Hoima, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Hoima district local government has suspended the ongoing verification of more than 1,300 tobacco farmers because of the coronavirus pandemic. Last year, President Yoweri Museveni promised to compensate more than 1,300 tobacco farmers after tobacco buying companies failed to meet their contractual obligation to …
Read More »Government has no plans for Ugandans stranded abroad
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Government has said it does not have plans to help Ugandans stranded abroad because of the coronavirus lockdown. Several Ugandans are stranded in many countries amidst the coronavirus lock down. Students and workers are among Ugandans stranded in the United States of America and …
Read More »Wuhan opens, sparking hope despite rising global deaths and economic pain
Wuhan, China | AFP | Thousands streamed out of the Chinese city of Wuhan Wednesday after a lockdown on the birthplace of the coronavirus was lifted, offering a ray of hope even as Europe and the United States faced rising deaths and crippling economic pain. As Wuhan reawakens, Western countries remain …
Read More »Entebbe residents unhappy over one day travel permits
Entebbe, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | A cross section of residents of Entebbe Municipality are unhappy with the new directive requiring the Residential District Commissioners and their deputies to issue travel permits for only a day. The Minister for the Presidency, Esther Mbayo told RDCs and Deputy RDCs on Monday …
Read More »Mane would ‘understand’ if Liverpool were denied Premier League title
London, United Kingdom | AFP | Sadio Mane says he would understand if Liverpool were denied the Premier League title even though they were on the brink of glory when coronavirus forced a shutdown. Jurgen Klopp’s men were 25 points clear of Manchester City when football came to a halt last month, agonisingly close to …
Read More »Transport operators in Gulu decry loss of income
Gulu, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Transport operators in Gulu town have decried financial hardship and starvation following the ban on public and private transport. Last month, the government temporarily suspended operations of commuter taxis, boda-bodas and buses among others to reinforce safety measures in curbing the spread of coronavirus. …
Read More »Virus pandemic deals heavy blow to Egypt’s working poor
Cairo, Egypt | AFP | Haggard and dishevelled from the stress of making ends meet, day labourers line up in Cairo for food parcels after losing their jobs to the sharp downturn caused by the coronavirus. Sayed Shaaban, 42, who used to work in a cafe, said for him the pandemic …
Read More »EU nations battle to bridge bitter split over ‘coronabonds’
Brussels, Belgium | AFP | EU finance ministers were mired in marathon talks on Wednesday unable to bridge differences on how to rebuild their economies after the coronavirus, with a North versus South split on burden-sharing for hard-hit countries. The European economy has been battered by the pandemic as national governments …
Read More »To cut or not to cut? In US, quarantine slows everything but hair growth
Washington, United States | AFP | The economy may have slowed and normal life come to a standstill, but in the world of hair, a follicle free-for-all unencumbered by coronavirus has Americans asking one critical question — to cut or not to cut? For Chicago mayor Lori Lightfoot, the answer was …
Read More »Construction works at Hoima international airport suspended
Hoima, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Construction works at Hoima International Airport has been suspended over COVID-19. The contractors SBC/SBI Lloyds British International has sent home over 900 workers that have been working in the different departments. Amos Muriisa, the Public Relations officer SBC told Uganda Radio Network on Tuesday that …
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