Lumumba Hall at Makerere University remains closed after nine months, and renovations have not yet begun. Prof. Barnabas Nawangwe, Vice Chancellor of the powerful Makerere University, ordered over 700 students to vacate Lumumba Hall prior to renovations more than nine months ago.
“Lumumba hall should be closed with immediate effect to pave way for renovation. Government-sponsored continuing students currently accommodated in Lumumba Hall should be relocated to other halls of residence,” the VC instructed in a letter dated September 12, 2022.
He added that the chief security officer should guarantee vacant possession of the hall in order to facilitate a smooth handover to the contractor. Lumumba Hall was established in 1971 and is one of the residence halls at Makerere University that has had a reputation for being filthy and poorly maintained over the years.
A student who wished to remain anonymous stated that the closing of the hall has affected the number of students who can be housed in residence halls. In order to make room for renovations, which have not begun since September 2022, the students of Lumumba Hall were relocated to other halls.
The student stated that numerous concerns have been voiced about the condition of university residence halls for many years. Since 2006, ‘Block C’ of Lumumba Hall, which once housed over 200 students per semester, has been closed due to its poor state and has never been renovated.
According to Professor Barnabas Nawangwe, the government has allocated UGX 8 billion for the renovation of Lumumba Hall. Professor Nawangwe stated that the renovation would commence soon.
He said that a budget of at least UGX 100 billion is required to renovate all university residence halls. However, due to the inability to secure the total sum required, the renovation will be completed in phases.
The renovation is part of the recommendations made by the Members of Parliament in 2019 during their visit as they looked into the impasse at Makerere brought on by the 15% cumulative tuition increase that students were protesting.
