In The Magazine

Lending to be directed to sectors crucial to socio-economic development including SMEs, trade, industry and agri-business Kampala, Uganda | JULIUS BUSINGE | Interest rates have risen over the past two quarters this year but commercial bank executives say current levels are still fair to both lenders and borrowers. The latest …

  Ugandan micro, small and medium enterprises working within the petroleum sector have received US$ 500,000 (Shs 1.85bn) from the African Development Bank to boost their chances of partaking of the opportunities that will accrue during the construction of the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) project. Kampala, Uganda | …

Firms want to cut into huge value of contracts which go to foreign firms Kampala, Uganda | ISAAC KHISA | Ugandan local firms have been losing out to international players in clinching big deals in the local market but this could soon be reversed if a new business model that …

Troubled history provides clues why | FRANCESCA BALDWIN AND HEIKE I SCHMIDT | Ethiopia’s government, under Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, is carrying out a military offensive in Tigray, Ethiopia’s most northern state. A six month state of emergency has been declared in the region. Dozens of casualties have been reported …

From Early Warning to Early Action; a view from the International Crisis Group Unless urgently halted, the ongoing armed confrontation between Ethiopia’s federal forces and those commanded by the northern Tigray region’s leadership will be devastating not just for the country but for the entire Horn of Africa. In a …

Promising results – here’s what needs to happen next | ANNE MOORE | Preliminary data from the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine trial suggests it provides 90% efficacy at preventing the disease. At the very least, this news will result in a large sigh of relief across the vaccine community. It signifies …

The excitement that greeted the news of a vaccine candidate that may be highly effective against COVID-19 was indeed something to behold. If the final results show anything like the numbers quoted in the press release, then the world can indeed be pleased and the scientists behind the scenes very …

How the president, the security services and the opposition are beneficiaries of this political pathology THE LAST WORD | ANDREW M. MWENDA | Election season is with us and the police are in overdrive to beat the hell out of opposition candidates. The leading and perhaps most popular opposition presidential …

On Nov.10, Tullow Oil plc announced the completion of the sale of its assets in Uganda to French super major, Total. The US$ 575 million (Shs 2.15trillion) deal finally brought Tullow Oil’s 16-year involvement in Uganda’s oil project to an end. Kampala, Uganda | RONALD MUSOKE | When Tullow entered …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | These are the top stories in this week’s THE INDEPENDENT. COVER STORY Digging for oil: Tullow’s 16-year acrimonious relationship with Uganda ends THE LAST WORD On Uganda’s election violence: How the president,the security services and the opposition are beneficiaries of this political pathology COMMENT Why …