Contrary to social media complaints, the country's environmental authorities asserted it allowed water shore developments at Speke Resort and that no encroachment or lake refilling happened.
The NEMA statement comes after a video leaked last week by extremists exaggerated the fact that tractors and trucks on-site were lifting a portion of the resort area near the lake, prompting public outrage. Critics of the video accused the Ruparelia Group of invading the water body and NEMA of lacking control.
NEMA, on the other hand, dismissed the videos being circulated in a statement issued via its Twitter account, stating that it had approved the resort's plans to raise, by adding more soil, its compound that was affected by an unprecedented rise in Lake Victoria water levels in 2020, in order to prevent future flooding.
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"The Authority received information via social media about Lake Victoria deterioration surrounding Munyonyo Speke Resort, and we quickly deployed an inspection team that inspected the projects and their compliance with environmental requirements," the environmental watchdog tweeted.
"As you may be aware, Uganda will be hosting both the Non-Aligned Movement and the G-77 Conferences next year." "The complex is being elevated to avoid flooding of the gardens," the statement said, adding that "the permit provided requires management to transplant grass that was taken from the same location."
To protect the lake's ecological integrity, the developer has been instructed not to throw soil into the lake, not to build infrastructure on the beach, and to revegetate the lakeshore. The National Environment Management Authority (@nemaug) is the National Environment Management Authority.
NEMA, on the other hand, promised to supervise the site work to ensure compliance with authorisation, particularly with regard to Lake Victoria's integrity.
"Waterfront projects are being permitted all over the world in order to attract tourists." "This is an opportunity for Uganda to tap into the potential of the blue economy," said NEMA. "The law allows the government to build projects (in the public interest) on public lands, such as roads, railway lines, marinas, and so on, in wetlands, as long as they comply with NEMA's conditions."
Dr. Sudhir Ruparelia, chairman of the Ruparelia Group of Companies, said that they are not deteriorating and filling Lake Victoria, but rather protecting the garden, which was previously harmed by Lake Victoria's extraordinary rise to a record 44 feet.
"One of the facility's distinctive features is its proximity to Lake Victoria." "It is an asset that we guard with zeal," Dr. Sudhir told the press. "Ahead of the August-December rainy season, it has become necessary to upgrade and secure (against flooding) our grounds that were affected by the unprecedented rise in Lake Victoria levels that occurred between 2020 and 2022."
Rising water levels have affected a number of properties along the Victoria Coast and across Uganda. The Lake is said to have reached a depth of around 20 meters inside Munyonyo Resort, flooding the grounds, which were formerly utilized for weddings, music concerts, goat races, and other activities.
As a result, Sudhir states that the whole resort is undergoing major renovations in preparation for the 19th Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) and G77 Summits, which will be held in Kampala, Uganda, in January 2024.
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Sudhir stated that the Group has entered into a joint venture with the Uganda Development Corporation (UDC) to construct a state-of-the-art Speke Resort Convention Center that will not only host the NAM Summit but will also boost the country's Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions (MICE) potential and competitiveness.
When finished, the facility will be the biggest in the region, with a seating capacity of 3,800 to 4,400 people depending on seating layout.
A multipurpose hall, 12 high-end conference and breakout meeting rooms, and a floating restaurant with seating for up to 900 people will also be included in the complex.