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Urine Good Hands
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Merry Christmas š Todayās issue exists for only 2 reasons: 1) consistency and 2) to hold your hand through that endless Christmas Day service in the village. If our prayers work, youāll reach for your phone right before they hand you a sheet showing the budget for the renovations that have been ongoing for as long as youāve been alive.
But overall, we hope youāre too engrossed in joy and food to read this one.
Thank you for doing this year with us. We like you a lot. See you next year. Same time, same place.
āGloria Mbabazi, Shem Opolot
HEADLINES
š« Urine Good Hands
Mulago National Referral Hospital successfully performed its first kidney transplant surgery. The recipient had been waiting for two years while undergoing dialysis treatment for end-stage kidney disease.
President Museveni met with the surgical team led by Professor Frank Asiimwe and visiting doctors from India, congratulated the doctors, and pledged more support for kidney transplant training and equipment in Uganda.
With 13% of Ugandans having kidney disease, most of whom require dialysis and transplants, the government hopes establishing the transplant program at Mulago will help the over 1,000 Ugandans currently waiting for kidney transplants.
š«” Another Yoweri in-charge
I'm not the most educated nor most experienced among the opposition members. I might not even be the most deserving to be appointed LoP, according to some people, but such is leadership.
The National Unity Platform (NUP) leader, Mr Robert Kyagulanyi, named Nakawa West Member of Parliament (MP) Joel Ssenyonyi the new Leader of Opposition in Parliament (LoP). Joel Ssenyonyi, who doubles as the partyās spokesperson, replaced NyendoāMukungwe MP Mathias Mpuuga, who was named the commissioner of Parliament. Ssenyonyi, an ostensibly busy man, previously headed the influential COSASE committee that dispensed headlines [to us] and sleepless nights [to some of your parents] in equal measure this year.
The NUP party believes this change will empower younger leaders and probably drop a massive āhint hintā to the ruling party.
š°šŖ Kenya
M-PESA, the largest mobile money platform in Africa and the company MTN and Airtel want to be when they grow up, has partnered with Visa to enable tap-to-pay capabilities for its customers. The feature will allow:
ā Users to make contactless payments using their phones, expanding M-PESA's payment options beyond virtual payments.
ā Merchants to accept payments from M-PESA users and other fintech customers using Visa's processing capabilities.
ā Greater financial inclusion across Africa by facilitating digital payments for M-PESA's large customer base.
š·š¼ Rwanda
From the producers that didnāt bring you the Pfizer, the white-collar COVID-19 vaccine, BioNTech plans to commit $150 million towards building an mRNA vaccine factory in Rwanda scheduled to begin operating in 2025. The first modules arrived in March 2023 and are being assembled into "BioNTainers" for flexible production. The goal is to transfer mRNA technology to Rwanda and other African countries to enable local vaccine production and address the access issues faced during the COVID-19 pandemic.
š¹šæ Tanzania
Tanzania's president switched off, err, dissolved the board of directors of the Tanzania Electric Supply Company (Tanesco) due to frequent power outages. The countryās electricity shortages are due to low water levels and infrastructure issues, and experts call for expanding Tanzania's energy mix to include more renewables.
BEYOND BORDERS
Africa
Angola | Source: BBC
š¦š“ Angola is leaving OPEC. After 16 years of membership, Angola is leaving the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) group chat due to disputes over production quotas. This is part of a trend of countries leaving OPEC (Qatar in 2019 and Ecuador in 2020) as the organization's power declines. Oil prices have fluctuated, and OPEC's market share has decreased as other countries increase their oil production and the world moves towards cleaner energy sources. OPEC, down to 12 members, controls about 51% of the worldās crude oil market share and wants to reserve the right to manipulate oil prices to maximize profit, so it needs oil big-wigs.
š¬š³ Guinea gutted. An explosion occurred at Guinea's main fuel depot in the capital, Conakry, causing a large fire and killing at least 18 people, with over 200 injured. The fire has disrupted fuel supplies across Guinea, relying on imported petroleum products from this depot. Gas stations have closed, causing transport costs to rise significantly. There are concerns about potential fuel and electricity shortages in Guinea as the country's fuel reserves were stored at the damaged depot. The cause of the initial explosion is still under investigation.
The rest of the world
Pope Francis | Source: Andreas Solaro/Agence France-Presse ā Getty Images
š»š¦ A Catholic existential crisis? In a move sure to send shockwaves through the 5-hour Christmas service in your dilapidated village church, the Vatican announced that Pope Francis will allow Catholic priests to bless same-sex couples provided the blessings arenāt tantamount to the sacrament of marriage. This represents a significant shift, as blessings for gay couples were previously forbidden. However,ā¦ the Church's doctrines on marriage have not changedāitās still defined as only between a man and a woman. The move was praised by LGBT advocates but criticized by conservativesāseen as Pope Francis trying to make the Church more welcoming and pastoral.
šš° Hong Kong reckoning. Jimmy Lai, a prominent Hong Kong media tycoon and critic of China, is going on trial for alleged collusion with foreign forces under Hong Kong's national security law. He faces life imprisonment if convicted.
What you need to know:
The trial is seen as an important test of judicial independence in Hong Kong since the imposition of the security law. Critics argue Lai may not receive a fair trial.
Prosecutors are focusing on Lai's past calls for foreign sanctions against China and Hong Kong officials. He is also charged with older sedition offenses.
The outcome could further strain tensions between China and countries like the US that have criticized the security law and called for Lai's release.
NNāEBIGENDERAKO
Everything elseā¦
Cardinal Becciu and eight others were found guilty of financial crimes in the Vatican's "trial of the century."
Israel's Mossad spy chief met with the Qatari Prime Minister to negotiate a new ceasefire deal that would release hostages held by Hamas. (Read more about Qatarās expert fence-sitting)
At least 61 migrants, including women and children, drowned after a shipwreck off the coast of Libya.
Apple is stopping US sales of Series 9 and Ultra 2 smartwatch models due to a patent dispute with a medical tech company called Masimo.
A22 Sports presented updated proposals for the European Super League after a European court ruled against UEFA and FIFAās restrictions on new competitions.
PROCRASTINATION CORNER
Games and Puzzles
From Braingle.
We're white and used for cutting and grinding. When we're damaged, humans usually remove or fill us. For most animals, we are useful tools.
What are we?
Answer at the bottom.
Our picks
š” Play this word game!
š” How Big Tech makes its money
š” Feel like crying? Watch this
Games answer
Answer: Teeth
Merry Christmas!
ā Too Long; Didnāt Read (TLDR)
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