TOURISM

Separating fact from fiction Kampala, Uganda | RONALD MUSOKE | According to official figures, tourism contributed up to US$1.35 billion into Uganda’s export basket in 2016, and was the single highest foreign exchange earner; contributing 23.5% of total exports. Based on those figures, the tourism lobby; which has advocates on …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Parliament has approved government borrowing of up to Sh459 billion from Japanese and European banks meant for the completion of construction of the new bridge across the River Nile. The other loan is meant to finance the Masaka-Mbarara power transmission line. The loans were …

Kampala, Uganda | GODFREY SSALI | Police with the help of Natural Resource Conservation Network (NRCN) has arrested four people in possession of pangolin scales and hippo teeth in Kasese and Kampala. Ivan Tuhaiirwe and Davis Kateregga were arrested in possession of 50 kilograms of pangolin scales worth Sh7million which they …

Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | A 22-year-old woman was mauled to death by a lion on Tuesday at a private game lodge close to South Africa’s capital Pretoria, local media reported. The victim was attacked by the lioness near Hammanskraal, roughly 45 kilometres (30 miles) north of Pretoria around …

Miami, United States | AFP | Ancient species of elephants and mammoths interbred, swapping genes that helped them adapt to new habitats and climates, a practice that is lost among modern-day elephants, researchers said Monday. Today, the two kinds of living elephants in Africa — savanna and forest elephants — are …

  Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The zoo section at the ongoing The Pearl of Africa Tourism Expo (POATE) is the most visited area, but the various questions the wildlife wardens face and the discussions that are going on there, explains why officials decided to put more emphasis on …

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 …

Berlin, Germany | AFP | The counter-terrorism plot seems more far fetched than many action thrillers, yet “7 Days in Entebbe”, which premiered at the Berlin film festival Monday, depicts a real-life airline hijack drama. The movie recounts what is often called the most audacious hostage rescue mission ever staged, …

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | AFP | Hundreds of tourists were stranded for hours after a cable car broke down on the Malaysian island of Langkawi, authorities said Monday, with some left dangling in cabins over a jungle-clad mountain as night fell. Over 1,000 tourists, including some Western and Chinese visitors, …

Maasai Mara, Kenya | AFP | Five-month-old bloodhound Shakaria gambols through the long savannah grasses of Kenya’s Maasai Mara reserve, her playful mood swiftly turning to keen determination as she is ordered to track a human scent. Straining at the leash, she pulls her handler along an invisible scent path …