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Tag: Tina Wamala

  • The UK hosts a Climate Youth Engagement Event in advance of COP26

    The UK hosts a Climate Youth Engagement Event in advance of COP26

    Kampala; On Thursday 21st October the British High Commissioner Kate Airey OBE and the British Council Country Director for Uganda Chilufya Besa hosted a Climate Youth Engagement event bringing together prominent young Ugandan climate actors and key members of the Ugandan COP26 delegation, including the Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Water and Environment.

    The 26th UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) will take place in Glasgow between 31 October and 12 November, hosted by the UK in partnership with Italy. With less than two weeks to go before the start of COP26, and following on from the Youth4Climate summit hosted by Italy at the end of September, this event was a key moment in Uganda’s COP26 preparations.

    Young people have been among the strongest voices calling for urgent global action to address climate change and youth voices will be at the heart of COP26. Uganda is fortunate to have many passionate and active youth climate activists, entrepreneurs, scholars and leading employees of climate and energy organisations including Vanessa Nakate, who attended the Youth4Climate summit in Milan in September and gave an impassioned and emotional speech underlining how climate change is affecting Africa.

    The event, hosted in Kampala by the British High Commission, was designed to give a platform to other prominent Ugandan climate activists to share and discuss their concerns about climate change in Uganda, the region and globally with key members of the Ugandan COP26 delegation in advance of their trip to the UK. It was an opportunity for young people to speak about their hopes for COP26 and the actions they would like to see come from it, helping to give young people a voice in Uganda’s climate negotiations. Youth participants were also encouraged to share a written statement entitled ‘Uganda Youth Statement of Priorities for COP26’.

    In attendance were youth activists from organisations such as Resilient 40, Girls for Climate, Youth Go Green and Smart Youth Initiative plus Chevening and Commonwealth Scholarship alumni who studied in the climate field.

    Speaking at the event the British High Commissioner Kate Airey said:‘ COP26 is a critical moment, not just for Uganda but for the whole world and collaboration is key. We need the whole world to come together and commit to ambitious climate action and that includes youth. Youth have a key role to play in raising ambition, but also in implementing action. This is an opportunity to send a message to both the UK Presidency and the Ugandan delegation on what their priorities should be and what a successful COP should look like’.

    British Council Country Director Chilufya Besa added: ‘Last month, the British Council launched the Global Youth Letter which expressed the views, experiences and aspirations of 8,000 young people from across 23 countries. By directly addressing the leaders attending COP26 at today’s event, the young people in Uganda have added their voices to what is a global call for urgent action to protect our planet’.

  • Janet Rogan, UK COP26 Regional Ambassador for the Middle East and Africa visits Uganda

    Janet Rogan, UK COP26 Regional Ambassador for the Middle East and Africa visits Uganda

    Kampala; Janet Rogan said she is delighted to be visiting Uganda just about three weeks ahead of COP26, the UN Climate Change Conference that the UK will host in Glasgow for two weeks in November.

    COP26 will take place against a background of several interlinked global crises – COVID, climate, economy, development, oil/energy and security/conflict. So this COP will be very important.

    The COP will start with the World Leaders Summit – and more than 120 world leaders have already confirmed that they will attend – including President Museveni. HM the Queen. The Pope – who last week handed over a joint interfaith statement on climate action by global faith leaders.

    Her visit as COP26 Regional Ambassador for Africa and the Middle East is part of a series of visits to engage with countries about their participation in the COP and to hear their priorities.

    “We have four key priorities for COP26:- mitigation – every country acting to reduce global warming by reducing the amount of greenhouse gases they produce especially through power generation, transport and agriculture,” she said.

    As part of the preparation for COP26, and as set out in the Paris Agreement on Climate Action, each country is supposed to report on its circumstances and actions since 2015 to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, as well as produce an updated plan for future action with increased levels of ambition. This is called the Nationally Determined Contribution.

    Uganda is still working on its NDC but this is the very last minute and I urge the government to submit it to UNFCCC by the final deadline of 12 October so that it can be included in the sysnthesis report for discussion at COP26.- adaptation – every country is already feeling the impact of changes in our climate.

    “Here in Uganda, which is one of the most vulnerable countries in the world, we are seeing changes in rainfall patterns, deforestation, soil degradation. We need to adapt our ways of living and working to take account of these changes and also to prevent further changes from happening. We need to build resilience at all levels including right down to grass roots and across communities. ALl this costs money so our third priority is:- finance – we are pushing the developed countries to reach the target of USD 100 bullion every year for developing countries that was promised at Paris in 2015, but has never yet been met.

    And we want to ensure that climate finance is more accessible – not enough funds have reached the places where they are needed, especially grants for adaptation.

    We need to get the finances flowing. – and fourth – collaboration. No government can take climate action alone – it needs the private sector, civil society, academia, communities and individuals all to play their part – including the media!”.

  • Photos: Launch of the Chevening Alumni Association of Uganda

    Photos: Launch of the Chevening Alumni Association of Uganda

    Kampala: Celebrations were in order today as the Chevening Alumni Association of Uganda was officially launched at the British High Commissioner’s residence.

    Chevening is the UK government’s international scholarship scheme aimed at developing global leaders and has been running since 1983. In Uganda there are over 240 Chevening beneficiaries but this is the first time an organised alumni body has been set up. The newly launched association will help advance and promote the Chevening in Uganda and provide a platform for professional networking and interaction.

    Speaking at the launch, British High Commissioner to Uganda Peter West said

    ‘I am delighted to launch the Chevening Alumni Association of Uganda. A key part of the Chevening scholarship is the requirement for scholars to return to Uganda at the conclusion of their course to ensure the investment in the individual is also an investment in Uganda. I hope this association will be a catalyst for Alumni coming together to see what more they have to offer Uganda.

    Notable Ugandan Chevening alumni include Eldard Kansiime (1983), University of Kent; Dr Livingstone Sewanyana (1999), University of Essex;  Honourable Miria Matembe (1996) University of Warwick; Andrew Mwenda (1999), School of Oriental and African Studies; Helen Kaweesa (2000), University of Essex; and Dr Brian Ngwatu (2015) London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

    Mr Mukwatampola Muzamil, Assistant Commissioner for Higher Education at the Ministry of Education and Sports, who also attended the launch event, said:

    ‘We welcome scholarships like Chevening, which provide our professionals with the skills and knowledge to make a difference. As the Ministry of Education, we recognise the long-term benefits Chevening has in Uganda, in terms of economic development, with a work force that has studied at some of the best universities in the UK. I want to congratulate the Chevening alumni on the launch of the association today and wish you every success’.

    Speaking on behalf of the Alumni Helen Kaweesa, Acting Parliament Director Communication and Public Relations Affairs at said:

    ‘We are delighted that this Association has finally been formed. We have a pool of talent and skills within the Ugandan Chevening Alumni, which I am confident will make a difference. I hope this association will unite us further and ably equip us to mentor the next wave of Cheveners from Uganda as well as implement impactful projects’.

    Key Stakeholders were in attendance of this launch including officials from Ministry of Education, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, media CEOs, other associations and the media.

  • British High Commission trains Ugandan media

    British High Commission trains Ugandan media

    Kampala, Uganda: The British High Commission, in partnership with African Centre for Media Excellence (ACME), has organised a two-day training for journalists around the theme of Media Rights and Responsibilities.

    The aim of the training is to help journalists understand their rights and the legal framework they work in as well as to understand their responsibilities. The training will also cover core elements such as identifying fake news, the importance of fact checking and media ethics.

    The British High Commissioner to Uganda, Peter West CMG said ‘The UK government hosted the first global conference on media freedom earlier this year in London and I was delighted that the Government of Uganda was represented at a high level. Following the conference we have worked with media house editors and with government to design this training for journalists to understand their rights, their responsibilities and the legal framework they work within’.

    The training is part of the Media Freedom campaign launched by the UK Government last year. Through this global campaign, the UK seeks to drive up the commitment of the international community to the safety and protection of journalists’ rights. A highlight of the campaign was the Global Conference on Media Freedom held in London in July. Thousands of delegates attended including government ministers, journalists, NGOs and academics to shine a spotlight on media freedom across the globe.

    Media from across Print, Television, Radio and Online nationwide will attend the training, which demonstrates the UK’s continued commitment to supporting media in Uganda.

  • MultiChoice Uganda celebrates 2018 with media

    MultiChoice Uganda celebrates 2018 with media

    MultiChoice Uganda on Saturday held its annual media appreciation party at Garuga Resort Beach Hotel in Entebbe. The gathering was to celebrate and appreciate media for their unconditional support throughout 2018.

    While addressing the journalists at an evening ceremony that was preceded by earlier activities including members of the media forming teams – Team Makanika and Team Muzigo Express to partake in water challenges, dance competitions, design and fashion shows etc. At the end of the day Team Makanika beat Team Muzigo Express 3 –1. Albert Nga, the MultiChoice Head of Marketing welcomed the media and highlighted some of the pay tv’s achievements.

    “We are grateful that you have honoured our invites and have chosen to be with us on this day, as we celebrate you and our 2018 accomplishments.  2018 has been a year full of great entertainment and activities.

    In the world of sports; we kept our customers on the edge of their seats with the most sought after tournaments that included the, FIFA World Cup 2018 in June/ July, Champions league, CHAN tournament, all four tennis Grand slams, boxing matches like Wilder versus Fury, EPL season 2018-2019, La- Liga and Serie A.  Locally, DStv was heavily involved in the Golf Tournament through its partnership with Singleton for the 7 month long games. We also partnered with Serena Kigo for the launch of their historical state of the art new golf course,” he said.

    Nga added, “MultiChoice being at the forefront of technology development in the industry, we introduced a new Exploradecoder dubbed the Nano decoder with the aim to enhance subscriber viewing experience. The Nano decoder, is a super version of all decoders out there in the market, customers have full control to rewind, pause and record live programs. The decoder encompasses other features like Catch up and Box Office.”

    MultiChoice Uganda has run exciting consumer campaignsthroughout 2018. Currently running , is a campaign dubbed ‘Pay on Time’ that allows  Access and Family customers to get one week of Compact sport and customers on Compact and Compact+ to get one week of Premium sport when subscription is paid on time.

    In addition, GOtv customers on GOtv Plus who pay on time get one week of GOtv Max sports channels.  GOtvMax subscription was dropped during this festive season from UGX 49,000 from UGX 39,000.

    Considerably, the leading pay tv player hardware offers for both brands, DStv at UGX 152,500 (comes with a decoder, dish, accessories and one month of compact) as well as GOtv at UGX 89,000 which includes a decoder, antennae and one month of GOtv Max. This is our way of celebrating the festive season with our customers, so I encourage our customers to take advantage of all these offers.

    “We will continue to be innovative and give you more content that will enhance our subscribers’ television experience. I would like to thank you, the media for the great support rendered to the company through 2018 and we look forward to working more with you in 2019. We wish you a Merry Christmas and a Prosperous 2019,” Nga concluded.

    The evening activities included a content showcase in the form of videos of all the exciting content subscribers have enjoyed this year led by flamboyant emcee Ronnie Mcvex, a content quiz where team Kyaffeddala outclassed all other 9 teams, merry making. The event was crowned off by a performance from talented Irene Ntale.