Residents of Buvuma Islands have renewed hope of accessing electricity after President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni assured them that plans to connect the district to the national power grid are firmly underway.
The President made the pledge while addressing a campaign rally at Kadinindi Playground in Buvuma District, where he was reminded by the National Resistance Movement (NRM) district chairperson, Fred Wandera, that the island district remains without electricity despite its strategic location on Lake Victoria.
In response, Museveni said the issue was already being handled by government but sought immediate clarification to reassure residents. He instructed his aides to contact the Minister of Energy and Mineral Development, Ruth Nankabirwa, to provide an update on the status of the project.
Moments later, the President returned with what he described as encouraging news, outlining a phased approach to electrifying the islands.
“The second phase is for the main island, to bring an underwater cable with electricity from Mayuge. This will be ready in a year’s time,” Museveni told the crowd, drawing applause from residents who have long relied on costly and unreliable alternative energy sources.
Museveni explained that government has for years maintained plans to extend electricity to Buvuma, but acknowledged that implementation had been delayed due to logistical and technical challenges associated with island electrification.
He stressed that access to electricity is critical for transforming the livelihoods of island communities, boosting fishing, agro-processing, tourism, and small-scale industries, while also improving service delivery in health centres and schools.
The President’s assurance comes amid broader government efforts to expand rural electrification and close the energy access gap in hard-to-reach areas. Once completed, the underwater power connection from Mayuge is expected to integrate Buvuma more fully into the national grid and stimulate economic activity across the islands.
For many residents, the promise signals a turning point, raising expectations that decades of isolation from the national electricity network may soon come to an end.
