Thank you: Joe Walker concludes Kampala to Fort Portal trek
By Joe Walker The #JoeWalker Kampala to Fort Portal road safety awareness walk came to a conclusion yesterday with a series of activities around Fort Portal city. From the bottom of my heart and on behalf of the team, let me take this opportunity to thank each and every one of you for all the support. A big shout out to everyone who stopped their daily activities to participate in our engagements, the community leaders who mobilised people to attend and participate in our interactive sessions, and everyone who stopped to give us a bottle of water, sugarcane and bananas. A big...
Day Ten: What a day
For the first time in 10 days, I stepped into a car again and was driven to St. John’s Cathedral in Fort Portal City. Several road safety advocates, city leaders, area MPs, the clergy and regional police leadership and later the RCC joined the #JoeWalker team that had just concluded the Kampala to Fort Portal road safety walk. We all joined hands for a road safety awareness march around the city, then painted a zebra crossing and proceeded to church for a thanksgiving service. During the service, the Dean of St. John’s Cathedral Kabarole, the Very Rev. Can. Ezra Musobozi, acknowledged...
Day 9: Joe Walker, friends reach Fort Portal
The #JoeWalker Kampala to Fort Portal road safety awareness walk has safely docked in Fort Portal. We walked through the districts of Kampala, Wakiso, Mpigi, Mityana, Mubende, Kyegegwa, Kyenjojo and finally Kabarole. We set off this morning from King Oyo Model Farm in Bugaaki and at 10:25pm crossed into Kabarole District. By 3pm we were in Fort Portal City, the seat of Tooro Kingdom. We were joined by students, leaders and administrators from Uganda Pentecostal University at Kaswa, who also brought us tonnes of refreshments. As we emerged out of Mpanga Tea Estates, we were joined by the DPC of Fort Portal...
Day Eight: We’re almost there
The #JoeWalker team lifted off from Kiregesa Primary School where we camped for the night and we are now in Mahagwe, hopefully our last resting point before we dock at our destination. From Kiregesa as you descend down into the valley, you can’t avoid seeing the dangerous sharp corner and what looks like a bit of narrow road. Locals and doctors at Kyenjojo District hospital say many have lost their lives there. We trudged into Kyenjojo town, where we were welcomed by S3 students of Kyenjojo SS (they all reminded me of our daughter who is also in S3.) And we proceeded...
Day Six: Joe Walker enters Tooro Kingdom
By Joe Walker It’s been one rollercoaster of a day. We entered Tooro Kingdom shortly after 11am. We were welcomed by Minister of Education in Tooro Kingdom Owek. Godfrey Rwembebera Adyeeri and other kingdom officials, plus the Kyegegwa OC Traffic Afande Kwasibwe. We were in Kyegegwa by 5pm. After all the protocols and mobilisation of logistics were done, at about 6pm we started painting the Zebra crossing. By 8pm, Kyegegwa had its only Zebra crossing; hopefully it will change the narrative around road safety. We had great support from Tooro Kingdom, Deputy Town Clerk Douglas Mugenyi, and the OC Traffic Police Kyegegwa and his...
Day Four: No money is worth risking your life
By Joe Walker What a beautiful start to day four of the #JoeWalker Kampala to Fort Portal road safety awareness walk. We kicked off the day with an interactive session with the pupils of Kyakatebe Primary School. We taught the children the ABCs of road safety and armed them with a few tips to cross the roads safely and #GetHomeSafe. At 7:57am, it was our turn to put those tips into action as we hit the road heading towards Mubende. The first thing that hit me was the writing on a truck, “No Money is Enough”. It stayed with me as we...
A dive into day 3 of Kampala – Fort Portal trek
By Joe Walker Day three of the #JoeWalker Kampala to Fort Portal road safety awareness walk lifted off at Mityana at 7:26am where we headed to Kyakatebe. The weather has been merciful to us and so far every day, there has been some light rain which provides a good environment to walk in. We have so far been saved the heat that threatened to be present. We zoomed out of Mityana town to Naama. The road under construction is interesting; very wide with a fast double lane in the middle and two side lanes to serve town traffic, cyclists and pedestrians....
Kampala to Fort Portal: Day one ends successfully
We have safely come to the end of Day One of the #JoeWalker Kampala to Fort Portal road safety awareness walk. We started off at 6:45am at the Independence monument, Nile Avenue. We were flagged off by Hon. Gen. Katumba Wamala Minister of Works and Transport who urged drivers to take extra care and protect the walkers. The minister retaliated the government’s commitment to crack down on errant drivers starting with those of government cars; review the infrastructure to make it safe for all road users; and improve safety of pedestrians. After the brief speech, boom….he flagged us off. Gen. Wamala...
Joe Walker: Why I’m trekking to Fort Portal
By David Mujuni After successfully completing two national walks from Kampala to Bushenyi and Mbale in 2022 and 2023 respectively, Joe Walker will embark on his third trek on February 26, 2024. This time, he sets his sights on Fort Portal Tourism City in Western Uganda, leading fellow walking enthusiasts on a 310-kilometer journey to raise awareness about road safety. While raising awareness remains the core purpose, his choice of Fort Portal this year holds deeper meaning. Joe Walker whose official name is Joseph Beyanga recognizes the Kampala-Fort Portal highway's significance in the national road network, highlighting Tooro Kingdom’s scenic beauty as...