In The Magazine

There were ripples in the financial services sector recently when reports emerged that Crane Bank is in negotiations with a buyer. This is the second biggest indigenous bank and the country’s fourth largest bank by assets. ‘It’s owner and founder, Sudhir Ruparelia, is arguably the region’s richest man. Why would …

OPINION: By Andrew Mwenda Why criticising MPs for demanding more benefits is misguided and what can be done about it Our MPs want Shs200 million each to buy cars. They want their wages and allowances increased. They also want Shs68 million spent on their funeral when they die. The public is …

NEWS ANALYSIS: Experts dissect the government’s target of oil finally flowing by 2020 The government of Uganda on Aug. 30 finally issued oil production licenses to Tullow Uganda Operations Pty Ltd and Total E&P Uganda B.V. The move ended a long wait for the oil companies caused by disagreements with the …

Roshani Madina Siliban is a Uganda-Indian artist who has been actively practicing painting since 2014 when she graduated with a diploma in Industrial Art and Design from the Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) in Kampala Uganda, writes Nathan Kiwere. Her specialty is painting and textile design. She is likely more …

Rwanda Govt enters $818m boot deal with Portuguese firm for biggest airport Rwanda is set to finally get its new international airport at Bugesera, 25km south east of the capital city, Kigali. The new airport will feature a 4,200-meter runway and have initial capacity to handle three million passengers per …

 Illustrator Moses ‘Mozeh’ Balagadde dies (1973-2016)   The last cartoon that Moses Balagadde drew for The Independent magazine showed the embattled former commander of Kampala Central Police Station, ASP Aaron Baguma who is accused of complicity in a murder, contemplating his fate in the High Court. Baguma’s case has attracted attention …

As Ugandan private hospitals lose millions, some are considering assessing patients ability to pay before offering treatment When relatives of Patrick Obiga, a patient who had been detained at Uganda’s top private hospital; the International Hospital Kampala (IHK), over failure to clear a Shs19 million medical bill sued and was …

THE LAST WORD: By Andrew Mwenda Why East African governments need to involve local firms in big infrastructure projects The East African nations of Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Rwanda are involved in massive investments in infrastructure. They are contracting companies to build roads, railways, bridges, airports, seaports, dams, electricity lines, …

Museveni badly needs $20bn for big projects, can his technocrats get it? President Yoweri Museveni has set goals for his government to construct a number of mega projects requiring about US$20 billion to finance in four years up to 2020. Can he achieve them? The projects include key oil infrastructure, including …

COMMENT: By Ogenga Latigo Should an MP usurp the mandate and duty of the government to table an amendment of the Constitution? The Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Jacob Oulanyah, onAug. 25 allowed a motion to permit a very ordinary Ugandan, Nakifuma County MP Kafeero Ssekitoleko, to introduce a “Private Members …