Cabinet Scraps Plan to Turn Constitution Square into Commercial Complex

📷: The artistic impression of the proposed development of Kampala's City Square.

Cabinet has reversed a proposal to redevelop Kampala’s Constitution Square into a commercial complex, opting to preserve the historic public space and maintain its existing legal status.


Minister of ICT and National Guidance Justine Kasule Lumumba announced the decision on Tuesday, October 27, 2026, saying Cabinet considered the site’s historical significance, legal protection, environmental concerns and urban planning implications.

Lumumba said Constitution Square remains a protected heritage site under Ugandan law, with protection dating back to 2007 and recognised under the Museums and Monuments Act, 2023, and a heritage protection instrument issued in 2024.

The approximately 1.172-hectare site, comprising plots 5, 6 and 7, also houses the 1945 War Memorial, which commemorates Ugandan soldiers who died in the First and Second World Wars.
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The reversal comes days after a proposal to transform the public space into an eco-friendly commercial complex gained attention. The plan followed an August 30 directive by President Yoweri Museveni instructing Kampala Minister Minsa Kabanda to assess a proposal submitted by businessman Hassan Bulwadda.

Bulwadda had proposed a development featuring a high-end hotel, shopping mall and solar-powered amenities on the property.

The proposal received backing from Attorney General Sam Mayanja, who argued that redeveloping the site could improve security in the city centre while introducing modern facilities, landscaped green spaces and water fountains.

The plan had also sparked a dispute over ownership and lease rights after businessman Hassan Basajjabalaba told Parliament’s Committee on Commissions, Statutory Authorities and State Enterprises (COSASE) that he held a 49-year lease on the land dating back to 2001.

Mayanja dismissed the claim, arguing that a lease on public property does not confer permanent ownership and maintaining that the land remained public property.

With Cabinet’s latest decision, Constitution Square will retain its existing legal status, ending the current proposal to convert the historic site into a commercial real estate complex.

Daily Monitor UG​