COLUMNISTS

By Ivan Rugambwa Emulate Asian economies that rely on and support market responsive SMEs On August 15, the `Youth Manifesto’; a document highlighting key issues the youth want prioritised by leaders, was launched at Makerere University in Kampala. Not surprisingly, unemployment ranked no.1 on the list. It is easy to …

By Independent Team Besigye’s return could spark the self-destruction of FDC Since Besigye defeated Muntu to win the FDC flag in the 2016 elections, the question has been why he once again was able to emerge victorious in spite of Muntu’s hard work?  Part of the explanation could be that …

By Andrew M. Mwenda Why our frustration should’nt lead us to behave like a drowning man who clings onto a crocodile And so it was that on the night of August 30, NTV treated us to a debate between Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) contenders for party presidential flag bearer, …

By Silver Kayondo Half of the world’s ten worst-performing currencies this year are from Africa In August, the Bank of Uganda raised the Central Bank Rate (CBR) to 16%. The increase is aimed at helping keep core inflation below 10% and allow it to slow toward the target of 5% …

By Andrew M. Mwenda Those arguing against corruption are not wrong but neither are the leaders who depend on it Recently, I said on my NTV show that the existence of corruption in a country does not automatically impede its ability to develop. With those words, I let loose the …

By Patrick Kagenda Political opposition leader, Lord Mayor Erias Lukwago, spoke to The Independent’s Patrick Kagenda about why he has formed a militia-like force called the TJ Team. What prompted you into raising a militia force? In the first place it is a misnomer to call it a militia. I …

By Agather Atuhaire 2016 parliament election cycle tosses planning into the unknown Who will pass Uganda’s next budget? That is the question on the lips of finance policy makers since unforeseen procedures related to the new budgeting cycle in an election year started emerging.  Under the old budgeting cycle, the …

By Andrew M. Mwenda Ugandans seem unhappy with Museveni but they don’t seem to be willing to accept his opponents either. Here is why We are exactly six months away from elections and recent opinion polls are already giving us a glimpse of things to come. The polls reveal that …

By Alvin Cheng-Hin Lim Facts belie America’s critique that China is in Africa for resource extraction only In his recent state visit to Kenya and Ethiopia—his fourth presidential visit to the African continent—US President Barack Obama argued that Africa’s economic engagement with the US offers the best opportunity for economic …

By Mike Ibrahim Okumu The culture of earning without effort leads to low productivity, more shirking and theft at work Corruption can be categorised as grand, bureaucratic/petty, and legislative. Grand corruption involves the executive undertaking public policy choices that do not necessarily benefit the general public but rather are in …