Development Initiative for Northern Uganda (DINU) has opened up two slaughterhouses in Moroto District to improve the quality of beef for the betterment of the residents’ health since they predominantly depend on livestock. The quality of the meat consumed on the market has been a big question since the district had only one slaughterhouse.

According to Dr. Denis Baraza Wabwire, the Moroto District Veterinary Officer, slaughters have always been carried out in the bushes thereby exposing consumers to health risks and also causing loss of local revenue to the district.

However, this is set to change following the construction of two slaughterhouses in Rupa and Katikekile Sub-counties that were handed over to Moroto District leaders last week.

The two facilities estimated at Shs52 million were constructed by CARE Denmark and Catholic Relief Services (CRS) under the Development Initiative for Northern Uganda (DINU), a government of Uganda programme supported by the European Union and supervised by the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM).

“We have a challenge in Karamoja. Slaughters are done from anywhere in our community. We had only one slaughterhouse in the municipality. Now we have three facilities in the district with the addition of these two by CARE and CRS and for this we are grateful. We thank all partners who contributed towards this facility. Under the animals or public health act, all animals or any meat to be consumed by the public must be inspected,” Dr. Wabwire explained

 “Imagine the meat being consumed here is largely slaughtered in a kraal which gives us a hard time to inspect and imposes a risk to the consumers. Our partners have done their work, now the ball is in our hands,” he added.

Mr. George William Wopuwa, the Moroto RDC, who presided over the event, applauded the DINU programme for the support and urged the community to embrace the development.

“Let us support this programme, one way of supporting it is to bring the cows and goats to be slaughtered at the facilities and this will reduce theft because the cows that come here have ownership. When you go to steal, you will be exposing your cows too. Therefore, let’s keep and multiply what we have so that this place is useful. We thank partners for this work because the district cannot do this alone,” Mr Wopuwa said.

The Chief Administrative Officer, Mr Komakech Oluba Charles said that the illegal slaughters were happening since farmers wanted to evade tax but hopes this will now end.

“The illegal slaughters were being done to avoid small taxes. Apart from the revenue, we hope people consume good meat and not sick animals to avoid diseases. We want to thank DINU. You have done a lot for us. We are also aware that the DINU project is coming to closure, but we have learnt a lot. We had a lot of software on this project, and this has caused an impact. However, in Karamoja you need to be a little patient to see a big change,” Komakech said.

Moroto District chairperson David Koryang said DINU intervention has made a big impact on the communities so far.

“The interventions were good, and the participants were able to withstand the hunger crisis. I interacted with some of them, and they said they are continuing with what they learnt even after the project closes. The mind-set of our people has changed,” he said.

It is estimated that more than 300 cows will be slaughtered monthly at the two facilities with a projection of Shs3 million in local revenue for the district.

The slaughterhouses were among the several interventions implemented by Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and CARE under the DINU program to support smallholder farmers in value addition chain through sustainable market infrastructure chain.

“We did not have such structures before but the district leaders requested for this structure and we know they will be responsible for it. Some of the framers have been able to adapt. I hope this structure will help the market to become operational,” said Mr Edward Eko, the DINU focal person in Moroto District.

According to CRS Nutritional technical team leader Joanita Nagaddya, the slaughterhouses are beneficial to the health of the people, food safety and meat quality.

“We are celebrating this milestone as a district, as a project and as a community,” she said.

CARE International in Uganda Programme Manager for Livelihood Edton Babu Ndyabahika appreciated the district leadership for their cooperation.

“As a lead agency, we value this partnership. We would not have managed if the district was not very cooperative. For any income generating activity, sustainability becomes a key issue and I believe this should not be hard to sustain because it generates income. We also note that the DINU participants were not affected by the hunger crisis and this is testimony that if the mandate is extended we can do more,” he said.

Under the Development Initiative for Northern Uganda (DINU), a Government of Uganda programme supported by the EU and supervised by the Office of the Prime Minister, Care Denmark received a grant in 2020 to implement a project, “Inclusive Market-based Development for Smallholder Farmers in Northern Uganda.”

The project is implemented by a consortium consisting of five NGOs (Care Denmark as the lead, Catholic Relief Services, Gulu Agricultural Development Company, Dynamic Agro-Pastoralist Development Organization and SORUDA). The 38-month project (2020-2023) focuses on increasing food security, improving maternal and child nutrition and enhance household income in the eleven districts of Abim, Amudat, Kaabong, Karenga, Katakwi, Kitgum, Kotido, Moroto, Nabilatuk, Nakapiripirit and Napak.

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Activists led by Mawejje Frank have petitioned the European Union (EU) urging it to back off Uganda’s oil. Protected by police, the activists chanted outside EU offices at Crested Towers, Kampala.

Received by unknown officials from the EU in Kampala, the activists claimed both Uganda and Tanzania conducted a feasibility study about the projects and established that they will not affect the community.

“Stop meddling in our Oil. Uganda is an independent country with its minerals, this is our oil,” reads on one of the placards carried by activists.

Last week, the EU parliament passed a resolution calling on TotalEnergies to take one year before launching the 1445-kilometer East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) project to study the feasibility of an alternative route to better safeguard protected and sensitive ecosystems and the water resources of Uganda and Tanzania.

According to the resolution EU parliament claimed that the project will generate up to 34 million tonnes of carbon emissions per year yet the International Energy Agency (IEA) warned in a 2021 report that limiting global warming to 1.5 °C to prevent climate change’s most destructive impacts would require new oil and gas development to stop immediately.

They also said nearly 118,000 people are affected by the oil projects. Their homes were destroyed to facilitate the construction of access roads; their land was requisitioned without prior payment of fair and adequate compensation. The compensation paid is often far too low to allow farmers whose land has been expropriated to buy comparable land on which to continue farming.

“EU Parliament asks the authorities in Uganda and Tanzania to ensure human rights advocates, journalists, and civil society groups are free to carry out their work in at-risk communities and called for all arbitrarily arrested human rights defenders to be released immediately,” they said.

The Parliament of Uganda condemned the motion for a resolution by the European Union Parliament that calls on Uganda and Tanzania to stop the development of the oil and gas projects in the East African region.

During the plenary, the deputy Speaker of Parliament Thomas Tayebwa said the EU’s motion seeks to curtail the progress of Uganda’s oil and gas developments and by extension, the country’s socio-economic growth and development. It also seeks to deny Ugandans and East Africans the benefits and opportunities of the oil and gas sector.

He said over 70% of the persons affected by land acquisition for the projects have been compensated or resettled and are undergoing livelihood improvement projects in agriculture, financial literacy, and vocational skills, among others. Efforts to fully compensate all project-affected persons are ongoing, with cooperation from the local communities and leaders. The land is not utilized by the projects before the compensation processes are concluded, and any related grievances are addressed through a participatory process.

President Yoweri Museveni assured the country that the project shall proceed as stipulated in the contract we have with TotalEnergies and CNOOC.

“We should remember that Total Energies convinced me about the Pipeline idea; if they choose to listen to the EU Parliament, we shall find someone else to work with. Either way, we shall have our oil coming out by 2025 as planned. So, the people of Uganda should not worry,” he said.

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Police in Mpigi have registered a disturbing incident of teen suicide of a one Kasule Arafat, an 11-year-old Primary four pupil of Kabira UMEA Primary School, who committed suicide by hanging.

Police spokesperson Fred Enanga said that at about 8am, the victim reported to school, but did not attend classes. He disappeared from the school and a search was conducted, only to find him dead, and the body hanging on a mango tree, at St. Luke Catholic Church, Kyanja, which is located about 250 metres from the school. The body was taken to Gombe Hospital for Post -mortem.

“It is so devastating to the friends, the school and the community for such a young child, to die because of overwhelming hopelessness or frustration. All parents, siblings, classmates, and neighbours were left wondering what could have driven him and how they could have prevented it from happening,” Enanga said.

Most teenagers commit suicide due to the pressure to perform academically, act responsibly and or the pressure to fit in socially among fellow teenagers. Young people with mental health problems – such as anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, or insomnia – are at a higher risk for suicide thoughts.

“We therefore, urge parents, guardians and local leaders, to watch out for things that increase the risk of suicide among teens. These include; a psychological disorders especially depression, bipolar disorder and alcohol, drug abuse, feelings of distress, irritability or agitation, feelings of hopelessness and worthlessness, that often come with depression, previous suicide attempts, family history of depression or suicide, emotional, physical or sexual abuse, lack of a support network, poor relationships with parents or peers, and feelings of social isolation, struggling with their gender or unsupportive family,” Enanga said.

Enanga reminded parents to know the warning signs, so that teens who might be suicidal, can get the help they need. “Some adults fell that kids who threaten to hurt themselves are just doing it for attention. This can increase the chance of them hurting/harming themselves.”

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Fifteen contenders for the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) representative slots, including former MPs Jacquiline Amongin and Veronica Kadogo, have sought nomination in the crowded race to the regional Parliament.

With nominations ending Tuesday, 20 September 2022, the number is expected to intensely increase, especially because major political parties represented in the House are yet to register their candidates.

So far, the Justice Forum (JEEMA) solely represented in the House by MP Asuman Basalirwa (JEEMA, Bugiri Municipality) has presented the only political party sponsored candidate in the pack of 15, after signing in its Secretary General, Mr Mohamed Kateregga.

The other candidates include Salaama Nakitende, Gilbert Agaba, Ambrose Murangira, Allan Muyima, and journalist Julius Bukyana, Ronex Tendo Kisembo, Lauben Bwengye, Patience Naamara Tumwesigye, Stella Kiryowa, Dr Daniel Kapyata, and Daniel Muwonge.

Thereafter, a committee in line with Rule 12 of the Rules of Procedure of Parliament will vet the contestants for their suitability and qualification, and the Speaker will on Wednesday, 21 September 2022 announce to the House the names of successful candidates, which names will also be gazetted and published in print media in line with Appendix B of the Rules of Procedure.

Campaigns are slated for Thursday, 29 September 2022, which will be followed by voting on the same day.  

Last week, the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) party chairperson, President Yoweri Museveni, said the party will be sticking with its current six representatives.

Aspirants are paying a non-refundable nomination fee of Shs3 million.

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At least 12 African countries have committed to Education Plus, a bold initiative to prevent HIV infections through free universal, quality secondary education for all girls and boys in Africa, reinforced through comprehensive empowerment programs.

The 12 African Education Plus champion countries are Benin, Cameroon, Eswatini, Gabon, Gambia, Lesotho, Malawi, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Uganda, and Zambia.

Speaking on the Leaders Day of the Summit on behalf of the Education Plus movement, the Executive Director of UNAIDS, Winnie Byanyima said, “School saves lives. We are coming together to champion the right for a girl to be in a classroom and in a safe classroom. Keeping girls in school helps ensure their rights and prevents HIV. We know that if a girl completes secondary education, the risk of infection reduces by 50 percent. That’s why we’ve teamed up with UNESCO, UNFPA, UNICEF, and UN Women, with governments and with civil society, to champion the education and empowerment of adolescent girls in Africa to stop new HIV infections.”

Through Education Plus, champion countries across Africa are bringing sectors together to fight inequalities by ensuring access to and completion of secondary school, protecting girls and young women from HIV infection, sexual violence, teenage pregnancies, and early marriages, and creating opportunities for access to education, health, and jobs.

Sierra Leone, an Education Plus champion, has been reforming its education system since 2018, enrolling an additional one million learners in four years. Speaking at the Summit President Julius Madda Bio said, “We have adopted a radical inclusion policy and have achieved gender parity in school enrollment. Girls can now be educated from primary through to university free of tuition fees, and pregnant girls can once again go to school. Education is not a luxury, it is a right. We must rally the international community behind the global initiatives being launched.”

International partners shared their backing for the initiative. Franz Fayot, Minister for Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Affairs, Luxembourg said, “The risks of acquiring HIV and the challenges in accessing services in sub-Saharan Africa are very real and are compounded by stigma and discrimination, as well as legal and financial barriers. Financing to support education systems to deliver gender-transformative education is urgent. It will save lives and have a hugely positive impact on economies.”

Joyce Ouma, a young leader from the Education Plus hub, shared why young women’s movements are backing the initiative: “Some of us are still denied sexual and reproductive health information and services and sexuality education because of our age and this has a devasting impact on our lives. As young women living with HIV, we face discrimination, stigma, and violence perpetrated within school environments and cannot easily seek essential medical care. Transforming education means we face these gloomy statistics head-on. I urge leaders to listen and act on our collective concerns for better systems.”

UNAIDS latest report, In Danger, released in July this year showed that in sub-Saharan Africa 4 900 young women and girls (15-24 years old) acquired HIV every week in 2021. Once a person contracts HIV they require life-long treatment. In 2021 in sub-Saharan Africa, 22 000 adolescent girls and young women died of AIDS-related illnesses.

Fostering investments in access to health, education, and jobs gives results. Girls and their communities and countries reap multiple social and economic benefits from their completion of secondary school. An extra year of secondary school can increase women’s wages by 15-25 percent. Educating adolescent girls and young women in Africa could add US$ 316 billion or 10 percent to GDP in the period 2025 if each country makes advances in gender parity in schooling.

The United Nations Secretary-General recognized girls’ education and empowerment as crucial for development, “Girls’ education is among the most important steps to deliver peace, security, and sustainable development everywhere,” said Antonio Guterres.

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Boda-boda riders are set to benefit from a new campaign where they will win over Shs 200 million worth of prizes including 12 brand new motorbikes, fuel, airtime, t-shirts, and reflector jackets.

This campaign dubbed ‘Saawa ya ku yiliba’, will run for a period of 12 weeks at Shell fuel stations and targeted retail outlets across the country. To participate, riders will need to purchase Shell Advance at any participating retail outlet to receive an entry coupon. All entry coupons will be logged into a portal where winners will be drawn weekly. Lucky winners will be notified by SMS on the same mobile numbers indicated on their respective draw entry coupons. Riders that participate weekly have a chance to win lots more.

 “It gives us great pleasure to bring this exciting campaign to our esteemed boda-boda riders, especially with the current economic pressures. Through this campaign, riders that purchase Shell Advance will be entered into a draw for a chance to win exciting prizes every week. We value the boda-boda rider and have taken steps to improve the rider experience at our sites over the years, said Alex Tusingwire, Head of Business Lubricantsat Vivo Energy Uganda.

Adding, “Our rider offer currently includes formulated motorbike engine oil called Shell Advance for boda-bodas. We also offer our boda-boda riders dedicated motorbike fuelling points called Shell Boda Spots at our Shell service stations and motorbike service points called Shell Motorcare Express specifically operated by professional motorbike mechanics. We continue to look for opportunities to add value to these amazing customers.”

“For the next 12 weeks, we will give away one motorbike every week to a lucky winner. In this way, we are contributing to improved livelihoods and sustained household incomes for the boda-boda rider. The motorbikes can be used as a means of private or public transport, thereby stimulating job creation and increased income generation for the community,” said Tusingwire.

 “I encourage boda-boda riders across the country to participate weekly. Anyone could be the lucky brand-new motorbike winner. Riders need to participate every week to increase their chance of winning each week. I also caution all participants to be keen on con men, as all rewards will be issued at select Shell fuel stations only. To our boda-boda customers, get your motorbikes ready, pick up a pack of Shell Advance, and may the best rider win,” said Herbert Egesa, Lubricants Brand Manager, Vivo Energy Uganda.

Shell Advance is specially formulated to deliver better engine cleaning and protection so that riders can enjoy retained horsepower and more fuel savings. Shell Advance has a range of products to suit different bike engine types including Shell Advance AX3 (Advance Red) and Shell Advance AX5 (Advance Yellow) which are suitable for the 4-stroke engine while Shell Advance 2T is for 2-stroke engine oils.

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