Why govt took over SGS vehicle inspection facilities

In a move aimed at improving road safety and providing more affordable vehicle inspection services, the Government has officially taken over seven SGS Uganda Limited vehicle inspection facilities across the country.

The firm was contracted in 2015 to carry out mandatory vehicle inspections countrywide, but the contract faced several challenges.

The facilities were initially constructed to manage vehicle inspections and curb the alarming rate of road accidents.

The total value of the asset is estimated at sh109b, with sh30b paid out to acquire the facilities. An additional sh61.9b has been committed to be paid to SGS as part of the acquisition process.

At the seven stations, the Government will collaborate with the Russian-based Joint Stock Global Security (JSGS), who are to build and operate an Intelligent Transport Monitoring System (ITMS) to issue digital number plates alongside the inspection.

The works minister, Gen. Edward Katumba Wamala, on Thursday signed the takeover agreement with top officials from SGS. The event was held at the former SGS headquarters in Namanve, Mukono district.

The SGS team was represented by Kanvaly Bamba, the country and operations director; Daniel Gartmann, the vice-president of SGS Geneva and Ziad Otey, the company managing director for the East Africa sub-region.

The 2023 Annual Crime Report reveals a 16% increase in reported traffic road crashes, rising from 20,394 cases in 2022 to 23,608 in 2023. These incidents are projected to cost Uganda $1.2b (sh4.4 trillion) annually, representing 5% of the country’s GDP.

Katumba highlighted concerns regarding some public service vehicles that are held together with ropes or have passenger doors manually secured.

“A vehicle tied with ropes is unsafe and will not be issued a certificate of inspection.

Without a certificate, such vehicles will not be allowed on the road,” he said.

Katumba announced that a list of approved garages would be identified and recommended to the public for repairs when defects are discovered during inspections.

The minister commended SGS for their cooperation during the takeover negotiations. He projected that inspections would begin around April, starting with passenger service vehicles.

Operating licenses

Katumba emphasised that passenger service vehicles without valid inspection certificates would not be issued operating licenses and inspection bookings would be available online.

He detailed the technical team overseeing the project, which includes the works and finance ministries, as well as the Police, the National Environment Management Authority, Uganda National Bureau of Standards, National Information Technology Authority-Uganda and Private Sector Foundation Uganda.

The management steering committee will be chaired by the works ministry’s permanent secretary.

Katumba noted that vehicle inspectors from the Police would be co-opted into the project.

Unlike the previous law, where Police vehicle inspectors determined the cause of accidents, which was akin to a post-mortem report, their role will now focus on inspecting vehicles to prevent accidents before they occur.

Concluding take over

Speaking on behalf of SGS, Gartmann shared that the project, which began 15 years ago, is now concluding with the government’s official takeover.

He acknowledged the challenges SGS faced throughout the project and expressed hope that the Government would overcome these obstacles.

Gartmann thanked the Government for finalising the agreement that enabled the transfer of the facilities.

“Many things have been said and written about this project, but I will not dwell on the past.

History is unchangeable, and our focus should be on the future,” Gartmann remarked.

He emphasised that the core objective of the project of improving road safety and reducing fatalities remains unchanged.

Gartmann pointed out that road traffic crashes result in approximately 1.3 million deaths and 50 million injuries each year, making it the leading cause of death for children and young people globally, particularly in low and middle-income countries.

He noted that these high death rates have remained largely stagnant over the past two decades.

Gartmann referenced the UN General Assembly’s Resolution on the Second Decade for Action for Road Safety (2021-2030), which sets a target to reduce road deaths and injuries by at least 50% over the next decade.

“We all know that accidents rarely have a single cause. Fatalities often result from a combination of factors, including human error, unsafe road use, alcohol or drug impairment, fatigue, inadequate vehicle safety, poor road infrastructure and delayed emergency response.

Addressing any one of these factors can save a life,” he explained.

Gartmann said, while vehicle inspection is not widely popular in any country, even in Sweden, it remains a crucial tool for road safety.

He cited Ivory Coast, which began vehicle inspections in 1964 nearly 28 years before France.

In contrast, since last year, France has required motorcycle inspections, after several delays due to protests from motorbike associations since 2017.

“The primary objection from citizens is viewing inspections as an additional tax, with many believing they are too expensive. However, inspections themselves are relatively inexpensive. It is the repairs that can be costly. But these repairs are necessary, if we want to prevent vehicles from becoming lethal objects (because) today, vehicles kill more people than guns,” Gartmann said.

He underscored that road safety is an integral part of the inspection business, with the ultimate goal being to save lives, while ensuring the business remains sustainable.

Mistakes

Waiswa Bageya, the works ministry’s permanent secretary, acknowledged that some mistakes during the 15- year project could have been avoided.

He recalled that in 2009, advertisements were published in New Vision seeking bids for the project, to which several companies responded, including Spear Motors, Victoria Motors, Cooper Motors and SGS.

Although SGS submitted the highest bid.

One of the competing bidders filed a complaint, requesting an administrative review, which was later escalated to the Public Procurement and Disposal of Assets Authority (PPDA). As a result, the PPDA ordered the cancellation of the procurement process due to allegations of influence peddling.

Bageya explained that SGS, which had been the top bidder, subsequently took the matter to court and won the case. However, when Parliament suspended the process, SGS lost patience and decided to cancel the contract. In response, the Cabinet decided that SGS should be compensated for its investments and allowed to take over the assets.

“The procurement challenges were a learning experience,” Bageya said.

“The issues were driven by individuals with vested interests. An engineer, who chaired the contracts committee, took the PPDA to court and won. However, with political interference from Parliament, the process was ultimately derailed,” Bageya said.

Winstone Katushabe, the commissioner of transport regulation and safety and also the chief licensing officer at the works ministry, highlighted a case of corruption involving a government official, stating that the individual in question was removed from their position.

He mentioned that there were challenges in meeting contractual obligations that had arisen during the project.

He pointed out that the number of vehicles inspected by the Police and found to be in dangerous mechanical condition has been steadily increasing since 2021.

Last year, the number reached 10,722, marking a 66% increase from the 14,063 vehicles identified in 2023.

Katushabe emphasised that this rise in vehicles with dangerous mechanical conditions underscores the critical need for vehicle inspections, aligning with global road safety action plans.

Musa Ecweru, the state minister in charge of roads, said the improved paving of roads has led to increased accidents due to the poor mechanical conditions of vehicles and over-speeding.

Fred Byamukama, the state minister for transport, explained that once a certificate of inspection is issued, the Government cannot be held liable for accidents that occur due to factors like overspeeding.

Inspection fees

Works minister Gen. Edward Katumba Wamala, revealed that inspection fees have been significantly reduced. For bodabodas, the fee has dropped from sh56,000 to sh5,000 per year. For passenger service vehicles, the old fee of sh110,000 has been reduced to sh49,500 per year, while inspections for buses and heavy commercial vehicles will now cost sh60,000 annually.

Full-scale implementation of the inspection process is expected to begin in the 2025/26 financial year.