Authorities in Bugesera District have said they will lift the ban on construction permits in areas that have completed their masterplans this month. Authorities had suspended issuing construction permits in October last year in areas that had many unplanned settlements. Since then, residents of Nyamata town, Ntarama, Ruhuha and other sectors are not supposed to carry out any construction until a physical study and masterplan are reviewed to accommodate the large influx of people seeking to settle there. According to the district Engineer Christian Umuhoza some areas have complied with the regulations and are about to see the ban. “Areas such as Karumuna in Ntarama Sector, Gatare and Murambi in Nyamata town have started mapping, which is the last phase after roads and other infrastructure studies have been carried out,” he said. However, he could not give a timeline when the exercise will be completed. Bugesera is where the country’s largest airport is being constructed and still has relatively affordable land, which is increasingly becoming a strategic area for property developers. Authorities say the district is developing at a pace exceeding the planed settlement, which caused encroachment on arable land, prompting the revision of the whole mapping of the district. Bugesera has a masterplan for Nyamata town, which the Mayor, Richard Mutabazi, says is not detailed enough to accommodate the rate at which buildings are mushrooming. “The masterplan was for a normal town not for a burgeoning vibrant city as projections show us today,” Mutabazi said. editorial@newtimes.co.rw
