We need to seize the ‘handwashing with soap’ moment COMMENT | Dennis Alioni | Uganda’s handwashing rate shot up to an unprecedented 86% in the last three months, surpassing the country’s 2020 National Development Plan II target of 50% and the 2019 average of 36%. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, …
Read More »MPs push for free water, electricity
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | A section of Members of Parliament want government to waive water and electricity bills for six months following the lockdown brought about by the coronavirus pandemic. The legislators argue that the lockdown which came into force in March has left Ugandans incapacitated economically and …
Read More »NWSC guarantees water production despite COVID-19 challenges
DR. Silver Mugisha is the Managing Director of National Water and Sewerage Corporation (NWSC). He spoke to The Independent about strategies NWSC is using to continue serving Ugandans despite the economic challenges created by the raging COVID-19 pandemic. QUESTION: How is NWSC coping with COVID-19 pandemic? ANSWER: It is a tough time that requires innovation and …
Read More »Evidence Action kicks-off COVID-19 prevention hygiene project
KAMPALA, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Evidence Action – an international NGO with its Africa regional headquarters in Nairobi – has launched the COVID-19 Prevention Hygiene Project in 11 Ugandan districts to support rural communities in slowing the spread of COVID-19. This project …
Read More »The mighty River Nile, threatened by waste, warming, mega-dam
Cairo, Egypt | AFP | Early one morning in Cairo, volunteers paddle their kayaks across the Nile, fishing out garbage from the mighty waterway that gave birth to Egyptian civilisation but now faces multiple threats. Egypt’s lifeline since Pharaonic days and the source of 97 percent of its water is …
Read More »NEMA: Lake Victoria is a naturally self cleansing system
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Uganda’s National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) has said they are working with Kenya and Tanzanian authorities on how to sustainably manage Lake Victoria, that the media has in the past week described as endangered. Uganda’s Daily Monitor and Kenya’s Daily Nation featured a story …
Read More »Hoima cattle farmers relocate animals to Luweero
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Cattle farmers in Hoima district have started moving their animals to Luweero and Nakasongola districts in search of pasture and water because of the dry spell, which has taken a huge toll on their area. The most affected are cattle farmers from Buseruka, Kigorobya, Bombo …
Read More »NWSC MD Mugisha inducted into African Leadership CEO’s Hall of Fame
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The International Advisory Board of African Leadership Magazine, a publication of African Leadership (UK) Limited meritoriously selected NWSC MD Dr. Eng Silver Mugisha from a shortlist of nominees to be inducted into the AFRICAN LEADERSHIP CEO’S HALL OF FAME 2020. In the same vein, …
Read More »Ethiopia asks South Africa to mediate Nile dam dispute
Pretoria, South Africa | AFP | Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed on Sunday asked South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa to intervene in a long-running dispute with Egypt over a massive dam being built on the Blue Nile River. Ethiopia’s ties to Egypt have soured since the east African country launched …
Read More »Donors prop up Uganda water sector by SH130 billion
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | In the next financial year where most agencies and ministries will see their budgets cut, the Water and Environment sector is set to move against the tide and see its budget allocations upped by at least Sh130 billion. This is because of the fact …
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