By Eve Muganga
Fred Bamwesigye has been appointed the new Director-General of Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCAA).
According to the appointment letter signed by the works and transport minister, Gen Katumba Wamala, Bamwesigye commences work today (October 01, 2021).
Bamwesigye has been Acting Director-General for over a year, following the retirement of Dr David Mpango Kakuba in June 2020.
Bamwesigye will oversee the country’s aviation regulator, which manages Entebbe International Airport and a host of other civilian airports and aerodromes, for a period of three years.
The process of filling the vacant post of director-general had sparked intrigue in light of an aggressive smear campaign that each of the contenders had been subjected to on social media since results from the interviews came into the public domain.
The Board of Directors advertised the job on March 15, attracting 21 applicants, with seven of them shortlisted and invited for interviews that were held on May 14 at a Hotel in Makindye, a Kampala City suburb.
Prior to the interviews, the board set a pass mark of 70 per cent and agreed to recommend the top three scoring candidates to the Works and Transport Minister for consideration for appointment
The contenders became subjects of attacks that questioned, among other things, their ages, qualifications, moral standing and suitability for the job.
Fred Bamwesigye was appointed as the Authority’s Deputy Director General on 5th May 2018.
Prior to that, he served as the UCAA Director of Human Resource and Administration from February 2009.
Before joining the Authority, he worked with the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA), and also served as Legal and Human Resource Manager with the National Water and Sewerage Corporation.
He is an experienced aviation management professional with competencies in Senior Civil Aviation Management, managing Aviation Policy and Regulation, Transport Economics and managing Airport Operations and Air Navigation Services, all attained from the Singapore Aviation Academy.
