Kampala came alive on Wednesday as thousands of residents, students, community leaders, and civil society groups took part in a massive clean-up exercise to prepare the capital for the upcoming Kampala City Festival.
The exercise, branded “No-Litter Day,” was officially launched at City Square by the Minister for Kampala Capital City and Metropolitan Affairs, Hajjat Minsa Kabanda, and Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) Executive Director, Sharifah Buzeki.
Both leaders reminded the public that the fight against litter is a responsibility shared by all.
“We can keep Kampala clean by simply choosing not to litter. It is our collective duty to plan where to dispose of our waste and to manage it responsibly,” Kabanda told the crowd.
From City Square, the campaign spilled into Kampala’s busiest streets—Arua Park, William Street, Nakivubo Road, Shauriyako, Nabugabo, Kyaggwe Road, and Kisekka Market—where participants, including Miss Uganda Trivia Elle Muhoza and students from Kololo High School, Bat Valley Primary, Kololo Secondary, and Kampala High, picked up garbage with gloves and sacks in hand.
In neighborhoods such as Kagugube Parish and Kivulu I and II, Local Council leaders mobilized residents, encouraging households to sort waste at the source. The campaign was replicated across all five city divisions—Central, Kawempe, Makindye, Nakawa, and Rubaga—under the guidance of division Town Clerks, ensuring the message of cleanliness spread to every corner of the city.
The activity forms part of a lineup of pre-festival events leading to the Kampala City Festival on October 5 at Kololo Independence Grounds, themed Innovation, Culture, and Sustainability.
For Buzeki, the drive is about more than a single day of action.
“This is not just about one day. If each of us takes personal responsibility, we can build a city where cleanliness is the norm, not an exception,” she said.
Supported by NGOs, community-based organizations, and KCCA’s environmental teams, the campaign aimed not only to tidy up the city but also to nurture a long-term culture of proper waste management.
As excitement builds toward the festival, City Hall’s message is simple yet firm: Kampala’s cleanliness starts with individual responsibility.