Vox Populi Uganda

09/11/2022

“According to a 26-page classified Concept of Operations document signed by all army chiefs from the EAC member states in June, eastern Congo has been divided into six sectors with each country given a specific sector to pacify,”
Read more:

The East African Community’s troop deployment to combat hundreds of militias, regional proxy armies and mercenaries roaming the vast green jungles in the volatile eastern DR Congo has kicked off in earnest. This also comes as a bold and decisive step by the EAC bloc to resolve one of the longest s...

06/05/2022

“Giving birth is not the end of the world. We all know what it means to give birth at a time when you don’t even know what you are carrying in your body…Once it has happened does not mean life has come to an end,” Juliet Nabulime writes.

https://voxpopuli.ug/teenage-moms-thrive-with-supportive-structures/

By Juliet Nabulime Child rights experts have attributed the surge of child mothers during the Covid-19 pandemic to peer pressure and lack of family interaction. In Uganda, the impact of Covid-19 led to a number of learners, especially in urban and rural areas getting unwanted pregnancies. Since pa....

05/05/2022

“LGBTQI+ persons face violence, stigma, lack of access to basic services, and, in approximately 70 countries, criminalization of their status or behavior,” Jessica Stern, Special Envoy to advance human rights of LGBTQI+Persons.

https://voxpopuli.ug/violence-against-lgbtqi-undermines-democracy-us-envoy/

In June last year, the U.S President Joe Biden appointed Jessica Stern as the Special Envoy to advance human rights of LGBTQI+ Persons. The Biden also issued a Memorandum on advancing human rights of gay community around the world. Below is Jessica Stern’s slightly edited statement issued last wee...

21/03/2022

“Blood accessibility especially in rural hospitals has become more complicated because unscrupulous health workers who take advantage of uneducated and poor mothers to sell blood which they can’t afford yet blood is supposed to be free,” Risdel Kasasira writes.

https://voxpopuli.ug/poor-mothers-bleed-to-death-as-unscrupulous-health-workers-sell-blood/

It’s 9am and Rosette Kamuntu is at home in Ntinda preparing a snack after dropping her kids to school. She starts feeling abdominal pain. She thought it was a simple pain that would easily go away by self-medicating. She took Flagyl tablets that treat intestinal infections. But at around 7pm, the ...

15/03/2022

“Before the Covid-19 pandemic, they had registered an increase in the number of farmers from across Uganda coming to purchase irrigation equipment but the interest has since waned,” Asiimwe Dicta and Ruth Keah write.

https://voxpopuli.ug/counting-the-cost-covid-19-dents-aspirations-of-small-scale-irrigation-farmers-in-kenya-and-uganda/

By Dicta Asiimwe and Ruth Keah Until 2017, Tabitha Kisinga a mother to a set of triplets and seven other children was farming her husband’s family land. She depended on the March to May and October to December rainy seasons that used to be the norm in her husband’s native Kwale County-Kenya. But...

03/03/2022

Out of 16 mothers who die while giving birth everyday in Uganda, 8 cases are due to lack of blood, a challenge that is exacerbated by the unscrupulous medical officers who sell it to poor mothers who can't afford to pay.

This has undermined government efforts to deliver maternal health services.

ICYMI our podcast on this listen to it here🔗: https://m.soundcloud.com/voxpopuliug/illegal-sale-of-blood-undermines-maternal-health-in-uganda

Postpartum hemorrhage is the leading cause of women who die in hospitals while giving birth. About 16,000 women die in every year in Uganda because they access blood. Blood accessibility especially in

22/02/2022

Although blood is freely donated it’s shortage has caused some health workers to sell it illegally especially to mothers who have hemorrhages during birth.
Ritah Kemigisa sits down with Anne Lumbasi, a senior programs officer CEHURD Uganda
to discuss this

https://m.soundcloud.com/voxpopuliug/illegal-sale-of-blood-undermines-maternal-health-in-uganda

Postpartum hemorrhage is the leading cause of women who die in hospitals while giving birth. About 16,000 women die in every year in Uganda because they access blood. Blood accessibility especially in

02/02/2022

ICYMI: “The media has become so meek that when questioning the opposition or those in power, they think twice. Politicians are getting a free ride. Their track-record cannot be challenged without dragging the media house,” Ivan Okuda writes.

https://voxpopuli.ug/if-bobi-wine-cant-stand-scrutiny-he-may-consider-selling-ice-cream/

Last week, I had a candid tete-a-tete over mildly spiced fish tikka masala and mashed potato at Piato Restaurant in Kampala’s upscale suburb of Nakasero. My guest was no lesser than the Secretary General of the almighty National Unity Platform (NUP), the amiable, beautiful and thoughtful Daudi Rub...

04/01/2022

“The use of the state to criminalise free speech and security agencies to gag citizens in the name of “offensive communication” does not augur well for our fragile democracy,” Ivan Okuda writes.

https://voxpopuli.ug/kakwenza-and-uganda-deserve-better/

The East African Center for Investigative Reporting (EACIR), the publisher of the not-for-profit online publication, www.voxpopuli.ug is appalled by the continued detention and reported torture of writer and political activist, Kakwenza Rukirabashaija. In no uncertain terms, we contend that kidnap...

16/11/2021

“Mr Fred Enanga warned that “there are other su***de bombers still out there” who might carry out more attack,” Risdel Kasasira writes.

https://voxpopuli.ug/three-die-33-injured-in-twin-su***de-bombings-in-kampala/

Three people have died in deadly twin su***de bomb attacks that targeted key government installations in Kampala. According to the video footage released by the police on Tuesday, the first su***de bomber carrying a backpack blew himself up at 10: 03 am outside the Central Police Station. The police...

26/10/2021

“But, given how contagious TB is, we need to find and treat many more people. It is a disease that strikes impoverished communities the hardest, and those same communities can be hard to reach with healthcare services,” Morounfolu Olugbosi writes.

https://voxpopuli.ug/in-sub-saharan-africa-and-elsewhere-we-need-to-look-harder-for-tb/

By Morounfolu Olugbosi Before COVID-19 came along, tuberculosis (TB) was a primary focus of health authorities in sub-Saharan Africa. In 2019, approximately 1.4 million people were diagnosed with TB in the region, but epidemiologists estimated that 1 million more had TB but were neither diagnosed ...

21/10/2021

Doctors have been at the frontline of the pandemic however have you stopped to think about the mental health challenges they’ve faced doing their work?

Ritah Kemigisa hosts Dr. Mukuzi Muhereza from the Uganda Medical Association to discuss this.
🔗: https://bit.ly/2ZcuW8M

Doctors have been at the forefront of saving the lives of people that have been affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. However, have you stopped to think about how this could possibly affect their mental

20/10/2021

“Su***de by drinking poison accounted for an unprecedented 51 cases followed by hanging with 26. Su***de by drowning (two) and turning a gun on oneself (one) also figured on the list albeit to a low degree,” Risdel Kasasira writes.

https://voxpopuli.ug/covid-19-pandemic-leads-to-high-su***de-rate/

The COVID-19 pandemic and attendant restrictions  exacerbated deficiencies in Uganda’s already challenged mental healthcare system. Many people with mental issues could not easily move to get their routine treatment when the government placed the country under total lockdown. This resulted in...

09/10/2021

“..as we celebrate 59 years of independence, we must make efforts to invest in bettering the lives of our women and girls not out of courtesy but as a sine qua non for inclusive development of mother Uganda,” Patricia Munabi writes.



https://voxpopuli.ug/uganda59-impressive-strides-by-and-for-women-or-drop-in-the-ocean/

By Patricia Munabi Babiiha As we mark 59 years of Uganda’s independence today, it is an opportune time for us to, as a country, take stock, look ourselves in the mirror and ask the tough questions on what our motherland Uganda has done for its women in the last 59 years. This year’s celebrat...

30/09/2021

In the last part of our three-part cross-national investigation into Africa’s GMOs, Andiswa Matikinca, Arnaud Ouedraogo and Benon Herbert Oluka look at what the future holds for those preparing to grow GM crops amid the resistance from those opposed to them.

https://voxpopuli.ug/inside-25-years-of-gmos-in-africa-looking-to-the-future/

In the 25 years since the first genetically modified (GM) crop was introduced in Africa, most of the continent has kept the technology at bay and those that have gone it alone have had mixed fortunes.In the last part of a three-part series by Vox Populi, Andiswa Matikinca, Arnaud Ouedraogo and....

29/09/2021

“Not only are these young women and girls going to lose their chance at going to school and efforts to close the gender gap, but also, their human capital development and general health and well-being is imperiled,” Elizabeth Ampairwe writes.

https://voxpopuli.ug/uganda-is-at-risk-of-losing-a-generation-to-teenage-pregnancies-and-child-marriages/

By Elizabeth Ampairwe  The Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja on September 15th launched the Second Roadmap for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) which highlighted the actions by government to attain the goals by 2030. This was an important event precisely because it is imperative for the state...

27/09/2021

“There are people who had mental illness and became sick with Covid-19 and whose condition worsened, there is a category of those who have never had mental illness and got Covid-19 and got mental illness,” Prof Musisi Ssegane told Vox Populi.

https://voxpopuli.ug/covid-19-and-mental-health-a-crisis-within-a-crisis/

As government continues to lurch from one crisis to another over the Covid-19 virus, another malady burbling below the radar, threatens to outlast the pandemic and leave an entire generation under the clutches of emotional turmoil.  Uganda only has 50 psychiatrists for a population of nearly 45 mil...

24/09/2021

“…on some occasions, patients with severe mental health conditions could not be admitted to hospitals because health workers feared they could be super spreaders for the virus,” Evelyn Lirri writes.

https://voxpopuli.ug/covid-19-disrupts-access-to-care-for-mental-health/

By Evelyn Lirri Even before the COVID-19 pandemic hit Uganda, Benon Kabale faced challenges accessing health care for his mental health disorder. From the long distance to the facility, to the lack of access to some crucial drugs and the general high cost of treatment that he needed to take regularl...

21/09/2021

Advocates of GMOs pitch a bounty of promises to farmers including better crop yields, food security, etc.

In Part 2 of our cross-national investigation, Andiswa Matikinca, Arnaud Ouedraogo & Benon Herbert Oluka look into some of the concerns surrounding GMOs.

https://voxpopuli.ug/fears-of-deadly-consequences-cloud-africas-attempts-to-embrace-gmos/

In the second installment of this three-part cross-national investigation into Africa’s GMO industry, Andiswa Matikinca, Arnaud Ouedraogo and Benon Herbert Oluka look into some of the concerns surrounding agricultural bio-technologies, better known as Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) When ...

20/09/2021

In our latest podcast, Ritah Kemigisa hosts Patricia Kabayo a consultant psychologist at Nakasero Hospital and they discuss the impact of the pandemic on the mental health of children.

Listen here 🔗: https://bit.ly/3zp3Ebm

17/09/2021

“The pandemic has likely exacerbated Uganda’s mental health crisis. Social isolation, financial insecurity, fear of the virus and death, stress, and a heavy-handedly policed dusk-to-dawn curfew…have impacted negatively on people,” Robert Madoi writes.

https://voxpopuli.ug/has-the-pandemic-worsened-the-mental-health-crisis-in-uganda/

BY ROBERT MADOI  In April 2021, the Uganda Police Force released a 2020 report that made clear a marked decline in urban crime in the country. The nearly nine per cent plummet was set against the backdrop of COVID-19 stay-at-home orders that negated conditions in which criminals flourish. In fact...

16/09/2021

In part one of our three-part cross-national investigation, Andiswa Matikinga, Arnaud Ouedrago
and Benon Herbert Oluka use a case study of Burkina Faso, Uganda and South Africa to investigate why Genetically Modified crops are a dicey issue in Africa.

https://voxpopuli.ug/inside-25-years-of-gmos-in-africa/

A quarter of a century has passed since South Africa became the first country in Africa to farm genetically modified crops, with the planting of GM maize in 1996. However, in the 25 years since then, the rest of Africa has betrayed a reluctance to adopt GM plants. Only Burkina Faso, Egypt and Sudan....

30/08/2021

Mental health patients in Uganda usually grapple with stigma and poor healthcare services. The Covid-19 pandemic worsened the plight of mental health patients.
In this podcast, Ritah Kemigisa hosts Derrick Kizza the ED Mental Health Uganda & he talks about mental health and the impact of on it.

🔗: https://bit.ly/3sYKUho

16/08/2021

“Very few cases are successfully prosecuted under these offences but their existence makes members of the LGBTQI community vulnerable to harassment, detention and makes it difficult for them to access social services,” Rose Wakikona writes.

https://voxpopuli.ug/running-away-from-shadows-how-homosexuals-have-become-ugandas-bogeyman/

By Rose Wakikona For a country which in 2020 scored 73 points out of 100, putting it at a rank of 142 out of 180 countries, on the Corruption Perceptions Index, which ranks countries based on how corrupt their public sector is perceived to be (the higher the score, the more corrupt), and for a […]

16/08/2021

“It is not an exaggeration to say that the country belongs to them, the future and present is, indeed theirs. How we as a nation help our children and our children’s children to realise their greatest possible human potential,” Patricia Munabi writes.

https://voxpopuli.ug/international-youth-day-our-young-people-must-get-their-share-of-the-deal/

By Patricia Munabi Babiiha Last week, Uganda joined the rest of the world to celebrate the International Youth Day, a day that designated by the United Nations in 1999 to draw attention to issues affecting the youth worldwide. The theme for 2021 is, ‘Transforming Food Systems: Youth Innovat...

12/08/2021

On 5/08/21, Dr. Kizza Besigye said, “The biggest crime this government has ever done is refusing to reopen schools. There is absolutely no justification for the measures that have been taken in education.”
Robert Madoi fact checks this statement here:

https://voxpopuli.ug/besigyes-claim-about-covid-19-in-children-mostly-does-not-hold-up/

Former Ugandan opposition leader Kizza Besigye’s views on Covid-19 have been both prodigious and intensely revealing. A trained physician, the concoction that he proffered as a Covid-19 immunity booster was immortalised and endlessly recalled during Uganda’s second coronavirus wave when the wa...

09/08/2021

“As the funds left the Treasury to buy vehicles for MPs, the recently appointed Prime Minister, Robinah Nabbanja, in stark contrast asked poor Ugandans to generously contribute towards the purchase of vaccines,” our team writes.

https://voxpopuli.ug/lack-of-resources-or-wastefulness-inside-uganda-governments-latest-largesse/

It’s the cars, stupid! Perhaps this is the most befitting metaphor that captures the spendthrift conduct of the Uganda government that recently spent nearly $ 30m to purchase vehicles for members of Parliament. Each of Uganda’s 529 MPs was gifted with a $56,500 grant to purchase a vehicle, inc.....

07/08/2021

“But even as the country inches towards a fiscal cliff as a result of an economy battered by the pandemic, most of its expenditure is geared towards sustaining a bloated government,” our investigations unit writes.

https://voxpopuli.ug/lack-of-resources-or-wastefulness-inside-uganda-governments-latest-largesse/

It’s the cars, stupid! Perhaps this is the most befitting metaphor that captures the spendthrift conduct of the Uganda government that recently spent nearly $ 30m to purchase vehicles for members of Parliament. Each of Uganda’s 529 MPs was gifted with a $56,500 grant to purchase a vehicle, inc...

02/08/2021

“Running has become the thing that’s lifted me up on the worst of days, and helped me cope with a deep personal loss in early 2020,” Patience Atuhaire writes about running and mental health.

https://voxpopuli.ug/running-for-my-mind/

By Patience Atuhaire This month three years ago, I started running. I had to learn to walk, to learn to run. I had never before struggled with being unfit. I walked enough in my daily routine and during field work. But life had got in the way. I first attempted to save myself in 2015, […]

25/07/2021

We are saddened to learn of the death of Prof. Anthony Mbonye. He was part of our pool of expert writers and always a sounding board for Vox Populi on health matters.

This was his last article: https://voxpopuli.ug/on-the-management-and-impact-of-the-covid-19-lockdown-in-uganda/

When our managing editor Ivan Okuda requested him to join our pool of expert writers, he graciously accepted and turned down payment for his works, arguing that he doesn’t write for pay but to share knowledge.

We extend our deepest condolences to the family, friends and those whose lives were touched by the good old professor. May his soul Rest in Peace.