by Chritine Nankya
With structural works at 64% complete, the Speke Resort Convention Center sitting on the shores of Lake Victoria at Munyonyo will be the biggest in East Africa, accommodating over 4000 people.
Dr Sudhir Ruparelia addressing journalists at the construction site at Speke Resort Munyonyo
Rajiv Ruparelia, the managing director of Ruparelia Group, a co-developer of the project, said the timber alone used in the construction has cost $500,000.
Once completed, the auditorium alone can house two events concurrently without interruption courtesy of a folding soundproof wall, which will be installed very soon.
The convention center will also have a multipurpose hall, 12 high-end conference and breakaway meeting rooms, and a floating restaurant that can host more than 900 guests.
What comes with this multibillion-dollar project?
Firstly, this is a first-of it’s kind convention center in East Africa, the biggest and most modernized.
Netizen posts learnt that the project has already provided 1,000 jobs to people working at the construction site in Munyonyo. Notably, engineers, builders, casual laborers, cooks, and plumbers, among others,
Sudhir is among the few investors who employ mostly Ugandans.
Doubling as the chairman of the Ruparelia Group, Sudhir told journalists on Tuesday during a media tour at Munyonyo that the convention center indirectly impacts 5,000 people who are beneficiaries and have an uncountable number of dependents.
During the tour, journalists noticed that some of the mini-halls have been named after Uganda’s natural tourist attractions, like Bwindi Forest, Mount Elgon, the River Katonga, Mount Rwenzori, and others.
Sudhir said the motive for naming these halls is to promote tourism, which brings foreign exchange into the economy.
The first key meetings to be hosted at the world-class facility include the 19th Summit of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) Summit and the G77 South Summits to be held in January 2024 in Kampala, Uganda.
Rajiv Ruparelia said that apart from hosting the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) and G77 South Summits, the Speke Resort and Convention Centre will enhance Uganda’s competitiveness in the Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions (MICE) sector.
“This Convention Center is certainly a much-needed and strategic addition to Uganda’s profile as a competitive destination for key meetings, conferences, and trade exhibitions in the region and on the continent. The two summits will be crucial to enhancing and marketing that potential,” Rajiv said.
The project is jointly being developed by the Ruparelia Group and the Uganda Development Corporation (UDC). UDC is the investing arm of the Government of Uganda, whose mission is to establish and/or invest in sustainable investments in areas strategic to Uganda’s social and economic transformation and prosperity.