First Lady Janet Museveni to Lay Foundation Stone for Reconstruction of Makerere Ivory Tower

First Lady and Education Minister Hon Janet Kataaha Museveni is expected at Makerere University on Tuesday.

“We welcome the First Lady and Minister of @Educ_SportsUg, Hon.  @JanetMuseveni who will visit the University, tomorrow, Tuesday, 17th May 2022 as we celebrate #MakerereAt100,” the university tweeted on Monday.

Hon. Janet is expected to lay a foundation stone at the Makerere Law School new building.

She will officially open the new building for the School of Dentistry, CTF1 and CTF2 which now serve as administration offices.

She will further lay the foundation stone for the reconstruction of the Main Building also known as the Ivory Tower.

The reconstruction of the Main Administration Building gutted by fire in September 2020, officially kicked off on March 14, 2022, with the site handover to the contractor Messrs Excel Construction Limited.

The Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Barnabas Nawangwe alongside the Acting (Ag.) Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Finance and Administration)-DVCFA, Prof. Henry Alinaitwe revealed that Excel submitted the winning bid worth UGX 20.5 Billion.

The reconstruction is fully funded by the Government of Uganda which committed UGX 21 billion.

The Vice-Chancellor shared that the reconstruction will adopt modern building methods, with a reinforced concrete frame as opposed to the original blockwork structure, while maintaining its distinct outward appearance.

According to Prof. Nawangwe, the contractor was instructed to use every resource at their disposal to ensure that the main external works are completed by 8th October 2022, the date when the climax of the year-long celebrations marking 100 years of Makerere University’s existence will be held.

He said the university lost more than UGX 4 billion in furniture and equipment; most of this furniture was quite old.

The Director Estates and Works, Eng. Christina Kakeeto, said systems that aid fire detecting and firefighting, as well as automated systems to improve utility consumption through optimum consumption of water and modern light switching, will be installed in the reconstructed building.