IAWRT Uganda Chapter, Nankwanga Eunice Kasirye with Kadaga.
The Speaker of parliament Rebecca Kadaga has commended International Association of Women in Radio and Television (IAWRT) for its determination in the fight against negative Media portrayal of Women.
In a meeting with Kadaga, the head of IAWRT Uganda Chapter, Nankwanga Eunice Kasirye, said Women are regarded as a weaker sex adding that Female journalists are sent for simple stories in press conferences, yet they too can report from war zone areas and other investigative stories the can impact people’s lives.
The meeting was peddled at engaging the speaker to render a hand in the struggle to end gender stereo typing of women in Uganda’s media industry.
“With a gender sensitive media industry, IAWRT is optimistic to creating equity in all sectors and has been at the fore front of creating a sustainable pool of Media Gender mainstreaming ambassadors to influence female journalists,” she said
She also briefed the speaker on the need to create a data base of female media practitioners as well as female News sources to sustainability and collectively uplift the plight of a woman at all levels.
Cristiano Ronaldo has accepted a £17m fine and a suspended 23-month jail sentence after pleading guilty to tax fraud in Spain.
Ronaldo had previously agreed the deal with Spanish state prosecutors and tax authorities but still had to appear in court to sign off the agreement.
Spanish law allows for some sentences under two years to be spent on probation, meaning Ronaldo will not serve any jail time unless he commits a further offence.
The non-violent nature of Ronaldo’s offence means he is unlikely to spend any time at all in jail, serving it on probation instead.
His appearance lasted a matter of minutes but brought a huge media presence to court in Madrid, with judges refusing his request to appear by video or to enter court via a back entrance.
Ronaldo had been accused of defrauding authorities of £12.9m in unpaid taxes between 2011 and 2014, during his time with Real Madrid.
It was claimed Ronaldo, who now plays for Juventus, did not declare income of around £25m from image rights.
The prosecutor also alleged that the forward falsely reported income as coming from real estate, which it said had greatly reduced his tax rate.
Ronaldo’s former Real team-mate Xabi Alonso was also in court on Tuesday, accused of defrauding tax authorities of just under £2m between 2010 and 2012.
Alonso has denied any wrongdoing and told journalists “Yes, all good” as he arrived in Madrid.
The Minister of Finance Planning and Economic Development (MFPED) Matia Kasaija has said government does not intend to ban betting and gambling companies in the country as reported days ago in the local and regional media.
Recent media reports said President Museveni had directed that no new sports betting licences should be issued or the existing ones renewed.
“We are not banning betting companies, what we are saying this activities should be limited to Ugandans. We have discovered that so much of our money is being exported through gaming business affecting country’s economy which I think should be left for Ugandans who will later invest here,” Kasaija said on Tuesday at his offices.
He said the country’s hard earned foreign exchange from coffee, and other activities is taken to develop other countries leaving Uganda in poverty and betting machines.
The minister called on the youth to work first before going for gambling, adding that without working, they will not be able to get money to sustain their living.
Kasaijja has said government is set to close its doors to giving licences to new foreign gaming companies or renewing the ongoing licenses upon expiry.
Kasaijja said he will soon release a statement directing national gaming board, a body responsible for regulating betting companies to stop from issuing new licenses foreign companies and renewing them after the expire.
Responding to the concerns of Makindye West MP Allan Ssewanya in Parliament on Tuesday, State minister for Finance David Bahati said Museveni has directed officials to review the licensing of betting and gambling companies.
MP Ssewanyana said betting and gambling companies pay taxes in billions of shillings on top of employing Ugandans.
However, Minister Bahati said most of the money from betting is being taken outside the country, which calls for the need to licence local companies so that the money generated is kept within the country.
He said some students have spent schools fees money on betting, which calls for the tightening of the regulations governing the industry.
Bahaiti said Museveni will address the matter in the days ahead.
By 2018, National gaming board had regulated 40 betting companies, one pool bet, 20 casino and 15 slot machines operating in various town councils, municipalities and cities across the Country.
According to Section 39 of the Lotteries and Gaming Act, the minister of finance may by regulations prescribe minimum capital requirements for licensees under the Act and guide as the law states.
Olivier Prentout, a French national and Annie Tabura, a Rwandan national.
Government has deported two foreign nationals, Olivier Prentout, a French national and Annie Bilenge Tabura, a Rwandan national over their averred involvement in acts of compromising national security.
both Prentout and Tabura were workers of giant telecom MTN.
According to statement released by MTN Uganda, Olivier Prentout, the company’s Chief Marketing Officer, was on Saturday January 19, 2019 arrested by police upon his arrival at Entebbe airport from a business trip abroad.
And, on the morning of Monday January 21, 2019, Annie Bilenge Tabura, the MTN Uganda Head of Sales and Distribution, was arrested by unidentified security personnel upon arrival at the MTN headquarter offices, in Kololo, Kampala.
“Both Mr. Prentout and Mrs. Bilenge have been deported from Uganda to their home countries, France and Rwanda respectively. MTN Uganda, together with all its employees, remains fully committed to operating within and respecting the laws of the country,” reads in part of the statement.
Deputy police Spokesperson, Polly Namare said the two have been deported after thorough investigations conducted by security agencies in coordination with immigration officials saying they are alleged to have indulged in acts that compromise national security.
“We want to commend the directorate of immigration and citizenship for strengthening screening procedures at all entry boarder points. We strongly believe that the deportation of the two foreign nationals who are using their employment as a tool to achieve their ill motives has enabled us disrupt their plans of disrupting national security,” she said
In July last year security operatives stormed MTN’s data Centre in Mutundwe. For over a period of two hours trying to access the data.
All the incidents at the date center were captured on our CCTV cameras and the footage has been shared with the police, the company takes this criminal incident seriously and is working with the government of Uganda to establish the identity and motive of the perpetrators and bring them to account
A global review of Facebook posts, commissioned by Huawei on the occasion of launching their latest smart phone, brought about some astonishing results. Uganda, often referred to as the Pearl of Africa, emerged third, and the location named was Mgahinga National Park, one of two gorilla habitats in the country.
Colombo, Sri Lanka, topped the list, and Yokohama, Japan, came in as runner-up, but no one can argue that Uganda’s third place was well deserved, a destination for long underestimated and certainly undersold and under marketed in the past. Fourth was the German Spa city of Baden Baden, followed by Old San Juan on Puerto Rico in fifth place.
Meanwhile, Victoria Falls came in sixth – thought to be ranking higher and was followed in the top ten by Kartapur in Pakistan, the Wadi Rum in the Kingdom of Jordan, the Icy Straight in Alaska, USA, and finally the Isle of Harris in Scotland.
Analysts say Uganda’s third position is a big boost for its tourism industry which hopes that under a new regime at the helm of the Uganda Tourism Board the internal negativity can finally be overcome and progress be made to put the country not only on the global map but finally reach its full potential.
Mgahinga Gorilla National Park located in south western Uganda, sits high in the clouds, at an altitude of between 2,227m and 4,127m.
According to the Uganda Wildlife Authority, the park has about 39 mammals of these including the Mountain gorillas, buffaloes and elephants, also endangered golden monkeys.
Other species in the park include; giant forest hogs, bushbucks, leopards, spotted hyenas, black fronted duikers among others. It also has around 79 bird species.
However in the park there is only one group that is tracked which is the Nyakagezi gorilla group.
The park is 510km away from Kampala the capital of Uganda and you can get there by road or air. On road, it is approximately a 9-10hours drive from Kampala to Mgahinga, that is around 8 hours to Kabale town covering 434km and there are more 76km to Kisoro town, this route is tarmacked and a bit mountainous and steep.
There is also an alternative of using a route from Kabale town passing near the beautiful lake Bunyonyi and joining again Kabale-Kisoro tarmac. From Kisoro to the park it’s around 14km to Ntebeko the park main entrance. Tourists can make earlier bookings on flights that move from Entebbe International airport to Kisoro air field, using flights saves more time and it is less tiresome.
Facebook’s WhatsApp messenger service is globally limiting the number of times a user can forward a message in a bid to fight “misinformation and rumours”, company executives said hours ago limiting the number to five recipients.
“We’re imposing a limit of five messages all over the world as of today,” Victoria Grand, vice president for policy and communications at WhatsApp, said at an event in the Indonesian capital.
Initially, a WhatsApp user could forward a message to 20 individuals or groups. The five-recipient limit expands globally a measure WhatsApp put into place in India in July after the spread of rumours on social media led to killings and lynching attempts.
WhatsApp, which has around 1.5 billion users, has been trying to find ways to stop misuse of the app, following global concern that the platform was being used to spread fake news, manipulated photos, videos without context, and audio hoaxes, with no way to monitor their origin or full reach.
The app’s end-to-end encryption allows groups of hundreds of users to exchange texts, photos and video beyond the purview of independent fact checkers or even the platform itself.
WhatsApp will roll out an update to activate the new forward limit, starting Jan 21, WhatsApp’s head of communications Carl Woog said. Android users will receive the update first, followed by users of Apple’s iOS.
Ruparelia Group is among global top players in the floriculture market, according to the latest Global Industry Insights, Trends, Outlook, and Opportunity Analysis, 2018-2026.
Ruparelia Group runs two companies- Rosebud Ltd. and Premier Roses Ltd. which export the flower products. The two companies in October 2017 received Free Zone licenses from Uganda Free Zones Authority to grow more flowers in Namulanda Parish, Ssisa Sub-county, Wakiso District.
The company has also targeted Masaka and Kulkungu districts for flower growing.
Based in Entebbe, Uganda, Premier Roses is the country’s largest exporter of roses, with around 40 percent of Uganda’s export market. The green houses on the farm cover a total of 50 hectares producing and exporting over 12 million stems per month.
Premier Roses Ltd solely specializes in the production of quality cut roses for export onto the world market.
The company produces two categories of roses: Sweetheart Roses; Valentino (dark red), Viva (bright yellow), Chelsea (orange), Red Calypso (bright red), Meera (champagne), Akito (white), Blushing Akito (pink), Raspberry King (dark red), Jambo (bright red). Intermediate Roses include; Ace Pink (pink), Bella Rose (pink), Sunny Star (yellow), Furiosa (dark red), Tropical Amazone (orange), Banjo (pink), Labelle (peach), Sorraya (yellow), Athena (white).
According to the latest analysis, mergers and acquisitions, strategic collaborations, and new product launches are the key strategies adopted by the players in the floriculture market in order to retain their market share.
Sudhir Ruparelia, chairman of Ruparelia group of companies.
The analysis lists other major players operating in the global floriculture market as; The Kariki Group, Dummen Orange, Syngenta Flowers. Inc., Karuturi Global Limited, Oserian Development Company Limited, Selecta Klemm GmbH & Co. KG, Carzan Flowers K Ltd., Multiflora Ltd., and Karen Roses.
Market classification
Based on the product type, the floriculture market is segmented into: Cut flowers, pod plants, cut foliage, bedding plants and others like bulbs and corms.
Based on the application, the floriculture market is segmented into: Decoration, cosmetics, perfumes pharmaceuticals and others.
Furthermore, according to the International Trade Center (ITC), the global export of floriculture products has increase exponentially over the last few years. In emerging economies including India and China among others, the global export was recorded at US $4.00 billion in 2012, which was 24 per cent higher as compared to the exports in 2010, according to ITC.
Market dynamics
According to the analysis, major factors propelling growth of the global floriculture market include steadily developing plant biotechnology including genome sequencing, which results in increased yield and development of genetically modified flowering plants. For instance, Suntroy Flowers Ltd., a company based in Japan, developed the world’s first blue rose with 100 per cent blue-pigmented petals. The company started selling its blue rose, under the brand name Applause, throughout Japan in 2011.
Furthermore, owing to adoption of novel technologies and more precise management in commercial floriculture, profit of floriculture products per unit area is higher as compared to other agriculture products. Thereby, the higher profitability, is considered as another factor, leading to growth of the global floriculture market. Moreover, growing demand for essential oil of rose, tube rose, and jasmine among others, is propelling the market growth. For instance, according to Coherent Market Insights’ analysis, the global consumption of essential oils is anticipated to grow from US $8.29 billion in 2016 to US$ 15.01 billion in 2025.
Global Market Outlook
Asia Pacific is projected to record a significant growth in the global floriculture market during the forecast period. This is attributed to presence of largest flower producing countries such as India and China in the region. Owing to growing demand for flowers, floriculture in India is emerging as an important commercial trade in agriculture. According to the Agriculture & Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), in India, around 248.51 thousand hectares area was reported as under cultivation in floriculture during 2014-2015 and the production of flowers was estimated to be 472 thousand tons cut flowers and 1,658 thousand tons loose flowers during 2014-2015 in India.
Furthermore, Indian floriculture industry is shifting from traditional flowers to cut flowers, in order to support growth of their export business. For instance, according to the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, India had produced 0.69 million metric tons of cut flowers during 2015-2016 and according to the APEDA, during 2016-2017, countries including Germany, the U.S., the U.K., and United Arab Emirates were major importers of the Indian floriculture.
In Europe, Netherlands is the largest producer and exporter of the floriculture products. According to the data provided by the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service in 2016, Netherland was reported as the dominant exporter of the floriculture products including cut flowers and bulbs, and in 2015, the total export of the country for floriculture products was reported as over 9 billion, out of which, 1 billion corresponds to bulbs only, according to USDA. Tulip dominated the bulbs export of Netherlands in 2015, among hyacinth, narcissi, and gladioli bulbs.
Furthermore, growing demand for cut flowers and higher imports in Germany and other European Union countries such as France, is driving the growth of floriculture market in the region. For instance, according to the European Union, the total imports of cut flowers and cut foliage in EU was reported as 294.24 Kilo tons in 2013. Moreover, cut flowers and cut foliage segment dominated the total imports of floriculture products in EU with 78.3 per cent in 2014, among potted plants (15.6 per cent) and bulbs and corms (4 per cent), according to the European Union.
The Uganda Premier League secretariat has released second round fixtures for the 2018/19 season with the matches set to start on Tuesday 29th January 2019.
KCCA finished the first round on top of the table with 36 points, 7 points ahead of Vipers who still have two games against URA FC and Mbarara City to complete their first round fixtures.
The Kasasiro boys will begin with a trip to Kakyeka stadium on Wednesday 31st January against Mbarara City while Vipers SC will get the second round of the league underway at home against Kirinya Jinja SSS on Friday, 1st February 2019. Both these fixtures ended in goalless draws in the first round.
Bright Stars will host Onduparaka FC at Champion Stadium Mwererwe while Wasswa Bbosa will face his former employers when his Tooro United FC side host Express FC in Buhinga.
Police FC will take on relegation-threatened Nyamityobora FC at the Star times Stadium Lugogo as Maroons will travel to Jinja to play BUL FC.
There will be a bottom of the table clash that will see Ndejje University travel to West Nile to face Paidha Black Angels at the Green Light stadium.
Meanwhile, the secondary registration window for the new signings will close on 31st January.
The league is expected to end on May 4th, 2019.
Matchday 16 fixtures
Tuesday, January 29
Police FC Vs Nyamityobora – StarTimes stadium, Lugogo 4:30pm
Tooro United Vs Express – Buhinga stadium, FortPortal 4:30pm
Wednesday, Jan 30
BUL Vs Maroons – FUFA Technical centre, Njeru 4:30pm
Mbarara Vs KCCA – Kakyeka stadium, Mbarara 4:30pm
Friday, Feb 1
Vipers Vs Kirinya – St.Mary’s stadium, Kitende 4:30pm
Paidha Black Angels Vs Ndejje – Green Light Stadiu, Arua 4:30pm
URA FC Vs SC Villa – Mandela National Stadium, Namboole 4pm
Bright Stars Vs Onduparaka – Champions Stadium, Mwererwe 4pm
There are “close links” between the Rwandan government and the main suspects in the 2013 assassination of exiled Rwandan dissident Patrick Karegeya, according to a newly disclosed letter by South African prosecutors.
The letter is of “vital importance” and yet was never disclosed until now, a South African judge said in a court ruling on Monday.
The letter is further evidence to corroborate a 2014 investigation by The Globe and Mail, which revealed the role of the Rwandan government in plots to assassinate Rwandan dissidents in South Africa.
Mr. Karegeya, a former Rwandan spy chief and close aide to Rwandan president Paul Kagame who later became a leading opponent of the government, was found dead in a luxury hotel room in Johannesburg on Jan. 1, 2014. He is believed to have been strangled to death on the previous night by Rwandan suspects who fled back to Rwanda within hours.
Police identified the main suspects within weeks, yet their investigation inexplicably fell dormant for several years. An inquest was finally due to begin this month, but Mr. Karegeya’s family has argued that prosecutors should file criminal charges against the suspects without waiting for the inquest.
Judge Mashiane Mathopa, in his ruling on Monday at the start of a Johannesburg inquest, ordered the South African investigators to explain “what, if any, steps have been taken to arrest the Rwandan suspects, since their whereabouts and their identity are known.” He gave them two weeks to comply with his ruling.
The police investigation began “like a house on fire” after the murder, but then faded into stagnation by 2015, the judge said. Key DNA evidence was gathered, but it is unclear if it was ever analyzed properly, he said.
A lawyer for the Karegeya family has suggested that the case was blocked by “political meddling.” The South African government has been trying to restore relations with Rwanda in recent years, after an earlier rupture caused by the Karegeya assassination and South African’s decision to expel three Rwandan diplomats who were allegedly involved in the Karegeya murder and the attempted murder of another Rwandan dissident.
The letter by the South African prosecutors, written in June 2018, makes it clear that “the prosecution knows who and where the suspects are and what needs to be done,” Judge Mathopa said on Monday.
“Justice delayed is justice denied,” the judge said. He added, quoting a proverb in the Sepedi language: “The longer it takes to deal with a matter, the harder it becomes.”
There is no extradition treaty between South Africa and Rwanda, but South Africa could still request Rwanda’s cooperation in sending the suspects to South Africa, lawyers say. South Africa could also issue an international warrant for the suspects to be arrested if they travel to other countries, the lawyers say.
The inquest into Mr. Karegeya’s death, requested by the prosecutors, does not enjoy “public confidence” and would be “premature” at a time when key evidence is still not completed and nothing has been done to arrest the suspects, Judge Mathopa said.
He ordered the inquest to be postponed, and he gave a 14-day deadline for prosecutors to comply with his order to resolve the discrepancies in the evidence and to show what steps they have taken to arrest the suspects.
Mr. Karegeya’s family members said they were overjoyed at the judge’s ruling, which they see as a long-awaited breakthrough in the case. After more than five years of waiting for justice, they said they are increasingly hopeful that the truth will now emerge.
The Karegeya case has attracted global attention. Human Rights Watch, in a statement, said the case is further evidence that Rwandan dissidents face the risk of “threats, enforced disappearances, unlawful arrest, detention and torture.”
Mr. Kagame’s own statements, just two weeks after the Karegeya assassination, showed that he “came close to condoning” the murder, Human Rights Watch said.
Those who criticize the Rwandan people are now aware of “how far they go to protect their own nation,” Mr. Kagame’s office said on Twitter after the murder. And in a public speech on the same day, Mr. Kagame said: “Those who betray the country will pay the price.”
An analysis of employees of the Parliament of Uganda shows that the Karimojong have been left out despite efforts put in place to fairly distribute jobs in different arms and agencies of government.
The Parliamentary Commission which recruits workers of parliament last recruited workers over a year ago to fill 30 vacant positions which included accountants, technicians, administrative assistants.
Other positions Assistant Editor of Hansard, Engineering Officers information and public education officers, librarians, procurement officers, protocol officers, publications officers, research officers among others. Parliament has about 465 staff.
Parliament has three directorates each having departments under them. For instance, Parliamentary Affairs Directorate has departments like; Parliamentary Budget Office, Department of Clerks, Department of Legal and Legislative Services, Department of Official Report and Department of Research Services.
Further, Corporate affairs directorate has; Department of Administration and Transport Logistics, Department of Communication and Public Affairs, Department of Corporate Planning and Strategy, Department of Finance, Department, Department of Information and Communication Technology, Department of Library Services and Department of Seargent at Arms
Offices / Secretariats include; The Offices of the Speaker and Deputy Speaker, The Office of the Leader of Government Business, The Office of the Leader of the Opposition, The Commission Secretariat, The Institute of Parliamentary Studies and Internal Audit.
Basing on the above revelation that no Karimojong is employed by parliament, Deputy Speaker Jacob Oulanyah has tasked the relevant authorities at parliament to make sure that in the subsequent job selection, Karimojong are considered for employment by parliament in order to avoid being accused of bias.
