Kawanda researchers refute allegation of using Ugandans as guinea pigs Ever since news broke in mid-June that Australian and Ugandan researchers had genetically engineered the so-called `superbanana’, claims have been aired that the enriched banana is nothing new and that Ugandans have been consuming it for a long time. Most …

By Joseph were From American protégé to near pariah When former President Idi Amin Dada died in August 2003, an American professor, Dr Ralph Nurnberger, published an article in The magazine of International Economic Policy under the title; “Why Sanctions (Almost)Never Work”. Dr Nurnberger, who is an expert on foreign …

By Flavia Nassaka More women, and men, flirting with disaster The beauty salon in downtown Kampala was recommended to me by a friend as  a good spot to get a basic cleaning of my face by a professional beautician.  Irene Nangobi, who runs the clinic, has built quite a reputation.  …

By Mark Esposito When the job market rewards whom you know more than what you know – the well-connected With Thomas Picketty’s controversial book Capital in the Twenty-First Century topping several bestseller lists, income inequality – which has been on the rise since the 1970s – is once again capturing …

By Morris DC Komakech Despite the increase in global wealth, global inequalities have also expanded We have reached that phase of life where our imagination of foreign cultures, traditions, and certain practices should have changed for good. The technological boom in the last two decades has fused the world, bringing …

By Esther Dyson All participants should identify for themselves or their organisation what the purpose of the conference is This is conference season – a critical time for building brands, making connections, and shaping industries. Indeed, though people increasingly learn and interact online, we retain a fundamental need to engage …

By Joan Akello What don’t people know about you? I am very reserved and shy. I would hide in a corner and you won’t think I am around. What is your idea of perfect happiness? Being one self, if you try to be someone else, you are forcing it and …

By Andrew M. Mwenda Dr Duncan Clarke, author of the `Crude continent: The struggle for Africa’s Oil Prize’ and CEO of Global Pacific & Partners spoke to The Independent’s Andrew Mwenda. Assuming president Museveni called you and said look, Duncan I want you to be my advisor, how do I …

By Julius Businge Business owners query new taxes on ICT, education, health, agriculture Francis Kamulegeya, the senior country partner for PriceWaterHouseCoopers in Uganda says “you cannot grow a sector without taxing it”. Kamulegeya’s view flips the common belief that “you cannot grow a sector without giving it incentives”. But Kamulegeya’s …

By Agencies Normal life had come to a standstill as people take pains to avoid physical contact with each other An epidemic of the deadly Ebola virus in West Africa is now “out of control” with more than 60 outbreak hotspots, the medical charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF) has said. …