In The Magazine

Nairobi-based lender M-KOPA is expanding into the Nigerian market, and have hired an ex-Andela executive for the job | DAVID THOMAS | Kenya’s M-KOPA, which offers underbanked customers finance to acquire solar lighting, smartphones, TVs and domestic appliances, is expanding into Nigeria after a successful pilot project. M-KOPA, which means …

Future performance remains uncertain due to the ongoing COVID-19 lockdown Kampala, Uganda | JULIUS BUSINGE | Stock turnover at the Uganda Securities Exchange recorded a 74% growth in the second quarter of this year to Shs5.9bn compared to the previous session as energy and banking dominated trading. Electricity distributor, Umeme, …

  But there is little or no legal framework for telehealth in most Sub-Saharan African states Kamapal, Uganda | ISAAC KHISA | Globally, insurers have been perceived as slow to evolve and embrace innovation. But the coronavirus pandemic is flipping the narrative, as some insurers rapidly innovate to help consumers …

Leaving planet earth in crisis is a terrible idea? | THE INDEPENDENT | The four minutes billionaires Sir Richard Branson and Jeff Bezos spent in a state of weightlessness on the edge of space recently were historic feats in the burgeoning space tourism business, but many critics say Branson, Bezos …

Billionaires Richard Branson and Jeff Bezos enter space race | THE INDEPENDENT | The sky over the Spaceport America in Las Cruces, New Mexico, was afire with lightning on the night of July 10. The storm was sufficiently fierce to postpone Virgin Galactic’s planned rollout of its twin airships, mothership …

Increasing catches on Lake Edward show fruits of co-operation For almost half a century, fishing on Lake Edward in southwestern Uganda has been dangerous for Ugandan fishermen because of its proximity to the insecure eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. About 70% of Lake Edward’s 2,325 sq km surface area is inside …

Financial scandal rocks inner circle of Pope Francis | THE INDEPENDENT | The Vatican has set a July 27 trial date for 10 people, including a once-powerful cardinal and papal contender, on charges related to the Holy See’s 350 million-euro investment in a luxury London real estate venture. It is …

How Africa’s most successful economy has produced a political crisis that may tear it apart THE LAST WORD | ANDREW M. MWENDA | It is eight months now since the armed conflict between the Ethiopian government and the Tigrayan People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), began. Initially, government troops, supported by Eritrean …

Experts warn as phones of politicians are hacked Kampala, Uganda | IAN KATUSIIME | Sometime in February 2020, then-Uganda Prime Minister Ruhakana Rugunda’s phone might have been hacked by Pegasus; a spyware manufactured by the Israel firm, NSO. The collaborative media investigation dubbed “Pegaus project” that outed the global spying …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | These are the top stories in this week’s THE INDEPENDENT. COVER STORY Uganda’s next war: Experts warn as phones of politicians are hacked THE LAST WORD Ethiopia’s failed reform: How Africa’s most successful economy has produced a political crisis that may tear it apart ANALYSIS …