Uganda’s journey at the ongoing 2017 AfroBasketball Championship came to an end in Senegal after losing to Morocco in the final game of the group stages.
The Silverbacks failed to win any game in group B, after they suffered a 94-89 defeat to Angola in the first match, lost 57-54 to Central African Republic and 79-70 to Morocco. Angola and Morocco advanced to the next round.
The quarter-finals are scheduled to take place on Thursday, September 14 in Tunis, with Egypt facing Morocco in the first game, before Afrobasket title holders Nigeria take on Cameroon.
Hosts Tunisia will be up against DR Congo while former champions Angola will battle Senegal in the final game of the last eight.
The semi-finals will be on played September 15, while the final is scheduled for September 16. All the knock-out games will be hosted in Tunisia.
The Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS) has signed a memorandum of understanding with Kampala Butchers and Traders Association (KABUTA) to improve quality of meat products and ensure compliance to the food safety standards.
The signing took place at UNBS Head Office between the UNBS Executive Director, Dr. Ben Manyindo and the KABUTA Chairman, Al Hajji Musa Ssenabulya.
“The MoU is good opportunity for UNBS to work with established industry association to coordinate the development of standards and codes of practice relevant for improving the quality and safety of meat and meat products,” Dr. Manyindo said at the signing.
According to the MoU, UNBS will promote value addition in the industry by creating awareness on requirements and procedures for product and food safety among the KABUTA members. The standards body will also provide testing services to evaluate the quality and safety of products for conformity to relevant standards.
“UNBS will involve members of KABUTA in the development of meat standards and support them to undertake training on standards implementation and record keeping,” Dr. Manyindo said.
The MoU also provides cooperation on weights and measures requirements, training and certification of the butchers.
In the past Uganda has faced challenges in accessing international markets due to poor quality meat and meat products. However, the cooperation between UNBS and KABUTA will reportedly improve standards in the industry thus improving trade in meat and related products.
UNBS will also coordinate harmonization and implementation of standards in meat and meat products in the region and benchmark with international standards to prevent technical barriers to trade for products.
On his part Al Hajji Ssenabulya said the MoU comes at an opportune time when Kabuta wants to improve standards among butchers and meat traders.
“The MoU will allow us to work with UNBS to ensure that our members to comply with Industry standards including UNBS requirements on weights and measures which will improve quality and competitiveness of our products,” said Al Hajji Ssenabulya.
“We shall use our association to mobilize our members and work with UNBS to create awareness on food safety and certification requirements”, he added.
The Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS) is a statutory body responsible for developing and promoting standards and quality of products and services to facilitate fair trade, promote local industries and protect consumers.
Kicking off Saturday on a low note that was characterised by criticisms of low publicity for the event, Ugandans have finally embraced the East African Cultural Festival, Jamafest.
This turnaround was evidenced by the multitudes at the three venues; Kololo, National Theater and Hotel Africana, that are hosting the week-long event.
Troupe members entertain crowds at the Jamafest
Indeed after realising the fun they had been missing out, it turned out yesterday was the biggest day of the festival in terms of entertainment and attendance.
The day started with wrestling, traditional board games like Omweso and ludo. Next was screenings of local films, drama and storytelling before winding down with performances from dance troupes including Triple Mars, Nyenya Cultural troupe, Pride Performers Africa and Crane Hill School.
At the main stage were performances from Jekaki band and Jinong’ite band among others, leaving revellers sweating after pulling out their best strokes.
In what appears to maintain or even better the pace set yesterday, the organisers have lined up a yet fun-filled program for the second straight day.
The festival returned today with a continuation of the symposium that began yesterday. It closes today at Hotel Africana with key resolutions. Sessions will delve into; Cultural and culture industries for regional and national development; Harnessing the legal and policy frameworks for cultural development; Fostering and developing languages for regional cultural exchange and development.
At Kololo: exhibitions and open market continue, kids games, ekigwo (wrestling), traditional board games (mweso, ludo, cards), storytelling (tontoma), performances by Kiconco cultural troupe of Uganda, Tasuba band from Tanzania, Sengenya Asili from Kenya, Karo Karungi Troupe of Uganda, Masai Mara cultural troupe from Kenya, Burundian drummers, Pawindi Larakaraka of Uganda, Nsisi band of Kenya, Milege music band of Uganda, and guest artist Swahili Ally. Venue opened at 10am and closes at 7pm.
At National Theatre: Film screening of Gito L’lngrant by Leonce Ngabo from Burundi at 12pm, and another film from Kenya at 2pm. At 7pm, we shall have the comedy night live featuring Pablo of Uganda, Vitimbi of Kenya and performances by bands from Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania (mwela theatre).
Makerere University Rugby Grounds played host to the 5th Leg of the 2017 Guinness National Rugby Sevens series over the weekend.
With the Kobs seeking to seal their title defence, it turned out to be a weekend for the Entebbe Mongers, who fended off the Kobs in the finals to win the 5th Leg 21-15, inspired by playmaker Daniel Ladu.
Earlier, the semifinals were a show of might as Mongers defeated the Rhinos 21-5 while Kobs defeated the Rams 15-5.
Meanwhile, the 6th and final Leg of the 2017 Guinness National Rugby Sevens series will be played at Legends Rugby Grounds, home of the Kobs on the 16th September. Gates open at 8am and the games will be played all through the day.
Speaking after the games, Estella Muzito, the Head of Beers at Uganda Breweries Limited said; “We have come a long way and the teams are showing all vigor to fight till the last day. As we go into the finals, we hope the best team wins. As Guinness, we shall continue supporting rugby and we continue to prepare for the coming Rugby Africa 7s Cup in October.”
Guinness joined the rugby fraternity to help support and build the sport in the country as well as pivot the national sevens team to greater heights.
The new sevens format has ten core member clubs and two invitational teams at each circuit. There is a weekly ranking of teams based on their performance during the circuits.
The rugby 7s series is taking place in six venues around the country with twenty-two teams and an estimated 2,000 participants that are expected to take part.
Members of the National Resistance Movement (NRM) meeting at Parliament have today passed a motion to amend the presidential age limit.
According to sources, one of the NRM MPs will table ‘a private members bill’ before Parliament, seeking to change the age cap from the constitutional 75-year limit as enshrined in Article 102(b) of the 1995 Constitution.
At meeting chaired by MP for Bubyangabu county Adolf Kasaija Mwesige, the motion was moved by Kyaka County MP Jackson Rwakafuzi, and adopted by all present, except the Kumi Womam legislator, Monica Amoding.
“Chairperson, when you invited us here, I didn’t know the meeting was about article 102. I believe this is a pompous discussion” Ms Amoding reportedly said, adding that Kumi they need some time to consult Ugandans. She also said that the few NRM MPs should not decide for more than 37 million Ugandans.
If passed by Parliament, the bill might see President Yoweri Museveni rule beyond May 2021, when his last 5-year constitutional mandate expires.
The debate to lift the age cap has elicited sharp criticism, with the Democratic Party recently launching the ‘Kogikwatako’ campaign urging Ugandans to resist any attempts to remove the presidential age cap from the Constitution.
In power for 31 years now, in 2005 President Museveni rallied NRM MPs to change the 1995 Constitution, removing the two-year term limit.
Earlier, Museveni had the National Resistance Council (NRC) extend his rule that was backed by ‘Legal Notice No. 1’ of 1986, beyond 1990, a time line that had been set to hold elections.
A British mining company whose impounded multi-million dollar diamonds are to be ‘nationalised’ has become the latest casualty of Tanzanian president John Magufuli’s nationalist drive to take on what he believes is corruption and international exploitation of its mining industry.
Late last month (Aug. 31), Tanzanian authorities seized $15 million worth of diamonds at Dar es Salaam airport, which were set for export to Antwerp, Belgium. The diamonds were being exported by Williamson Diamonds, a local mine majority owned by British mining firm, Petra.
While the London-listed Petra Diamonds claims it has not been given a reason for the seizure, Tanzania’s government has alleged the miner had under-declared the value of the exports.
Tanzania has valued the seized diamonds at $29.5 million—double of the Williamson’s $14.7 million valuation. In a statement, the government says it will nationalize the diamonds having determined that “there was cheating involved in declaring the actual value of the mineral.”
Tanzania has also ordered a criminal investigation against officials involved in declaring valuing the diamonds and issuing its export permits. Tanzania’s finance minister has claimed the country likely loses ‘ more than $46 million’ annually to under-cleared diamond exports.
Petra owns a 75% stake in Williamson Diamonds while Tanzania’s government own 25%. But even that ownership stake has come under question as the government has claimed there were “irregularities” in the process that saw the government’s stake reduced to 25% from 50%. Petra has denied any wrongdoing and says valuation of exports are typically carried out by a government agency.
But regardless, news of the seizure has resulted in a sharp slide in Petra’s share price. At a point yesterday (Sept. 11), Petra’s shares fell 28%—the biggest single-day slump in 16 years.
Petra has also temporarily shuttered operations at its Williamson mine citing “health and safety and security reasons.”
The seizure of the diamonds is the latest episode in Tanzania’s continued focus on alleged wrongdoing in its mining industry under President John Magufuli.
Influencers, journalists and well-wishers were treated to a magical evening of free drinks, dinner and entertainment during the event to officially launch the 5th consecutive season of Coca-Cola’s flagship show, Coke Studio.
Hosted at Fame Bar and Lounge in Kololo, the event was also attended by two of Uganda’s Coke Studio representatives – Bebe Cool and Lydia Jasmine, as well as representatives from Century Bottling Company Limited, the official bottler and distributor of Coca-Cola products in Uganda.
Titled Coke Studio Africa 2017, this season marks the first time that the beverage giant has merged Coke Studio Africa and Coke Studio South Africa into one, bigger and better show, consequently increasing the number of participating countries to 16, up from 11 in the previous edition.
Rodney Nzioka, the Coca-Cola Uganda Brand manager thanked the guests for showing up in large numbers and for their continued support over the years.
“As you all know, fusing the diverse musical influences in Africa while providing a platform for renowned as well as upcoming and less mainstream artists to collaborate musically is the backbone of Coke Studio,” he said.
“Coke Studio Africa is Coca-Cola’s pledge to the development and support of both the African and Ugandan music industry. Through productions such as Coca-Cola Pop Stars, Coca-Cola Real Stars and Coca-Cola Rated Next, we have played an active role in harnessing the talent in our country,” Nzioka added.
During the launch event, Coke Studio representatives Lydia Jasmine and Bebe Cool were given an opportunity to share their experiences in the studio and the impact this show has had on their personalities and music careers.
Guests were also given the opportunity to watch the first episode of the Coke Studio Africa 2017 season that officially aired on Saturday, September 9, 2017.
Ambassador Attilio Pacifici, the New European Union Ambassador to Uganda has presented working copies of his credentials to the Minister of Foreign Affairs Sam Kutesa.
The ceremony held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Kampala on September 11, 2017 and Amb. Pacifici replaces Kristian Schmidt whose tour ended in July 2017.
Kutesa congratulated Mr. Pacifici on his new appointment in Uganda.
Amb. Attilio Pacifici thanked the Minister for welcoming him stating that he was looking forward to working with the government of Uganda to strengthen further relations between the European Union and the Republic of Uganda.
The Ambassador-designate said he was glad to be in Uganda again, a country he last visited 25 years ago.
The two discussed various issues including EU strategies for strengthening the Private Sector in Uganda as a catalyst for development.
Amb. Pacifici has over 25 years career experience as a permanent staff member the European Commission mainly focusing his work on Africa and African Affairs. He worked as the European Union ambassador to Liberia from November 2009 to December 2014.
Prior to His appointment he worked as a senior advisor to the Managing Director European External Action Services for Africa.
Meanwhile Ambassador designate of Uganda to Democratic Republic of Congo, Amb. James Mbahimba presented credentials to President Joseph Kabila on Saturday September 2, 2017 at State House Kinshasa.
Amb. Mbahimba was accompanied by his spouse Ms. Catherinne Mbahimba and the Mission’s Minister Counselor Brig. Gen. Julius Chihandae.
Amb. Mbahimba passed on warm greetings from President Yoweri Museveni to President Kabila, emphasizing that he would ensure that relations between Uganda and the DRC were strengthened even more.
President Kabila expressed his pleasure at the arrival of the new Ambassador. He informed him that he wished to pursue the management of shared natural resources, observing that both Uganda and the DRC needed to enhance implementation of the already adopted agreement.
President Kabila observed that Uganda and the DRC are brothers who must depend on one other. He appreciated Uganda’s proposal of extending electric power to Beni.
Tourism minister Prof. Ephraim Kamuntu gives a snapshot of the tourism industry in Uganda while in China
The Minister for Tourism, Wildlife and Antiquities, Prof. Ephraim Kamuntu, has said Uganda is targeting four million tourists by 2020 among them one million from China.
Prof Kamuntu is leading a delegation of government and private sector players at the China Guangdong International Tourism Expo as part of promotional efforts to woo tourists from China, one of the world’s emerging sources of tourists. The China Guangdong International Tourism Expo was attended by over 500,000 people.
“We are going to embark on an aggressive marketing campaign in this very important market. To this end, the government is looking at the Chinese outbound tourism market contributing greatly to its aspiration,” said Prof. Kamuntu indicated in a statement.
The Minister is accompanied by Stephen Asiimwe, the Chief Executive Officer of the Uganda Tourism Board (UTB); staff of the Guangzhou Consulate led by Ambassador Solomon Rutega, Uganda’s Consul General in Guangzhou; and officials from the Uganda embassy in Beijing.
“In this year’s budget, we have included a budget for market representation and public relations. We hope that this will help bolster our presence in the Chinese market, increase visibility and awareness of the destination,” UTB boss Asiimwe said.
The Expo and conference, was held at the Pazhou Exhibition Complex in Guangzhou, the capital Guangdong, China’s richest province, with a GDP of US$ 1.15 trillion, and a population of over 110 million people. The side event was organised as part of ongoing activities by the Consulate to create further awareness of Uganda as a favourable tourist destination in Africa.
Asiimwe informed tour and travel operators of the peace and stability that Uganda has enjoyed over the years and reassured them of unforgettable experiences. He called on tour and travel operators to establish links with their counterparts in Uganda to develop itineraries that suite the Chinese outbound market.
Ambassador Rutega said since the establishment of the Consulate, trade, investment and tourism had increased tremendously. “One of our core result areas has been tourism. We hope that these engagements will ensure the government targets are met,” he said.
The Tourism Administration of Guangdong Province was represented by Mr. Liang Yongzhong, who expressed the readiness of the Government of China to support Uganda’s efforts to attract Chinese outbound tourists.
Kamuntu is expected to attend the General Assembly of the United Nations World Tourism Organisation in Chengdu, Sichuan Province. He will also preside over another Consulate-organised conference on promoting Uganda’s investment and tourism opportunities in Nanning City, Guangxi Province on September 14, 2017.
In a rare move, the Ministry of Health in partnership with the National Medical Stores (NMS) will offer free Yellow Fever vaccination to Ugandans from September 27-29.
According to a statement, the exercise at Kololo Independence Grounds will be part of the activities during the Taxpayers’ Appreciation Week, organised by the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) to recognize best taxpayers in the country. During the vaccination, there will also be free screening for sickle cells.
Yellow fever is a risk in Uganda, and the vaccine is administered to people of over 9 months, at a fee.
But according to the statement, the free vaccination against Yellow Fever will save people between Shs80, 000 and Shs200, 000, depending on where one gets it.
Currently, most Ugandans do not go for vaccination against the disease due to the costs involved. It is only those on foreign travel that go for vaccination for clearance purposes.
The Taxpayers’ Appreciation Week expected to be officially opened by President Yoweri Museveni, will have government ministries, departments and agencies give and explain their services to the public especially to inform the public of the importance of the taxes they pay.
