On 28 August 2026, E-Bus Xpress, a subsidiary of Kiira Motors Corporation, deployed 15 additional Kayoola electric buses to ferry passengers to and from Kira Municipality.

The 15 electric buses now operate on three main routes connecting Kampala city to Kira Municipality via Ntinda.

Five (5) buses operate from Ntinda via Najjera, Kira, Kitukutwe, Kiwologoma to Nakwero and back.

Five (5) buses operate from Ntinda via Naaya, Kyaliwajjala, Namugongo to Sonde and back.

Five (5) buses operate from Ntinda via Kisaasi, Kyanja, to Kungu and back.

This article covers the Ntinda routes to Kira, Kyanja, and Namugongo. For the City Square-Nakawa-Ntinda-Wandegeya route, click here.

Now that you know the routes, here are the Kayoola bus fares for different stops, along with information on how to pay.

Kira Route (Ntinda to Nakwero)

Namugongo Route (Ntinda to Sonde)

Kyanja Route (Ntinda to Kungu)

How to Pay for Kayoola Bus on Airtel and MTN
Cash won’t get you a seat on these electric buses.

Pay E-bus Xpress using MTN MoMo
Dial *165*22#, enter merchant code 594435, enter the amount, and then enter your Airtel Money PIN to complete the payment.

Pay E-bus Xpress using Airtel Money
Dial *185*9#, enter the merchant code 4405648, enter the amount, and then enter your MTN MoMo PIN to complete the payment.

Registered users with cards can dial *272*80# on all networks to top up.

Note: The Airtel Money and MTN Mobile Money merchant codes apply to all Kayoola buses and routes deployed so far. The bus conductor confirms payment on board before the bus sets off.

Can I get off before the end of my route? Yes, you can. Kayoola buses have a stop button that passengers can press to alert the driver whenever they want to get off.

Across the scenic Murchison Landscape of Western Uganda, the northern Albertine Rift is celebrated for its outstanding biodiversity richness. The region harbours an astounding ecological community, accounting for 52% of Africa’s bird species, 39% of its mammal species, 19% of its amphibian species, 14% of its reptile species, and 14% of its plant species.

This tropical haven supports several iconic primate species, including blue monkeys, red-tailed monkeys, vervet monkeys, black-and-white colobus monkeys, olive baboons, and the flagship endangered Eastern Chimpanzee.

However, this rich natural landscape faces severe environmental pressure. Rapid agricultural expansion and new oil developments have heavily fragmented what was once a continuous forest belt into isolated patches across community and private land. The core protected reserves of Bugoma and Budongo have lost the natural connecting vegetation essential for wildlife to move freely.

The scale of this habitat destruction across both Central Forest Reserves and private or communal forests is staggering. Between 1986 and 2002 alone, an estimated 110 square kilometres of forest were cleared within 15 kilometres of Bugoma Forest Reserve, while approximately 90 square kilometres were lost within 15 kilometres of Budongo Forest Reserve.

Historically, the central challenge facing conservation initiatives in this landscape has been the absence of sustainable, long-term financing mechanisms capable of sustaining restoration efforts beyond initial donor seed funding.

Uganda’s remaining population of approximately 5,000 eastern chimpanzees, primarily confined to these northern Albertine Rift forests, bears the brunt of this isolation. While resilient chimpanzee troops continue to traverse agricultural lands between forest patches, re-establishing continuous habitat pathways between Bugoma and Budongo is critical to prevent genetic isolation and ensure the long-term survival of the species.

To tackle fragmentation on a landscape scale, the Environmental Conservation Trust of Uganda (ECOTRUST) and its partners are executing a comprehensive corridor restoration program across the Budongo-Bugoma landscape. The initiative aims to conserve over 50,000 hectares of natural forest by securing and restoring critical ecological linkages across Kikuube, Hoima, and Masindi districts.

Under ECOTRUST’s leadership, the Northern Albertine Rift Conservation Group (NARC-G) developed an overarching investment plan targeting key forest blocks necessary for corridor functionality. Initially launched via the Corridor Restoration Fund (CRF) in 2020 with foundational support from the World Land Trust, ECOTRUST mobilised additional resources in 2022 from IUCN Netherlands and TotalEnergies to implement the plan.

Forest restoration on the ground combines communal tree planting via Communal Land Associations and Community Wetland Associations with smallholder farm re-afforestation. On the critical Bugoma, Wambabya Bugambe linkage alone, over 2,000 local farmers and forest owners have actively planted 60 hectares of native forest patches.

To guarantee permanent corridor continuity, more than 100 households voluntarily offered portions of their private land along the Kasoma Kanwyaborongo river system. Formal trust deeds are currently being negotiated to hold this land in trust for the community, safeguarding tenure security and securing additional land under trusteeship backed by expansion funding from IUCN Netherlands.

Beyond safeguarding animal migration, restoring connectivity protects Western Uganda’s nature-based economy. Budongo Forest Reserve remains an international tourist destination famed for habituated chimpanzee tracking in the Kaniyo-Pabidi sector, birding, and eco-tourism. Protecting this contiguous forest network ensures that eco-tourism revenue continues to flow back into local communities.

To secure long-term financial sustainability and move beyond traditional short-term grants, ECOTRUST, supported by the Darwin Initiative and in partnership with the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED), has pioneered an innovative bio-credits-based incentive mechanism.

This community-designed, owned, and led initiative creates a direct, long-term income stream to reward local conservation action. Operating under the Plan Vivo Biodiversity Standard (PV Nature), biodiversity certificates generate payments tied directly to verified restoration outcomes, where a single certificate represents a 1% verified increase in biodiversity per hectare per year.

Performance is measured through rigorous field monitoring of core bio-indicators, specifically birds, primates, and plant diversity, alongside human threat metrics. Issued certificates are owned directly by the community and participating landholders, including Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLCs).

By pairing structured land trusteeships with direct biodiversity credit returns, ECOTRUST and its NARC-G partners are establishing a self-sustaining model for tropical landscape management, guaranteeing that Uganda’s eastern chimpanzees can move safely through a flourishing, connected ecosystem for generations to come.

The Tusker Lite Rwenzori Marathon, now in its 5th edition, is a World Athletics Label Road Race held annually in Kasese District, located at the foot of the Rwenzori Mountains. It was created as a social enterprise, built to promote healthy living, support Ugandan talent, boost tourism, and raise climate awareness, especially as the glaciers of the Rwenzori Mountains melt and Kasese becomes one of the regions most at risk from climate change.

This year’s event, held on 22 August 2026,  attracted more than 8,000 runners and was built around the theme “Our Culture, Our Heritage, Our Diversity, Live It, Love It”. Beyond the race itself, the marathon included cleaning campaigns, biodiversity awareness weeks and cultural exhibitions that brought residents and visitors together.

For the Environmental Conservation Trust of Uganda (ECOTRUST), whose work in the district focuses on supporting smallholder farming communities to sustainably manage their land while earning a living from it, joining the marathon was a chance to stand alongside the farmers who make its Trees for Global Benefits project model work. Among more than 70 participating project farmers and staff, there was a shared sense of enthusiasm at the prospect of winning the grand prize of UGX 40 million.

This was especially true for Milikiyodi Bithakuma from Mahongo sub-county, who has taken part in every edition of the Marathon since its inception in 2022, running the full length of 42 kilometres, with a diverse group of farmers from 8 other sub-counties including Kabatunda, Buhuhira, Rugendabara, Maliba, Bugoye, Kitswamba, Rukoki and Kyarumba.

The marathon was more than a test of endurance. It provided an opportunity for these farmers to network with runners from across Uganda and beyond, exchanging experiences and ideas on tree growing, environmental conservation, and climate action, but above all, to have fun together.

Muhindo Amos, a coffee and cocoa farmer from Kyondo sub-county; Kusemererwa Geoffrey, a farmer from Kitswamba sub-county; Biira Maliiza Kapau, a 56-year-old tree farmer from Mahango sub-county; and two teenage girls, Muhindo Clovia (17) and Kiiza Winfred (15), from the same sub-county, couldn’t contain their excitement upon receiving silver medals on completing the 21-kilometre route.

Speaking to journalists after the race, Swizin Bwambale, chairman of the Mahango farmers group, thanked  ECOTRUST for its continued commitment to supporting farmers beyond conservation activities. Kimera William, a farmer coordinator from Kyarumba Banywani, echoed the same sentiment, noting the strong relationship between the Kasese farmers and the organisation, and its willingness to stand alongside the communities it serves.

As evening fell, the atmosphere in Kasese shifted from athletic competition to community celebration. Local performers entertained crowds before renowned Ugandan musicians; Cindy Sanyu and Pallaso took the stage as headline acts. Cindy Sanyu’s energetic performance drew enthusiastic cheers from fans while Pallaso kept revellers dancing late into the night.

For the organisation, participation in the Rwenzori Marathon has become an annual celebration of national heritage and a platform to promote much-needed awareness around the realities of climate change in a landscape of vital ecological significance. ECOTRUST continues to support more than 29,000 smallholder farmers in Kasese district through initiatives focused on climate change mitigation, livelihood improvement and biodiversity conservation.

There is a particular kind of silence that follows a golden age, not the silence of rest, but of confusion. Uganda’s music industry is currently trapped inside that silence. A country that produced Jose Chameleone, Bebe Cool, Bobi Wine and Radio & Weasel, and which gave the world Eddy Kenzo, now seems to be struggling to produce a single song that outlasts the TikTok-sound craze. The reasons are not mysterious. They are structural, economic and heavily political.

In this article, we look at one of the industry’s most persistent problems: the strained relationship between artistes and promoters, and the financial pressures driving them further apart, ultimately threatening the very relationship many artistes and promoters rely on for their livelihoods.

In most mature music economies, the relationship between promoters and artistes is governed by binding contracts and enforceable rights frameworks. In Uganda, it is largely proximity to political power and the ability to shout louder or stay silent longer.

Take Abbey Musinguzi, commonly known as Abitex Promotions, a huge music events promoter in Uganda. His philosophy, as observed over years, is one of artiste disposability. Many artistes argue Abitex is shrewd and financially tight-fisted; when an A-list artiste, say, Jose Chameleone, rejects a performance fee as inadequate, he does not raise the offer. He finds three B-list artistes for the price of one, then quietly circulates an instruction through the promoters’ association: do not ever book Chameleone. Let him feel the desperation of an empty calendar. Belittle the artiste financially, own him, pay him what you think he deserves, and destroy his bargaining power.

Ugandan artistes, including Chance Nalubega and Weasel, Alien Skin, and Pallaso, all claim to have experienced this machinery. On one or two occasions, he has even publicly called them ‘off-layers.’

Spice Diana’s story within the system is not a collection of incidents. It is a pattern, and the recent Bukomansimbi episode is only its latest chapter.

Spice Diana has spoken publicly and repeatedly about promoters undermining her, refusing to pay after performances, calling fellow promoters to discourage bookings, questioning her relevance, and working to make her appear commercially unviable.

However, to understand why Ugandan promoters play cat and mouse with artistes, you first have to understand what they are walking into every time they organise a music event. A concert in Uganda is not, by default, a profitable venture. It is a high-stakes gamble staged in an environment designed to make losing money easier than making it.

The cost structure alone is punishing. A promoter must secure a venue and various licenses, hire a PA system and production crew, pay for police security, print and distribute tickets, run media promotion across radio, TV and social media, and then pay the artiste’s booking fee, often partially upfront. None of these costs warrants a successful event. They are committed expenses. And then, yawzzaahhh…URA comes knocking.

URA taxes 18% of gate collections from entertainment events. This is not a profit tax; it is a revenue tax, taken from ticket sales before the promoter has had a chance to offset the costs incurred. Musa Kavuma of KT Promotions says: “There are times when you have not yet made a shilling, but URA is already at the gate demanding tax.”

In a bid that will bite artistes deeper and sour their relationship with promoters further, an additional 6% withholding tax on payments to local artistes was recently approved in April 2026, with promoters required to deduct it at source on behalf of URA. Fundukululu hitmaker, Phina Masanyalaze, like most artistes, has called this “insane,” arguing that the industry cannot be milked before it is fed.

This is the context in which artiste fee negotiations happen. A promoter is not sitting across from an artiste from a position of financial strength. In many cases, they are sitting across from them already counting potential losses, trying to manage the single largest controllable variable in their budget: the artiste.

This should not excuse coercion, cheating or blacklisting. But it explains why the pressure to suppress artiste fees is so constant, and why the promoter’s first instinct when an artiste pushes back on their offer is not generosity; it is the search for a cheaper replacement.

The more troubling issue is what happens when that pressure is the norm. The financial justification for low fees hardens into an attitude that artistes are replaceable and their bargaining power is something to be broken. Yet promoters and artistes depend on each other. A promoter needs artistes who can attract audiences that will bring a return on their investment, while artistes need promoters who can put them on stages and get people through the gates.

They can, but the financial risk and logistical burden that comes with putting on a show can be just as daunting.

Putting aside the controversies surrounding the rollout of Uganda’s digital number plates, it’s worth understanding what the different formats represent. Unlike the old registration system, which mainly relied on alphabetical identifiers, the digital number plate system combines coded numbers, letter combinations and colours to identify vehicle categories, ownership, and, in many cases, the institution they belong to.

Private & Commercial Plates (Cars, Motorcycles, & Trailers)
UA 001AA: With black characters, this is the standard digital number plate issued to private and commercial vehicles in Uganda, such as a taxi in Park Enkadde or a family car. They are printed in rectangular and square formats for the front and back, depending on the vehicle.

UA 000AA: Distinguished by red characters, these registration plates are issued to vehicles granted tax exemptions or special import privileges, including some vehicles belonging to NGOs, persons with disabilities and returning citizens relocating with their vehicles.

DL U001A: Printed in red, these plates are issued by the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) to licensed motor vehicle dealers, garages and vehicle importers. Some independent sources, opposed to ITMS, record them as U00001D.

UMA 000AA (White): Black characters printed on a white square plate; this format is issued to motorcycles operating as public transport providers such as Boda Bodas.

UMA 000AA (Yellow): Black characters slapped on a yellow square plate; these are issued to privately owned motorcycles.

T UA 0001AA: Black characters printed on a white plate; these are digital number plates issued to privately owned and commercial trailers in Uganda.

Government Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs)
UG XX 00001: Red characters; this is a digital number plate format used by central government ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs).

The first two digits, XX, after UG represent the specific ministry or agency. For instance, the code UG 01 00001 is used by the Office of the President, UG 03 00001 by the Electoral Commission, and UG 12 00001 by the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry & Fisheries.

This system introduced a new way of identifying government vehicles, moving away from alphabetic prefixes that denoted MDAs. Full list of MDAs number plate codes here.

Government Trailers
UG XX T001: Printed in red on a white plate, these are digital number plates issued to Trailers owned by specific government ministries, departments and agencies. The initial two digits, XX, after UG identify the corresponding MDA. For instance, UG 38 T001 is issued to a trailer used by the Ministry of Works and Transport.

Parastatals
UA XX 001AA: Blue characters on a white plate; these number plates are issued to government agencies, authorities, and corporations operating under certain ministries, identifiable by the first two digits, XX, after UA. For instance, UA 12 025AA is used by the National Agricultural Research Organisation (NARO), an agency under the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries.

Uganda Police Force
UP 00001: Printed on a white plate with red characters, these number plates are reserved for vehicles operated by the Uganda Police Force.

Uganda Prisons Service
UU 00001: Printed on a white plate with red characters, these number plates distinguish vehicles belonging to the Uganda Prisons Service.

Local Governments
LG XXX 0001: Printed on a white plate with red characters, these number plates are issued to local government cars (districts and municipalities). The initial three digits, XXX, after LG identify the district or municipality. For instance, local government cars in Kira Municipality have digital number plates that follow LG 139 0001. Find your area’s local government digital number plate code here.

Diplomatic Vehicles
CD XXX 000U: Printed on a white background with blue characters, these are issued to diplomatic missions and accredited diplomatic personnel in Uganda. The first three digits, XXX, identify each mission in Uganda. For instance, CD 001 000U is used by the British High Commission in Uganda, CD 002 000U by the American Embassy in Uganda, and CD 014 000U by the Russian Embassy in Uganda.

Honorary Consuls
HC XXX 001A: With red letters on a white background, these are digital number plates assigned to honorary consuls, local volunteers representing a foreign nation where it has no embassy. The initial three-digit code represents the country; for instance, plate HC 151 00U was assigned to Sudhir Rupareil, as Honorary Consul of Nepal to Uganda.

UN WFP 0001: Printed in blue on a white background, these digital number plates are used by the United Nations’ World Food Programme (WFP) in Uganda. Any number plate beginning with UN belongs to a United Nations agency operating in Uganda.

Personalised & Army Plates
Personalised digital numbers in Uganda are distinguishable by their light green characters on a white plate. This differentiates personalised plates from those of the Headquarters of the Defence Forces, Division Forces, and Defence Forces Protocol, which use dark green characters on a coloured plate, such as H4DF 0001.

Summary of Uganda Digital Number Plate Colours
Black characters: Private and commercial vehicles
Red characters: Government and exempt vehicles
Light Green: Personalised number plates
Blue characters: Government agencies and authorities
Blue characters: Diplomatic and UN-related vehicles
Black characters on yellow: Private motorcycles
Dark Green on coloured plate: Army-related.

#1. Global Births & Deaths Every Second
Every second, roughly four babies are born, and about two people die somewhere around the world. According to the United Nations World Population Prospects 2024, global births and deaths amount to these rates when annual figures are converted to seconds.

#2. Emails Sent Every Second
More than 4 million emails are sent every second, amounting to more than 347 billion emails each day. Estimates from EarthWeb confirm the figure includes personal messages, newsletters, business communications and automated emails.

#3. Google Searches Are Made Per Second
Around 100,000 Google searches are made every second, according to widely cited estimates based on Google’s enormous daily search volume. Google itself does not regularly publish a live per-second figure, so yes, treat this number as an estimate.

#4. Text Messages Sent Every Second
About 200,000 text messages are sent every second, according to figures published by Every Second, a book examining global activity through one-second intervals. The exact number changes as communication habits and messaging platforms evolve.

#5. Lightning Flashes Every Second
According to space-based data from NASA’s Earthdata program, Earth experiences between 35 and 55 lightning flashes per second, depending on the season, with roughly 1.4 billion flashes occurring worldwide each year.

#6. Earth’s Speed Around the Sun
While you are reading this, Earth is racing around the Sun at roughly 30 kilometres per second. NASA puts our planet’s average orbital speed at about 29.8 kilometres per second.

#7. Global Oil Consumption Per Second
Global liquid-fuel consumption was forecast at about 102.8 million barrels per day in 2026, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. This amounts to roughly 189,000 litres every second.

#8. Carbon Dioxide Emissions Every Second
Global energy-related carbon dioxide emissions reached 37.8 billion tonnes in 2024, according to the International Energy Agency, equating to roughly 1.2 million kilograms of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere every second.

#9. People Who Die in Road Accidents Every Second?
The World Health Organization estimates approximately 1.16 million people die in road crashes each year, equivalent to about one road death every 27 seconds.

#10. How Much Walmart Makes Per Second
According to Walmart’s 2026 annual report, the world’s largest retailer reported approximately $713 billion in fiscal 2026 revenue, averaging around $22,600 every second.

#11. How Much Amazon Makes Every Second
Amazon, the world’s largest online retailer, follows closely behind, with $716.9 billion in net sales in 2025, according to its annual report. This is $22,700 in sales every second throughout the year.

#12. YouTube Videos Uploaded Every Second
According to a 2021 article on the YouTube Blog, more than 500 hours of video were being uploaded to YouTube every minute, equating to more than 8 hours of video every second. The Inside YouTube article does not specify the number of individual videos, Shorts or long-form uploads behind the figures presented. Considering how much YouTube has grown since 2021, the volume today may be even greater.

On a normal day, this would be a movie review. But since Spider-Man: Brand New Day is dominating at the box office, let’s talk about one small bit of it that exposes a bigger problem running through all four MCU live-action Spider-Man movies: the scene where Peter Parker leaves flowers at Aunt May’s grave.

Aunt May died in Spider-Man: No Way Home during a confrontation with the Green Goblin. Four years later, Brand New Day finds Peter all alone and fully committed to a life as Spider-Man, with everyone having forgotten his identity. Meanwhile, the woman who raised him, May Parker, is little more than a name on a gravestone.

A moment like this, especially in a superhero movie, is supposed to hit hard. Peter has lost the person who raised him, and the flowers should remind us of what she meant to him. Instead, the scene plays out like any other.

The problem here is not Marisa Tomei’s performance; it is how the MCU wrote Aunt May across the four Spider-Man films. Grief works best when the audience knows the person who is gone, yet May was rarely given a life beyond Peter.

Unlike Rosemary Harris’s Aunt May in Sam Raimi’s trilogy or Sally Field’s version in The Amazing Spider-Man films, Tomei’s May has little in the way of personal struggles, relationships or ambitions. She mostly exists to look after Peter, provide exposition, deliver jokes and occasionally push the plot forward.

This is why her death struggles to carry the emotional weight the films expect; it’s difficult to feel what Peter lost. How am I supposed to mourn Aunt May, who, across four films spanning more than 9 hours, had around 20 minutes of screen time that barely gave us enough time to know her?

The same problem extends to Peter’s friends. MJ and Ned are among the most important people in his life, yet their stories largely revolve around him. MJ is Peter’s love interest, while Ned is his best friend and comic relief. Beyond that, nothing!

Compare that with Harry Osborn in Raimi’s trilogy. Harry has his own relationship with his father, his own ambitions and even resentment towards Spider-Man. When Norman Osborn dies, Harry blames Spider-Man, and that resentment pushes him to become the New Goblin.

Harry Osborn’s transformation grows from conflicts the films had already established. That is exactly what the MCU Spider-Man films lack: supporting characters with lives and conflicts of their own.

May, MJ, and Ned matter to Peter, but the films barely make them matter independently of him. So, when Peter visits May’s grave, Spider-Man: Brand New Day asks us to feel the absence of a character previous MCU films never gave us enough reason to know.

Every 10th August, the world comes together to celebrate World Lion Day, a day that reminds us of the importance of protecting lions and natural habitats where they live. In Uganda, this call has become more urgent as the country’s lion population continues to decline.

Uganda is now home to an estimated 291 lions, down from 493 in 2011. This represents a decline of more than 40% in about 14 years. Even more concerning is that around 80% of the remaining lions, about 240, are concentrated in Murchison Falls National Park. Queen Elizabeth National Park has about 40 lions, while Kidepo Valley National Park has only about 12.

These numbers show that protecting Uganda’s lions cannot be left to national parks alone. Lions need safe habitats, enough food and water, and healthy ecosystems to survive. When these ecosystems are degraded or fragmented, wildlife faces greater pressure.

ECOTRUST, a Ugandan environmental conservation organisation, is supporting the restoration of more than 50,000 hectares of degraded and fragmented land across the Albertine Rift region, including community and public land outside of the protected areas. Working with local communities, private landowners, forest owners, partner organisations and the government, this initiative is not only promoting habitat connectivity but also providing livelihoods for local communities and much-needed natural resources that both people and wildlife depend on.

The Albertine Rift is one of Africa’s most bio-diverse regions, with tropical forests that harbour an astounding 52% of Africa’s bird species; 39% of its mammal species; 19% of its amphibians; 14% of its reptiles; and 14% of its plants (Plumptre et al., 2007). At the same time, millions of people depend on the region’s agriculture, forests and other natural resources for their livelihoods.

Protecting these landscapes is therefore not only about wildlife. It is also about ensuring that communities can continue to benefit from healthy ecosystems.

Landscape restoration can take many forms. It can include planting trees, restoring degraded land, protecting forests and supporting communities to adopt environmentally friendly farming practices. These activities help improve ecosystems’ health while also creating opportunities for communities to earn a living.

For lions, healthy landscapes are especially important because they need enough space, food and water to survive. Restoring degraded areas and maintaining connections between habitats can help create healthier ecosystems for wildlife.

The sharp decline in lion numbers also shows why conservation efforts must look beyond individual animals. If most of Uganda’s remaining lions are concentrated in one protected area, protecting the wider ecosystem around key wildlife habitats becomes even more important.

Conservation also cannot happen inside national parks alone. Communities living around protected areas are important partners. Their decisions about farming, tree growing, grazing and the use of natural resources can have a direct impact on the environment.

When communities are supported to restore degraded land and benefit from conservation-friendly activities, they become important partners in protecting nature.

World Lion Day provides an opportunity to look at conservation from this wider perspective. Saving lions is not only about protecting a single species. It is about protecting the ecosystems that allow lions and other wildlife to survive.

It is also about helping people understand that their daily activities are connected to the health of nature. Farmers, communities, conservation organisations, government institutions and other partners all have a role to play in protecting Uganda’s natural heritage.

As Uganda marks World Lion Day on 10th August, the message should go beyond the lions we see in national parks. It should also draw attention to the landscapes around these protected areas and the people who live within them.

For 12 years, Atinoi Basil has helped golfers chase birdies and trophies. At the Watoto Caddies Tournament, he finally had the chance to chase one of his own.

Most golfers remember the shot that won them the tournament. Few remember the person who carried the clubs, searched for errant balls, read the greens and quietly whispered, “Aim a little left.” “Less energy on the swing.”

Yet without caddies, golf would be a much lonelier game. On Monday 3 August 2026, the usual order of things changed at Uganda Golf Club. The golfers stepped aside, and the caddies took centre stage, as the Third Edition of the Watoto Golf Tournament got underway with a Caddies Tournament.

As the Elite Amateurs and Pros prepare to tee off later, 59 of the club’s 140 registered caddies swapped their familiar supporting role for the spotlight, competing in a tournament organised in their honour.

For one day, they were no longer carrying someone else’s dreams. They were playing for their own. Among them was Atinoi Basil, a soft-spoken caddie whose story mirrors that of many men who quietly keep Uganda’s oldest golf course moving.

When Basil arrived at Uganda Golf Club in 2014, fresh out of high school, he wasn’t chasing trophies. He was chasing survival. “I had just finished school and needed something that could help me earn a living,” he recalls. “A cousin introduced me to the club, and that’s how everything started.”

What began as a temporary job became a career, a classroom and, unexpectedly, a passion. Over the years, Basil has learned far more than where bunkers lie or how fast the greens roll. He trained as a coffee barista and coffee roaster along the way, but caddying remained the profession that consistently put food on the table and helped finance his education. Being a caddie, he says, is often misunderstood.

“People think we only carry golf bags,” he says with a smile. “But a caddie is like the golfer’s second mind. You guide them, help them understand the course and give advice throughout the round.” It is a role that demands sharp observation, patience and trust.

Before anyone is allowed to caddie at Uganda Golf Club, they must first be approved by the club professional after undergoing one to two months of training. They learn every corner of the course, from hidden hazards and deceptive bunkers to the subtle slopes that can turn a winning putt into a disappointing miss.

That knowledge becomes invaluable once they step onto the course beside golfers. But unlike many professions, there is no guaranteed paycheque waiting at the end of the month.

Caddies earn only when they are assigned to a player by the caddie master. Some days bring work. Others bring only hope.

“It is casual work,” Basil explains. “Sometimes you work, sometimes you don’t. But it has helped me pay school fees and support myself.” The uncertainty has never dimmed his enthusiasm.

If anything, golf has become part of his identity. As a boy, Basil dreamed of wearing the Uganda Cranes jersey. Football was his first love, but life had different plans.

Today, another dream has quietly taken shape. “I want to remain in golf,” he says. “Maybe not as a caddie forever, but one day as a golfer.” That ambition feels more achievable after Monday’s tournament.

For a few hours, there were no players asking for club selections or reading difficult putts.

The caddies became competitors. Cheers echoed across the fairways as colleagues who usually walked behind golfers now stood over their own tee shots.

It was more than a tournament. It was recognition. Basil says the opportunity meant everything. “We appreciate Watoto for remembering us,” he says. “Every day we help other people enjoy golf, so it felt special to have a day where we could also play.”

His appreciation reflects a larger truth about the game. Golf may celebrate champions, but every champion has someone quietly walking beside them.

Someone carrying fourteen clubs under the afternoon sun. Someone searching for lost balls in the rough. Someone offering calm advice after a difficult hole.

Someone whose own story rarely appears on the leaderboard. For Basil, golf has also become a teacher.

“Golf is life,” he reflects. “Nobody is perfect. You will hit a bad shot, but what matters is how you respond with the next one.”

It is wisdom earned not from textbooks but from thousands of kilometres walked across fairways, watching victories, heartbreaks and everything in between.

As Uganda’s golfing community continues to grow, caddies remain among its quietest heroes. They are guides, mentors, counsellors, strategists and sometimes even confidence coaches.

Their names may never be engraved on the trophies they help others win. But for one unforgettable day at Uganda Golf Club, the applause belonged to them. And perhaps that was the greatest victory of all. Because every great golfer walks the course with a caddie. Every caddie, however, walks the course carrying a dream of their own.

As the Watoto Golf Tournament continues, attention now turns to Saturday’s game, where pros will take centre stage.

On 31 July 2026, Spider-Man: Brand New Day swung into cinemas and, within its opening weekend, became the second-biggest opening film of all time while earning a 98% Rotten Tomatoes score. With millions rushing to catch it, questions about how cinemas get, protect, and make money from blockbuster movies naturally arise. And that’s exactly what we’re breaking down in this short explainer.

How Cinemas Get Movies
Cinemas do not buy movies outright. Instead, they license them from film studios or authorised distributors for a limited period. The agreement specifies when the film can be shown, how long it can remain in theatres, and how ticket revenue will be shared between the cinema and the distributor.

How Cinemas Play Movies
Movies are delivered to cinemas as encrypted digital files, either through secure online delivery systems or on encrypted physical hard drives. Each cinema receives a unique decryption key, known as a Key Delivery Message (KDM), which only unlocks the movie on authorised projectors and servers during approved dates and screening times. Without the correct key, the movie cannot be played, even if the file has been copied to the cinema’s servers.

How Movie Studios Prevent Piracy
Besides encryption, every copy of a film contains an invisible forensic watermark. Unlike a visible logo or text, this watermark is not visible to the audience. It is embedded directly in the video and audio so that it is undetectable to human eyes and ears but can be identified using specialised forensic software.

How Cinemas Prevent Piracy
If you secretly record a film in a cinema and upload it online, investigators can analyse the watermark to determine exactly which cinema, screen, and in some cases even the specific screening where the recording was made. This allows studios to trace the source of screen-recorded copies uploaded to movie pirating websites.

Cinemas also curb movie piracy by monitoring auditoriums with security cameras, conducting regular checks during showings, and using night-vision devices to spot anyone attempting to record the screen.

How Movie Theatres Make Money
During the first few weeks of a major release, film studios often take anywhere from 80% to almost 100% of ticket revenue, leaving cinemas with little to no profit from ticket sales. As the film remains in theatres and demand falls, the revenue split gradually becomes more favourable to cinemas, often approaching 50% by the later weeks, depending on the agreement.

Because of this, cinemas rely heavily on concession sales. Popcorn, soft drinks, sweets, and other treats is where cinemas make most of their money. At Century Cinema, Acacia Mall, for example, a bucket of popcorn that costs around UGX 650 to produce is sold for over UGX 12,000, while most drinks are priced at more than double their normal retail price.

These higher prices help cinemas pay for rent and licenses, staff salaries, electricity, equipment maintenance, and the expensive digital projection systems required to screen modern films.

For many movie theatres, the snack counter brings in more profit than ticket sales.

Directed by Destin Daniel Cretton, Spider-Man: Brand New Day is the fourth solo Spider-Man film starring real-life couple Tom Holland and Zendaya Coleman, who return as Peter Parker and MJ.

Now in cinemas, Spider-Man: Brand New Day is expected to hit premium video-on-demand (PVOD) around 27 October 2026, according to Forbes, before streaming in early 2027. Here are five spoiler-free facts you should know before watching.

#1. Where Spider-Man: Brand New Day Fits in the MCU Timeline
Spider-Man: Brand New Day takes place four years after the emotional ending of Spider-Man: No Way Home. You’re walking into a world where Peter Parker has spent four years protecting New York on his own while trying to rebuild a life in a world where nobody, his former friends and allies, remember who he is.

Continuing the friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man story, expect a more independent and grounded version of Spider-Man than before.

#2. Spider-Man: Brand New Day Got a Script Upgrade
The film’s production was pushed back by six months, a delay that gave the creative team more time to refine the screenplay. Tom Holland reportedly called Sony Pictures boss Tom Rothman requesting a schedule change so he could be part of Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey (2026) before returning to the Spider-Man suit.

This extra time also allowed the film’s co-parents, Marvel Studios and Sony Pictures, to strengthen the story.

#3. Spider-Man is Wearing a Practical Suit, Again
One of the most noticeable changes in Brand New Day is the Spider-Man costume. The movie departs from the flashy CGI suits used in recent Spider-Man films and adopts a more practical suit throughout. This direction could be interpreted as adding depth to the film’s story, with Peter Parker having lost everyone and everything he relied on.

In a behind-the-scenes video, Tom Holland explained that he wanted Peter Parker to feel more grounded, and the redesigned suit reflects that vision with visible stitching, wrinkles and small imperfections that make it look as though Peter Parker, your friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man, made it himself by hand.

“When we decided that we’re going to make Spider-Man: Brand New Day, we said, what if we made a suit that was an homage to Tobey and Andrew’s designs because now my Peter Parker had met those guys… we kind of created a Spider-Child of all three costumes,” Holland shared.

#4. Spider-Man: Brand New Day Post-Credits Scene
The first unspoken rule of watching a Marvel film is to stay seated until the very last second and never skip the credits. Spider-Man: Brand New Day is no exception. The post-credit scene rewards your patience by teasing the events of Avengers: Doomsday.

#5. Highest-Rated Live Action Spider-Man Movie
Early reactions have been overwhelmingly positive. At the time of this writing, Spider-Man: Brand New Day holds a 98% critics’ score on Rotten Tomatoes, making it the highest-rated live-action Spider-Man film since Sam Raimi’s 2004 Spider-Man 2.

Three days after its cinema release on 31 July 2026, Spider-Man: Brand New Day has become the second-biggest opening weekend film of all time, grossing $927M globally. It ranks behind Avengers: Endgame (2019), which earned $1.2B, and ahead of Avengers: Infinity War (2017), which opened with $640M. All three films are part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

To refresh your memory before heading to the cinema for Spider-Man: Brand New Day, in order, watch the following films, Captain America: Civil War (2016), Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), Avengers: Infinity War (2018), Avengers: Endgame (2019), Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019), and, most importantly, Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021).

If you’ve been following national news and events, you’ve probably noticed that barely a few months pass without another climate walk, tree-planting campaign, or environmental award. Sustainability summits and youth innovation challenges have become common. Schools compete to showcase the greenest campus, banks sponsor conservation drives, NGOs fund climate competitions, and government agencies continue to organise environmental awareness events across the country.

Just recently, Adjumani topped the IFPA-CD Woodlots Programme; Northern Uganda was reflecting on its way forward following the Transformative Approach to Sustainable Landscapes and Livelihoods (TASLL) project.

We’ve all seen the activities. But why? Why has climate action seemingly moved from the sidelines to the centre of national conversation?

Let’s start with dear Uganda. We have witnessed increasingly unpredictable rainfall, prolonged dry spells with hotter days, devastating floods when it finally rains, landslides in mountainous regions, and rising temperatures. Agriculture, which supports millions of Ugandans through livelihoods and food production, depends heavily on predictable weather patterns. As those patterns become increasingly unreliable, the economic and social consequences become impossible to ignore.

But while climate change provides the urgency, it is not the only force, or even the main reason behind the surge in environmental activities.

Uganda has also committed itself to several national and international climate frameworks, including the Paris Agreement, updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), and national climate policies. These commitments increasingly shape government planning, donor funding and institutional priorities in Uganda. They are also a major reason climate-related initiatives now appear across nearly every sector, not just environmental organisations.

The Sustainable Development Goals
If you’ve attended a climate conference or even a school tree-planting exercise recently, you’ve probably noticed a colourful circular logo with 17 segments. That’s the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and once you notice it, you begin seeing it almost everywhere.

Adopted by all United Nations member states in 2015, the 17 Sustainable Development Goals serve as a global blueprint for achieving a more sustainable future by 2030. They go beyond environmental protection to include education, poverty, health, gender equality, clean energy, economic growth and responsible consumption.

Climate action is only one of those goals. In reality, a single environmental activity often contributes to several SDGs simultaneously. For example, a single tree-planting exercise contributes to SDG 13 (Climate Action) by absorbing carbon emissions, SDG 15 (Life on Land) by restoring forests and biodiversity, SDG 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation) by protecting watersheds, SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities) through urban greening, and SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals) by bringing together governments, businesses, schools and civil society.

This is why so many organisations, from universities and financial institutions to local governments and NGOs, have taken up environmental campaigns. They are not simply planting trees; they are contributing to internationally recognised development goals.

There is Funding in Climate Projects
Another reason for the rise in climate initiatives is funding. Across the world, governments, development agencies and philanthropic organisations are investing billions of dollars in climate resilience, environmental restoration and sustainable development.

Projects that align with the SDGs and national climate priorities are increasingly attractive to donors and development partners. As a result, NGOs are designing more climate-focused programmes, universities are applying for green research grants, community organisations are developing environmental projects, and local governments are integrating climate action into development plans.

Global Markets Are Raising the Bar
Beyond funding, international expectations are also influencing environmental action. As global markets place greater emphasis on sustainability, countries and businesses face increasing pressure to demonstrate responsible environmental practices. Exporters seeking access to markets such as the European Union face stricter environmental and supply chain standards, while international investors are paying closer attention to Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) performance before committing capital.

Development banks and multinational companies are likewise encouraging climate-conscious policies and operations. Although these expectations are not the sole driver of Uganda’s environmental initiatives, they reinforce the idea that sustainability is no longer optional but increasingly a requirement for remaining competitive in the global economy.

Businesses Are Turning Green Too
Not long ago, corporate social responsibility often meant donating to schools or supporting community events. Today, sustainability has become a major part of corporate identity.

Banks sponsor tree-planting drives, telecom companies invest in environmental campaigns, manufacturers promote recycling initiatives, and real estate developers highlight green building practices. While some organisations are motivated by genuine environmental concern, others recognise that consumers, investors and international partners increasingly expect businesses to demonstrate responsible environmental practices.

In reality, these motivations often overlap. Doing good for the environment is becoming good for business…so to speak.

Young People Are Leading the Conversation
Perhaps the most noticeable change is who is driving the movement. Young Ugandans are no longer just participants; they are the organisers, innovators and advocates behind many climate change and green movements.

Climate innovation competitions, environmental clubs, university research programmes and youth-led organisations are becoming increasingly common. Social media has also boosted climate awareness, allowing young activists and organisations to inspire participation beyond traditional environmental circles. Many students today grow up learning about climate change as part of their education, making environmental responsibility feel less like an obligation and more like a shared responsibility.

But Are These Campaigns Making a Difference?
This is perhaps the most important question. Tree-planting photographs often dominate headlines, but what happens after the cameras leave? How many seedlings survive beyond the first year? Are degraded wetlands genuinely restored? Do climate awareness campaigns change behaviour? Are businesses reducing their environmental footprint beyond symbolic events?

Climate action is now intertwined with agriculture, education, business, urban planning, public health and economic development. Behind many of these initiatives is the recognition that environmental sustainability is essential to national progress, and that the Sustainable Development Goals provide a shared roadmap for achieving it.