000 but now a kilo is between Shs 13500-14000, yet our customers don’t want to hear that. What do you do when you go home and sit?” Natukunda asked
“A person calls you crying asking for Shs at least 10,000 and inquiring whether his or her stall is taken or not. This one comes and goes and another one occupies within a month you find a stall has been occupied by over 4-5 people now is that business” adding that, let the city council reduce on the rent.” She suggested
Mbarara Central Market, constructed at a cost of Shs 21 billion, accommodates 1194 vendors and has facilities like a food court, daycare, restaurants, fowl cages, stalls, and lock-ups among others.
The market located in the center of Mbarara City is one of the 12 regional markets constructed under the Markets and Agriculture Trade Improvement Project [MATIP2] to alleviate poverty and improve agricultural trade. The vital hub for trade and commerce in the region is seated on approximately 2 acres of land.
