Bamutakudde LC1 Chairperson Solomon Sserwanjja has unveiled an ambitious five-year development agenda for the Mukono District village, with main priority on access to clean water, household income, youth skilling and community enterprises.
Sserwanjja made the announcement after the first day of a three-day strategic planning retreat for the Bamutakudde LC1 committee, where the leadership was guided by experts on how to develop a practical village development plan and translate residents’ aspirations into achievable programmes.
Bamutakudde is located in Kyampisi Sub-county, Mukono District, and has faced water and environmental challenges, including those associated with quarrying activities in the area.
Sserwanjja said the retreat was intended to move the new administration beyond broad promises and establish clear priorities that can be implemented and measured during its five-year term.
“Strategically, we have a lot of dreams and visions for this village, but we had to reduce them to what is achievable over the next couple of years through prioritising,” Sserwanjja said.
The committee identified five key priority areas that will guide its work, with access to clean and reliable water emerging as the most urgent intervention.
Sserwanjja said Bamutakudde continues to experience water stress and that his administration intends to begin addressing the problem within the first quarter of its implementation plan.
“The most important is providing access to clean water to our village. Bamutakudde as a village has water stress, and we believe that in the first three months or the first quarter of our implementation plan, we will be sinking at least three wells,” he said.
According to Sserwanjja, two of the planned wells are expected to be supported by Mukono District Local Government through the leadership of LC5 Chairperson Francis Lukoya Oichtewa, who has agreed to support the village with two solar-powered water wells.
The proposed water projects are expected to improve access to reliable water sources for households and reduce the burden residents face in searching for water.
The second major priority is increasing household incomes, particularly by equipping young people with practical skills that can translate into employment and self-employment.
Sserwanjja said the village administration plans to train young people in plumbing, painting, basic electrical wiring, tiling, landscaping and gardening.
“Our young people will be ready to go to the job market, and they’ll be ready to serve Bamutakudde village,” he said.
The administration also plans to introduce beekeeping as another income-generating activity, with Mukono District Local Government having agreed to support the village with 50 beehives.
Sserwanjja said the project will deliberately involve young people as part of a broader strategy to create sustainable livelihoods rather than relying solely on formal employment.
The plans are also intended to ensure that skills acquired by residents can be used to provide services within Bamutakudde and beyond, creating a local pool of artisans and service providers.
Beyond skilling, the new LC1 administration plans to establish community-based enterprises that can generate income and create employment opportunities.
Sserwanjja said the village intends to establish two companies, beginning with a professional catering business and an events management company.
The catering enterprise, he said, will seek to bring experienced chefs from across Uganda to train young women in professional cooking, food presentation and service delivery.
“We are going to invite top professional chefs from across the country to come and teach our young women, how do you cook a professional dish? How do you serve it? How can we professionalise our catering services?” he said.
The aim is to develop a business capable of serving residents, institutions and clients outside the village while giving local residents practical entrepreneurial experience.
“Should anyone in the village have any need for catering services, we will provide state-of-the-art services to them within the village and out of the village,” Sserwanjja said.
The proposed events company will similarly seek to tap into demand for event-related services while creating another avenue through which residents can earn income.
Sserwanjja said the administration will also prioritise ensuring that eligible residents benefit from existing government programmes, including the Parish Development Model, the Youth Livelihood Programme and initiatives targeting older persons.
He said the village has already started organising itself to ensure that residents are in a better position to access and utilise available government support.
Under the Youth Livelihood Programme, he said young people organised in groups can access government support, while elderly residents will also be mobilised to benefit from programmes designed for them.
The emphasis, he said, will be on organisation, accountability and ensuring that government programmes reach their intended beneficiaries.
While the first day of the retreat focused on identifying priorities, Sserwanjja said the second day will concentrate on one of the most critical questions facing the new administration: how to finance the ambitious development agenda.
“Day two, we are going to be largely focusing on where are we going to get the resources to implement our strategic plan,” he said.
The LC1 administration intends to align its village development strategy with the broader Mukono District Local Government strategic plan in order to strengthen its ability to attract institutional support.
“We will anchor our strategic plan in the Mukono Local Government broader strategic plan. We believe that with the support from the local government, we’ll be able to implement many of these activities,” Sserwanjja said.
He added that the administration will also seek partnerships with non-governmental organisations, corporate companies and other institutions with corporate social responsibility programmes.
Residents themselves are expected to play a role in financing and implementing some of the projects through community contributions.
“The villagers are also willing to contribute some little money to improving our village. We believe that when we are organised, we’ll attract capital or resources that will be very central in the implementation of our strategic plan,” he said.
Sserwanjja’s development agenda comes shortly after his transition from journalism and investigative reporting into grassroots leadership.
The journalist was elected Bamutakudde LC1 chairperson on July 28, 2026, in a closely contested Local Council election, defeating his closest rival, Lule Badru Ssozi Kirwana, by a single vote.
Sserwanjja, who contested as an independent candidate, reportedly secured 106 votes against Kirwana’s 105, while David Kyambadde Zziwa also contested for the position.
His election marked a new chapter for Sserwanjja, who has built a career in journalism and investigative reporting and serves as executive director of the African Institute of Investigative Journalism.
His campaign focused on transparency, accountability and community-driven development, and he has now begun translating those priorities into a structured development programme for Bamutakudde.
The three-day retreat will produce a detailed implementation and resource mobilisation framework that will guide the LC1 administration during its five-year term.
For Bamutakudde residents, the success of the new administration will ultimately be measured by whether the priorities identified during the retreat translate into tangible improvements in water access, household incomes, youth employment and community services.
