By Mubatsi Asinja Habati Now health experts debate wisdom of switching chemical sprays Lying on flat land near the swampy Lake Kyoga, Apac district in northern Uganda, Lango sub-region, is not only the most malaria infected region of Uganda, but perhaps of the entire world. A study conducted from 1994 …
Read More »Nearly 3 billion at risk for malaria in 2009
By The Independent Team An estimated 2.85 billion people worldwide were at risk of contracting malaria in 2009, according to a report published in the journal PLos Neglected Tropical Diseases. Researchers mapped out the prevalence of the common malaria parasite Plasmodium vivax and found that it was more widespread than …
Read More »How malaria-causing parasites survive inside human blood cells
By The Independent Team Scientists have discovered a new metabolic pathway used by malaria-causing parasites that apparently helps them survive inside human blood cells. The finding, by researchers supported by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, clarifies the picture of …
Read More »Africa at 50
By Rukiya Makuma Independence babies that wont grow up 2010 is the year for Africa as 17 countries celebrate 50 years of independence since colonial rule. Africans resisted the colonialists on grounds of segregation, slavery, exploitation and domination. But 50 years after, how have these countries performed? Are they still …
Read More »Shopping for a passport
By Haggae Matsiko Independent reporter buys birth certificate for Shs 35,000, offered passport for Shs150,000, no questions asked It is Thursday afternoon when I arrive at the reception of the Registrar of Births and Deaths office at Amam House near the Central Police Station in Kampala. I tell the receptionist …
Read More »Kabaka Mutebi’s 17th coronation anniversary
By Dicta Asiimwe The venue for Buganda’s 17th coronation anniversary celebrations of Kabaka Ronald Muwenda Mutebi II, Kabasanda, Butambala County is one of eighteen counties of Buganda. As the bevy of female traditional dancers, in colourful kikoyi wrappers and tight-tops, gyrate to the din of royal drums being beaten in …
Read More »If we cant defeat Al-Shabaab we leave their country
By Brian Bwesigye On July 11th will go down in the history books as the day Uganda was thrown into a somber mood of shock, bitterness and panic. The twin bomb attacks in Kampala did not only turn an otherwise merry night into a tragic night of death and suffering …
Read More »Coping with 7/11 aftermath
By Rowan Emslie On the night of the attack, it seemed, everyone was in shock. Talking to a young couple who had been watching the World Cup Final at The Lions Den a bar immediately opposite Ethiopian Village Restaurant, the site of the first blast their faces told the story …
Read More »Unwanted guests
By Rosebell Kagumire & Maya Prabhu Rwandan refugees forced back across the border The sprawling Nakivale Refugee Settlement in south-western Uganda is home to over 50,000 asylum-seekers and refugees. At one time it represented a testament to Uganda’s reputation as one of the most refugee-friendly countries in Africa. But recent …
Read More »Clinics of death
By John Njoroge When children play with healthcare waste, tainted blood, needles The air is pungent with urine, fecal matter and cow dung. The narrow walkways are littered with garbage and stagnant water with barefoot children running around innocently. Others rummage through the garbage piles for items to sell. One …
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