COLUMNISTS

By Andrew M. Mwenda Why Africa should fight for free trade, not fair trade; for competitiveness in global markets and not kindness in consumers Everyday there is an effort mainly in the West to save Africa from something – tyranny, impunity, poverty, disease, ignorance – whatever. Always, the savior is …

By Jude Kagoro Journalists are doing their country a disservice by knowingly or unknowingly marketing the militarization of politics Oftentimes, political commentators in Uganda make a claim that there is militarization in the country. To the commentators, the nuances intended to be captured in the usage of the concept largely …

By Jeffrey Gedmin 24 of the 30 least prosperous countries in the world are in  Sub-Saharan Africa and they suffer a “democratic deficit” It’s the economy, stupid” has been a political mantra for more than two decades. Nowadays, the phrase is repeated ad nauseam in development discussions. But making countries …

By Peter Nyanzi Optimism as Uganda is ranked second most peaceful country in Great Lakes Region If you want to live in peace in the Great Lakes region, go to Tanzania. If not, Uganda is the second option, that is according to the Global Peace Index 2013, which measures the …

By Andrew M. Mwenda Why the president openly bribes voters at public functions and gets away with it and what can be done about it When we had just started The Independent, a particular problem confronted me. Each time a member of staff fell ill at office and was rushed …

By Andrew M. Mwenda Debunking the myths that mass media generally perpetuate about Africa and Africans Most Western journalists covering Africa tend to purvey prejudice rather than convey accurate information. Even when the journalist knows a specific story is an oversimplification and/or misrepresentation of a more nuanced reality, they still …

By Katharina Pistor Debt burdens are growing yet excessive reliance on debt finance  is undermining basic tenets of democracy When Greece’s sovereign-debt crisis threatened the euro’s survival, US officials called their European counterparts to express bewilderment at their inability to resolve the issue. Now, the tables have turned, with American …

By Andrew M. Mwenda People who are not willing to fight for their freedom and pay the highest price for it do not deserve to be free The idea that only the international community (read the West) can save Africa has gained hegemonic status. This is expressed in many ways: …

By Kaushik Basu Study shows the bulk of poverty eradication is driven by economies’ overall income growth The World Bank has set two new goals for itself: ending extreme and chronic poverty in the world by 2030, and promoting shared prosperity, defined in terms of progress of the poorest 40% …

By Yury Fedotov The UN estimates that seven in ten women worldwide experience physical or sexual violence during their lifetime As many as 12 women are killed by their partners or family members every day in Europe alone. In 2008, more than one-third of all murders of women in Europe …