Uganda Civil Aviation Authority’s Bamwesigye gets second term of office as Director General

Uganda Civil Aviation Authority’s Bamwesigye gets second term of office as Director General

Works and Transport Minister, Gen. Katumba Wamala, has appointed Mr. Fred K. Bamnwesigye for a second term as the Director General of the Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCAA), the CEO East Africa Magazine, has reliably learnt.

This is ahead of the expiry of his first term which expires at the end of September 2024. His first term started on 01st October 2021.

The Uganda Civil Aviation Authority is the government body responsible for licensing, monitoring, and regulating civil aviation matters in the country. The body manages Entebbe International Airport and other airports and aerodromes, both government and privately owned in the country.

Before being appointed the substantive Director General, Mr. Bamwesigye, was between July 2020 and September 2021, the Ag. Director-General following the expiry of the term of the then Director-General, David Kakuba. 

Before that, he was the Authority’s Deputy Director-General since 5th May 2018. Prior to that, he served as the UCAA Director of Human Resources and Administration from February 2009.

Before joining the Authority, he worked with the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) as well as the National Water and Sewerage Corporation as the Legal and Human Resource Manager.

He is an experienced aviation management professional with competencies in senior civil aviation management, managing aviation policy and regulation, transport economics and managing airport operations and air navigation services all attained from the Singapore Aviation Academy.

His experience in corporate management and quality assurance spans over 25 years of service. 

Mr Bamwesigye is an advocate of the High Court of Uganda with a Master of Arts in Development Studies specializing in Human Resources Management from the Hague School of Development Studies in the Netherlands, holds a Diploma in Business Management from the University of Manchester, a Post Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice from the Law Development Centre and a Bachelor of Laws degree from Makerere University.

On November 9, 2023, Mr. Bamwesigye was elected Chairman of the Regional Aviation Safety Group – African and Indian Ocean (RASG-AFI) for a 2-year term. This was during the ICAO AFI Planning and Implementation Regional Group (APIRG/26 and RASG/9) meetings, that took place in Cotonou, Benin.

Notable achievements under Bamwesigye

The period under Bamwesigye has seen significant milestones such as the upgrade and expansion of Entebbe International Airport which seeks to enhance the passenger capacity from 2 million passengers a year to at least 3.5 million and cargo, from 60,000 metric tonnes to 100,000. 

This is to cater for increasing traffic at the Airport. By the end of 2023, Entebbe International Airport recorded 1.93 million International passengers compared to 1.57 million passengers in 2022 and 1.8 million passengers before the Covid-19 pandemic.  

Currently, there are sixteen (16) Airlines offering international scheduled passenger & cargo air services and four (04) Airlines offering international scheduled cargo/freighter air services at Entebbe.

Uganda has also concluded Bilateral Air Service Agreements (BASAs) with fifty -six (56) Countries. The number of licensed air operators in Uganda increased from twenty-four (24) to twenty-six (26). 

Uganda recently underwent a Universal Safety Oversight Audit Programme-Continuous Monitoring Approach (USOAP-CMA), an onsite audit conducted by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) in September 2023 to evaluate the effectiveness of Uganda’s safety oversight systems in compliance with the ICAO Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPs). Uganda scored 72.17% which was well above the regional/Eastern and Southern Africa (ESAF) region average of 55.66% and the global average of 67.68%. The audit score was a vote of confidence in Uganda’s aviation safety system, which shows the international Aviation Community that the country complies with ICAO Standards.

Over and above the terminal expansion, several developments and upgrades under Air Navigation Services have been undertaken at Entebbe and other aerodromes, according to a statement by the UCAA. 

“There is continued maintenance of safe, efficient, and expeditious Air Traffic Services within the Ugandan Airspace, including the provision of Air Traffic Control Services, Aeronautical Information Management Services, Flight Information Services and Alerting Services,” the statement said.  

Several milestones have also been recorded in relation to the development of upcountry aerodromes as follows

• Repairs of runway 18/36, taxiway and apron at Kisoro Airfield. The works are ongoing and are about 80% completed.
• The construction of taxiways and car parks at Arua Airport, with works being 52% complete.
• Pre-feasibility studies for the upgrade and development of Arua, Gulu, Pakuba, Kidepo, Kasese and Kisoro aerodromes.
• In partnership with the Sharjah Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Authority is undertaking Feasibility studies, Environmental and Social Impact Assessment Master Plan Studies and Detailed Engineering designs for the development of Kidepo Airport.
• Procurement and installation of a portable Airfield Ground Lighting System for Soroti Aerodrome.