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HomeThe History Behind The Point Zero Kilometre Monument At Amber House

The History Behind The Point Zero Kilometre Monument At Amber House

Amber House, which is opposite the worker’s house, the home of the NSSF, is a significant building, which houses the National Oil Company and the Ministry of Energy.

But in the middle of these walls lies a kilometer-zero monument constructed by the British colonial government.

If you are in Kisoro, Koboko, Karamoja, Busia, Gulu, wherever you are, but you started your journey from the city center. The distance that you cover or what you see on the road signage, they started counting the zero kilometers from this very monument that was established by the Egyptian survey department in 1907, that is more than 110 years ago.

This very monument is above sea level, that is Mombasa, at 3905.40 feet, but most people in Kampala do not know that this monument exists and even the tourism sector has not taken advantage of this treasure.

People think that the distance in Uganda is measured from the post office. Yes, the post office is near Amber House. Others think that it is at the Sir Apollo Kagwa monument, which is just straight into the Point Zero monument.

Now this is very significant in the measurement of the distance when the civil service is computing mileage and you are talking of 50 kilometers, 100 kilometers, 300 kilometers from where from this point.

The monument has a tip made of hard steel, a sign of uncompromised quality, there existed.

The way this piece of steel was, the way the plate was is that old, but most significantly, distance in Kampala, distance in our country is measured from this point.

The volcanic stones perhaps from Kisoro were also used to make the monument and they are as intact as they were placed

How It is Maintained

Monuments get moulds, monuments get dusty and the caretakers have to keep on cleaning them to make sure that the aesthetics, they look, they are not eyesores, but rather monuments to the city.

How Significant The Monument is

Besides the former Uganda National Roads Authority UNRA, making use of this monument, the KCCA road measurements start from here.

Kampala Roads, if we are saying from, for example, Kubiri, from where, from this point, kunya, when we are talking of kunya in a taxi, four miles from this point, so this is the beginning of the distance.

According to the Authorities, the monument can’t be painted or given another coat of plaster.

Why is the Monument not a popular tourist site

The monument is supposed to be a tourist attraction, but access to this place is restricted.

The place within a building is regulated access, but to the public and to all those who want to see, once you say I want to go and see this monument, you will come, but to keep the place safe, to count for security purposes, you will go through a machine, they will check you because this is within a building.

Unlike other monuments, some which have been shifted to other places, but this one can’t be removed.

The point zero that we have from 1907 is this point zero in the severe reports, in the cadastres, so this will remain, so any development that comes up must work itself around this.

In the same way, you see Amber House was developed, but this retains its position. The zero-kilometer monument still stands strong and it will forever remain a starting point for any distance from Kampala to the different border lines.

 

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