ARTICLES 2008-2015

By Andrew M. Mwenda Given Museveni’s long rule and potential for family succession, is Uganda now vulnerable to an `Arab Spring’ I argued in this column last week that Africa has almost similar structural conditions as the Middle East on the eve of the Arab Spring – sustained economic growth …

By Mubatsi Asinja Habati Varsity left short of 1,200 lecturers Makerere University is daunted by vacant academic staff posts leaving its few lecturers overloaded and fatigued, a 2011 value for money audit report by Auditor General reveals.  The university is supposed to have 2,491 academic staff in its eight colleges …

By Andrew M. Mwenda How realistic is the risk of political upheaval in Africa and what can be done about it? Two weeks ago, I was in Nairobi, Kenya to attend a conference on Africa’s political risk profile. The moderator of the first session posed four questions for discussion: Is …

By Agather Atuhaire Mutual suspicion undoes the fragile unity of the Parliamentary opposition and hands victory to the NRM A conflict between opposition parties Forum for Democratic Change and Democratic Party has destroyed any hope of opposition unity and jeopardized equitable party representation in the East African Legislative Assembly. On …

By Jomo Kwame Sundaram Public investment and basic social protection can turn around economies by creating millions of jobs Recent political developments, including the defeat of incumbent governments in France and Greece, suggest that the public’s tolerance for economic policies that do not reduce unemployment has collapsed. Indeed, given the …

By Dr. Robert Rutaagi Uganda’s competitiveness in the domestic, regional and global markets Niche’ and its adjunctive derivative ‘marketing’ is a terminology that is greatly abused. The word niche is of French origin, meaning “a small hole, in a large wall, usually used to hang a photograph or art craft”. …

By Mubatsi Asinja Habati Research World International (RWI) published its first ever political opinion poll on May 22 which has become controversial. Dr. Patrick Wakida, who is the chief researcher and RWI chief executive, spoke to The Independent’s Mubatsi Asinja Habati. What motivated you to do this political poll? It …

By Mubatsi Asinja Habati Hardly two months after an Afrobarometer opinion poll indicted President Yoweri Museveni’s management of Uganda and provoked the ire of First Lady Janet Museveni, another poll has arrived at a similar conclusion: Most Ugandans want the old man out. Near the top of the list of …

By Eriasa Mukiibi Sserunjogi It’s almost as if he was born with a silver spoon in his mouth The year 198 seems to have been a wrong time to start a business in Uganda. Starting in 1966 or earlier, the economy took a plunge. Many Ugandans, especially professionals, had fled …

By Rukiya Makuma It is 50 years since Amnesty International, one of the leading international human rights advocates, first started issuing annual reports about the state of human rights in countries around the world. The agency recently issued its 50th report and Michelle Kagari, deputy programme director of Amnesty International …