By Diana. N. Kintu
The Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) is hosting a high-level delegation from Dhaka City, Bangladesh, in a specialised knowledge-exchange visit focused on combating urban air pollution—one of the most pressing public health threats facing rapidly growing cities. The four-day benchmarking mission is taking place under the global Partnership for Healthy Cities network, an international initiative aimed at reducing non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and improving urban health outcomes through effective policy interventions.
The visiting delegation was officially welcomed by the KCCA Executive Director, Hajjat Sharifah Buzeki. In her remarks, she underscored the collaborative intention of the engagement and highlighted Kampala’s growing reputation as a city advancing data-driven solutions in urban health. “The delegation is led by Mr. Joseph Ngamije, Deputy Director for Partnership for Healthy Cities Africa. They are here for a four-day benchmarking visit on air quality management,” she said, noting that Kampala’s progress in understanding and responding to air pollution is attracting global attention.
Hajjat Buzeki explained that while Kampala is still scaling its efforts to address non-communicable diseases, the city has developed robust interventions that have become reference points for other urban centres. Central to these efforts is the creation of one of the most extensive urban air quality monitoring systems in the region. KCCA has installed over 100 air quality monitors across the city’s five divisions, enabling authorities to track pollution levels with unprecedented accuracy. The dense network provides real-time data that supports fast decision-making and long-term planning.
Complementing this technological investment is a community-led monitoring initiative that places “air quality champions” at the heart of neighbourhood-level surveillance. Each cell or village has at least four trained champions responsible for collecting real-time air quality information and reporting emerging concerns. This grassroots component ensures that Kampala’s pollution management strategies are grounded in local realities and supported by residents themselves.
Beyond monitoring, KCCA is implementing a suite of public health and environmental regulations designed to cut down human exposure to harmful pollutants. A key pillar of this strategy is the promotion of a smoke-free Kampala. The authority is enforcing restrictions on public smoking and intensifying efforts to discourage the open burning of waste—a widespread urban practice known to release toxic pollutants. These measures are combined with ongoing improvements in the city’s solid waste management system and traffic regulation mechanisms, which target two major contributors to urban air pollution: poor waste disposal and vehicular emissions.
KCCA officials say the benchmarking visit provides an important opportunity for both cities to compare experiences, share technical insights, and strengthen partnerships within the global network of cities tackling NCDs. Dhaka, one of the world’s most densely populated cities, faces similar environmental pressures and has expressed interest in adopting Kampala’s model, particularly its integration of community-led data collection with technological monitoring.
Throughout the visit, Dhaka’s delegation is expected to hold technical sessions with KCCA’s directorates on public health, engineering, environmental management, and data analysis. They will also tour selected monitoring stations and community sites to observe firsthand how air quality champions operate and how data feeds into citywide planning.
Concluding KCCA’s position, Hajjat Sharifah Buzeki reiterated that the city’s health-driven policies are rooted in the belief that a strong and productive population is central to its development aspirations. “At KCCA, we believe a productive, healthy population is core to realizing our desire for a Vibrant, Attractive, Liveable, and Sustainable City,” she said.
The Dhaka–Kampala exchange signals a growing global commitment to peer learning among cities. As urban populations expand and pollution levels rise, such collaborations are becoming essential in shaping effective clean air strategies that protect residents and support healthier, more sustainable urban environments.