When illiberal democracy – or populism, combines with undemocratic liberalism to undermine liberal democracy COMMENT | DANI RODRIK | The crisis of liberal democracy is roundly decried today. Donald Trump’s presidency, the Brexit vote in the United Kingdom, and the electoral rise of other populists in Europe have underscored the threat …
Read More »MOTORING: When stuck in traffic jam
Does turning off engine really save fuel or merely damage engine? Kampala, Uganda | MOTORING GURU | After the cost of petrol inched closer to the Shs4000 a litre recently, many motorists are concentrating on fuel saving ways. Many are wondering whether it doesn’t make sense to turn off the engine …
Read More »Busy skies over Kigali
RwandAir spreads its wings across Africa Kampala, Uganda | INDEPENDENT TEAM | The New Year 2018 has kicked off in high gear for RwandAir, the national carrier of Rwanda with launches of new routes. The latest news is the now scheduled May 16 launch of its new Kigali-Harare-Cape Town route. RwandAir …
Read More »Local oil and gas suppliers told to build partnerships
Kampala, Uganda | RONALD MUSOKE | Ugandan suppliers looking at providing goods and services to the fledgling oil and gas sector need to build partnerships with their international counterparts if they are to fully participate in the multi-million dollar opportunities expected to flow in the coming months. Elly Karuhanga, the …
Read More »Esther Nakajjigo: Young fighter for women and girls
Kampala, Uganda | AGNES NANTABA | She has been recognised by the Kabaka of Buganda, has her own TV show, owns a mid-level health centre and a Youth Centre, and is winner of the Geneva World Women’s Award as the best project for urban and rural women. She is also Uganda’s …
Read More »ARTS: Portrait of a self-taught artist
Beyond the label, is there any truth to the compartmentalisation? Kampala, Uganda | DOMINIC MUWANGUZI | When Jak Katarikawe started to make art in the 1960s, everyone was stunned. Katarikawe, an illiterate, was a driver for David Cook, a Makerere University Professor of Literature (1962 1977). Katarikawe’s break through as …
Read More »Maize everywhere, but no store anywhere
Bumper maize harvest exposes weakest link in food supply chain Kampala, Uganda | RONALD MUSOKE | There is good news on Uganda’s food security front. The agriculture ministry estimates that Uganda has harvested about 5.5 million metric tonnes from the last planting season; which is a 38% increase from the …
Read More »COMMENT: Commercial farming models in Africa
Different kinds of commercial farming will have different effects on the economy COMMENT | RUTH HALL, DZODZI TSIKATK, IAN SCOONES | Colonialism brought large-scale farming to Africa, promising modernisation and jobs – but often dispossessing people and exploiting workers. Now, after several decades of independence, and with investor interest growing, …
Read More »One migrant’s brutal Odyssey
Migrants are held captive, fed just enough to keep them alive, and subjected to various forms of inhuman treatment in a bid to extort money Kampala, Uganda | KWAKU BOTWE | Thirty-year-old Nazir Mohammed sits on one of the two sofas in his single room in Kwame Danso, a small town about …
Read More »COMMENT: Yes to affordable housing
The two key challenges that must be tackled to enable easy home building in urban areas COMMENT | JAN MISCHKE | From London to Lagos, “affordable housing” has become an oxymoron. In most cities, rents and home prices have increased faster than incomes, and in urban areas with robust job markets, housing …
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