Uganda must be the happiest country in East Africa and the first to become a beneficiary of the lucrative international legal medicinal marijuana markets after the European Union certified Kampala’s medical marijuana products.
The deal was announced after it was revealed that a group of experts from the European Union flew to Uganda to test the quality of marijuana being grown by various firms in the country and approved its quality.
The team of medical cannabis inspectors from the Netherlands inspected marijuana gardens in Kasese District between July 29 and August after they met in Kampala and issued a certificate of compliance to Industrial Globus Uganda Ltd covering (August 6, 2019 – August 5, 2020.)
It’s also reported that the EU inspectors also certified WHO-GAP (Guidelines on good agricultural and collection practices (GACP) for medicinal plants; EMEA (Europe, the Middle East and Africa) -Guideline on GAP and GACP for Herbal Medicinal plants. They also approved propagation through cloning of vegetal material, cultivation, harvesting, drying, curling, packaging and storage of cannabis inflorescences for medical use.
Mr Benjamin Cadet, a director at the company, has confirmed EU approval.
“Now that EU has approved our products- the medical marijuana exports and the entire manufacturing chain- from planting to harvest, we are going to export medical marijuana products made in Uganda to European markets,” Mr Cadet said.
The Kasese marijuana farm will now export products such as Cannabinol (CBD) and Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).
The EU inspectors also approved propagation through cloning of vegetal material, cultivation, harvesting, drying, curling, packaging and storage of cannabis inflorescences for medical use.
“Control Union Certifications declares that the production of the products mentioned on this certificate has been found to be compliant in accordance with the standard” a certificate issued on August 6 by Udi Gabay on behalf of the managing director reads in part.
The move is bound to open up space for Uganda companies to apply to grow marijuana. At least 50 companies have applied through Ministry of Health to join Industrial Globus Uganda Ltd in growing weed for medical purposes. The Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act 2015 allows cultivation, production and exportation of medical marijuana.
Industry players project the global medical cannabis market to hit $63.5billion by 2024 as countries like Uganda gain access to EU’s legal medicinal marijuana markets.
Uganda To Yield Big From Marijuana Exports
Uganda Airline Bombadiers Hit The Skies
Works and Transport minister Monica Azuba Ntege has Tuesday morning flagged off the inaugural flight of Uganda airlines to Nairobi, the capital of Kenya.
This is the official launch of Uganda National Airlines Commercial flights which was held at Entebbe International Airport.
“Government has been there, we are all there and now the ball is in your hands. Government will give you all the support you need because it is our airline,” she noted.
The first commercial flight will be tomorrow Wednesday 28th Aug 2019.
“The wait is finally over. Today at exactly 11:10am, our aircraft shall depart from Entebbe International Airport to JKIA for our inaugural flight,” the airlines said earlier.
The Vice President of Uganda, Hon. Edward Kiwanuka Ssekandi was represented by Prime Minister Ruhakana Rugunda as the Chief guest.
On April 23rd this year, Uganda took delivery of its first two CRJ 900 aircraft. Two additional CRJ 900 aircraft shall be delivered in October this year and by the close of 2020, two wide-body Airbus A330 Neo, will be delivered to conduct long haul flights.
Uganda Airlines CEO Ephraim Bagenda said Uganda Airlines is a world class airline that will exceed customer expectations through high quality service, global connectivity and commitment to excellence.
Notorious Gen Kasirye Gwanga Fighting Deforestation With Live Bullets
By Our Reporter.
Kampala: Self styled General Kasirye Gwanga has once again shoot at another truck carrying trees in just a space of two weeks. Gwanga announced a one man war against destruction of forests in his county of Busunju in Mityana district.
In the latest incident which occured in the same village at the weekend, Maj Gen Ggwanga intercepted a Fuso lorry that was loading eucalyptus logs, shot at it and deflated its tyres.
The lorry driver, Mr Gerald Wambi, said he wondered why the soldier shot at the vehicle yet he had cut the trees from his own forest and not that of government. He said he reported the matter to Maanyi Police Station but the latter did nothing to help. Wamala Region Police spokesman Nobert Ochom confirmed the incident and said they have since launched investigations.
When contacted, Gen Ggwanga said: “Many people were cultivating in these forest reserves and would earn a living. However, they were evicted and a few people from faraway were given leases to plant eucalyptus trees. Now they are cutting and selling them. We shall not accept this.”
“Natural wells and swamps are drying up and shortage of water is becoming one of the major problems. We cannot wait for more problems. Let me start helping my people.”
The incident comes barely 8 months after Maj Gen Ggwanga shot at a car apparently belonging to the National Resistance Movement leaning artiste, Ms Catherine Kusasira. The incident happened on Tuesday at Makindye, a Kampala suburb, in January.
In 2017, Gwanga (then at the rank of brigadier), burnt the tractor on the land which he said was owned by his daughter at Naziba village on Lubowa hill in Ndejje, off Entebbe Road. He wasn’t charged of any offence.
Pogba Tweets As Racism Takes Bite On Football
Mancheter United mid-fielder Paul Pogba for the first time came out to protest the racial jibes thrown at him and his colleague Marcus Rashford.
The French International tweeted that such insults make him more stronger to aim for the best.
Racist insults are ignorance and can only make me stronger and motivate me to fight for the next generation.
On Monday 19th August, Paul Pogba failed to score a penalty against Wolverhampton who help held Machester United in a 1-1 draw at Malineux Stadium.
However in less than a weak the same fate befell Marcus Rashford who also failed to score a penalty at home over the weekend when Machester United suffered a humiliating 2-1 loss at Old traford by Norwich. Alot of racial insults were thrown at Rashford on Twitter which the bosses say it’s becoming a threat to the game of football and are intending to meet Facebook and Twitter over the growing vice.
YY Coaches Halt Operations To Resolve Accident Spate
Over the past two weeks, YY coaches has been the talk in the public domain over a spate of accidents that claimed over 17 people dead in just a spae of one week.
The first accident happened at Buseyi village along Iganga- Jinja highway, where two people died on spot and 42 injured after YY bus under registration number UAQ906T overturned.
Another bus had a head-on collision with a commuter taxi at Bukonte in Busembatia on Tirinyi – Mbale road, leaving 10 people dead a week ago.
Another bus knocked one person dead at Kamonkoli trading centre in Budaka district. The bus was heading to Kampala.
Recently another bus knocked another person dead in Soroti town, leaving another one seriously injured.
Frequent travelers with the company blamed the accidents on the reckless driving by the buss drivers.
However the company has halted it’s operations today 26th August 2019 to hold a crisis with Management and staff.
The company has over 50 buses plying from Soroti-Kampala, Mbale-Kampala, Apac to Kampala among other routes in both Easter and Northern Uganda.
Nicholas Pepe Reveals Understanding With Lacazette
Nicolas Pepe has revealed that he already has a telepathic understanding with Alexandre Lacazette at Arsenal.
The Ivory Coast international has been settling into life at The Emirates after having signed for the Gunners from Lille in the summer transfer window.
Pepe is aiming to build a strong understanding with both Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang up front for the north London side this season as Unai Emery’s men target a top-four finish.
The 24-year-old signed for Arsenal towards the end of the summer transfer window so he has not had a great deal of time to settle into life at The Emirates.
However, the attacker has claimed that he has already struck up a solid understanding with France international Lacazette.
Speaking in an interview quoted by Metro before Saturday’s trip to Liverpool FC, Pepe said: “There’s a lot of players who speak French here: Aubameyang and Lacazette who link up well.
“It’s certainly easier for me to play with French-speaking players. On the pitch, you can see that we look for and find each other.
“It will take some time because we don’t know each other yet, but little movements show us we can find one another quickly.
“Based on how it’s been in training with Laca. We’ve been able to find each other with our eyes shut.”
Arsenal will return to Premier League action next weekend when they take on Tottenham Hotspur at The Emirates on Sunday afternoon.
The north London side are aiming to finish in the top four this season after they finished fifth and lost the Europa League final to Chelsea FC last term in Emery’s first campaign in charge.
Behind The Decreasing Number Of Church Goers in Africa
Have you ever asked yourself why we are surrounded by many Christians in our neighborhood, work places, relatives, friends of which many of these proudly say are Christians but the numbers in the church attendance doesn’t reflect what we see in society.
Let us get to the point, early this year i was listening t a christian radio here in Nairobi called Hope FM, the presenter paused a question to her listeners why what we see in society in regards to Christians is not what we see in church, thank God each called in with a different opinion.
A new survey finds the reason people avoid going to church is more often for practical or personal reasons, rather than lack of belief.
I once the same question to some of my friends in my circles and indeed if am to go by what they said, i can confirm many reasons can form a basic of this topic of discussion.
A new Pew Research Center survey asked Americans why they do or do not regularly go to church, synagogue, mosque or another house of worship. The overwhelming reason why people attend such services is to feel closer to God. But their reasons for staying away are more complicated.
Less than one-third (28 percent) say they don’t go because they are unbelievers. Among self-identified Christians, the predominant reason that non-churchgoers offer for not attending worship services is that they practice their faith in other ways. Almost half of evangelicals in this category (46 percent) say this is a very important reason for not going to church more often. The next most common reason evangelicals give for not attending services is that they haven’t found a church or house of worship they like (33 percent).
One-in-five evangelicals says they dislike the sermons, and a little more than one-in-ten (11 percent) says they do not feel welcome at religious services. About one in four (26 percent) cites logistical reasons for not going to religious services, such as not having the time or being in poor health.
It’s however important to note that there will be many people in heaven who were not affiliated with any particular denomination or for some reasons could not make it to church regularly. But one of the foremost principles of Christianity is that we are saved into the body of Christ, which is another name for the church as sighted in Ephesians 1:22-23.
Perhaps we should also ask this question in other way: Why would a person say he or she loves God but doesn’t want to fellowship with others. One of the major reasons God wants us in Church is because it has people with similar beliefs. It helps us bolster our faith and makes us accountable to one another.
To me when a person says “I believe in God and want to be baptized but i don’t want to go to church” is like a man saying to his Bride “I love you: I want to marry you but i don’t want to stay with you”, he literally wish to be called a married person but when in real sense is pretending.
Never the less my friend Onyacha Denis who subscribes to the SDA faith attributes this to upbringing and life engagements.
“You find a person is identified as a christian because he/she holds a christian name but didn’t grow up in faith or even is ever busy to make it to church to fellowship with others”-Said Onyacha
As the Bible says in Hebrews 10:25, we need to be firmly committed to corporate worship and assembly especially” so much more as ye see the approaching;”
The Reality Of Christian Living
On so many occasions, the life of a christian is regarded and limited to attending church and doing Godly and religious things, it’s actually true according to the scriptures.
When Paul wrote to the Colinthians in 1 Colinthians 1-3, he highlights going to church, God’s presence among his people and understanding better as you relate to others who love God.
In my community where i grew up from, people claim to be Christians even without going to church but rather basing on the reality that they hold Christian names.
Have you ever come across a situation where a christian says that “Once i graduate from college, from high school, once i get married, once my kids are older, once things slow down in life, once i make a little more money or once i retire…….then i can concentrate on doing what God wants me to do but in reality the world’s value system can creep and dictate in our lives.
Society demands like work among others tend to keep us a distance from God but it takes a committed christian to restore this and cherish God’s presence in his or her life.
Back to my first point of the reality of christian living, as Paul emphasizes it in Romans 13:8-10 basically living to love others and to live righteously in respect to the norms of Christianity but not limited to following the line of the ten commandments. Verse of the same book and chapter Paul says “He who loves his fellow man has fulfilled the law” .
Above all obeying the law of the church, helping those in need, preaching and sharing the world of God, cherishing God’s presence in our lives, loving one another among other things best describes the reality of christian living because this is a reflection of Jesus’teachings and God’s gospel to his people.
As i wind up this topic, i pause a question to you reading this article. What best describes the reality of christian living, can some one live adorably as a christian without doing what God commands us to do as his children?
Government Snubs Plans Of Building Hydro Dam At Murchison
Two Ministers of Energy and One for Environment have confirmed to government that there are no plans of building a hydro-electric Dam at Murchison falls in Nwoya and Kiryandongo districts.
While appearing before parliament, Energy Minister Hon. Peter Lokeris government has snubbed their earlier suggestions of having Murchison falls redeveloped to a hydro Electric Dam by a south African enterprise.
In June 7,Electricity Regulatory Authority (ERA) ran a public notice in the media indicating that it received an application from from a South African Enterprise Bonang Power and Energy (pty) limited for a permit to conduct feasibility studies for construction of a hydro power dam on Victoria Nile in the park.
However,Tourist enthusiasts protested the move of giving away Murchison falls National park for electricity.
It's a Do or Die For Uganda Cranes against Egypt
The Uganda cranes are set to take on Egypt in their last group match that is more than a trying moment for the men from matooke republic.
After a drammatic and entertaining 1-1 draw with Zimbabwe, the Uganda cranes are back in action to test their vigor of the Pharaohs who are the group leaders with 6 points they have sqooped in their group matches against Zimbabwe and DR Congo.
With Zimbabwe having a point at hand, they are also favorites in the group if they mash up DR Congo hence putting Uganda’s hopes of either leading the group or second runner’s up at a risk.
Cranes Coach Sebastiane Desbre is expected not to Change much his scored that drew with Zimbabwe. His Men led by Captain Dennis Onyango in the poles, T. Awani, Wadada, G. Walusimbi, H.Washa, A. Khalid, F.Miah, A. Kyambadde, M.Azira, E. Okwi and L.Abdu.
While the Pharaohs have fielded Mohamed Elshenawy Elsayed (G.K), Ahmed Elmohamady Abdelfattah Aly Eissa, Alyman Ashraf Elsyad, Baher Mohamed Moursi, Ahmed Elsayed Elsayed Ali Elsayed Hegazy, Mohamed Elneny, Nabil Amad Aly, Abdallah Mahmoud Said Mohamed Bekhit, Mohemed Salah Mahrous Ghaly, Mahmoud Ahmed Ibrahim Hassan, Ahmed Hassan Mohamed Abdelmonem Mohamed Mahgoub
