Madrid, Spain | AFP | International travel will likely fall by 20-30 percent in 2020 due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, putting millions of jobs in the global tourism sector at risk, the World Tourism Organization said Friday. This revises sharply lower a forecast made on March 6 of a …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Private healthcare providers could start offering COVID-19 tests to patients that approach them thanks to the procurement of new rapid test kits from China. Currently, the Uganda Virus Research Institute (UVRI) has the sole mandate of conducting COVID-19 tests. It is from here that results …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Several hospital attendants including medical interns have failed to report to work since yesterday following a ban on public transport as one of the measures to contain the spread of the coronavirus . The ban on public transport was announced by President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | President Yoweri Museveni has said that the proliferation of guns in Karamoja sub region was responsible for the low development in the area. Speaking at the commissioning of the Sun Belt Mining Group Limited factory in Rupa sub-county, Moroto district, Museveni commended the Karimojong for …

Bank of Uganda okays change in bank operating hours, closure on weekends Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The central bank (BOU) has agreed to a request by the Uganda Bankers Association for a change in operating hours to cope with the challenges brought by the COVID-19 pandemic. “On account of …

Beijing, China | AFP | China and the United States should “unite to fight” the deadly coronavirus pandemic, President Xi Jinping said in a call with Donald Trump on Friday, as he called for the US to improve relations. The two countries have clashed in recent weeks over the virus, and …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Coronavirus has multiple possible routes of transmission including from mother to the baby while still in the womb, researchers have established. In a study whose results were published in the global science journal – JAMA on Thursday evening, researchers at Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The first lady, Janet Museveni has called upon mothers to join hands in prayer, fasting and intercession for divine help in winning the battle against COVID-19. In a recorded message, Mrs Museveni said mothers need to come together and pray for the nation. She makes …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The National Drug Authority (NDA) has cautioned the public against hoarding medicines, as the country faces the worst strain of coronavirus. According to NDA, some people stocked medicines from pharmacies, even as it’s recommended that some drugs can only be taken with prescription by …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | A constitutional court decision which nullified parts the Public Order Management Act offers a glimmer of hope for the political opposition, human rights defenders and activists, to operate in Uganda, according to Amnesty International. The court yesterday declared Section 8 of Uganda’s Public Order …