Uganda's coffee industry faces a pivotal moment as Parliament deliberates on the National Coffee (Amendment) Bill 2024, which proposes to dissolve the Uganda Coffee Development Authority (UCDA) and integrate its functions into the Ministry of Agriculture. The move, part of the govern
By Ezra Suruma In 1986 when the National Resistance Movement captured the apparatus of government, coffee was by far the most important export product of Uganda. Coffee had enjoyed this supremacy since the 1950s when it overtook cotton as the most important “cash crop” and expo
It is midday and Gaudensia Tankobatagira is sitting quietly on a stool beneath the shade of an avocado tree at her home in Kabigyemire Village, Busiriba Sub-county in Kamwenge District. Surrounded by her grandsons, the 63-year-old woman patiently shells beans. Dressed in a simple gown, p
On October 4, the Electricity Regulatory Authority (ERA) published in this newspaper a “notice of intended application for licence” for the development of the proposed 20 Megawatts waste-to-energy power plant in Ddundu Village in Kyampisi Sub-county, Mukono District. The notice, a pr
The growth of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Uganda has reached an all-time high, with an estimated 1.1 million SMEs operating across various sectors, according to a World Bank report. Despite this growth, one-third of Ugandan SMEs, especially small businesses, fail to survive their
Ministry of Health says the disease can be prevented when couples intending to marry and or have children know whether or not they have a sickle cell trait that can cause the disease. The government wants to enact a law that would make it mandatory for all intending couples to first unde
Coffee, a long-cherished perennial crop, has for decades been the backbone of household incomes in some parts of Uganda. Today, coffee is at the centre of regulatory policies and renewed campaigns targeting both sustainable production and output. The Uganda Coffee Development Authority (
Coffee farmers in Bukomansimbi District are reaping big and savouring the fruits of labour from growing the brown beans. The farmers are now happy owners of gleaming houses and sleek cars while their children have guaranteed access to good schools that were once out of reach for most of
The Leader of Opposition in Parliament (LoP), Mr Joel Ssenyonyi, has tasked the government to conduct a comprehensive audit to establish how Shs553.71 billion that has been pumped into Atiak Sugar Factory was utilised, saying there is little to nothing on ground to show for the money. Fo
The high death toll from the fuel tanker fire at Kigogwa Trading Centre has raised concern about the lack of awareness among Ugandans regarding safety protocols in accidents involving vehicles carrying flammable substances. Fire experts emphasise the importance of immediate evacuation
