Why does Africa’s forerunner project, the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) inspire, motivate, and enamor its supporters so much? What is it about the GERD that resonates with us, moves us so deeply that we give from the little that we have, stand by it with our heads held high in the face of fierce powers, and show it a loyalty so deep it even inspires others to stand with us? 

Last November, I published an article titled, “The impact of COVID-19 on science in Africa” in which I shared some positive impacts of the virus at a time that Africa had not yet experienced the full effect of the pandemic. It is now nine months later and so it is pertinent to check on the progress or lack thereof.

In 1776 Adam Smith published his “Wealth of Nations” which has guided economists and political thinkers ever since. It marks the start of the Industrial Revolution that began in Britain and then spread throughout most of the world. That was 245 years ago.

The July issue is dedicated to change. In the May issue, I thought that with the availability of the COVID-19 vaccines, happy days were almost here again. Unfortunately, that was wishful thinking because the pandemic is still wreaking havoc in many places; India had not yet seen its worst case in May and June. 

The “Forgotten Voices” is a collection of the most inspiring poems. It unveils human emotions, identity, displacement, pain, agony and abandonment which I bring out in a simple clear language. Social conflict in northern Uganda is central in the thought-provoking and mentally stimulating prose in this collection of poems. A good read for both writers and readers of poetry.

President Joe Biden has many challenges to confront in his foreign policy. One of which is the seemingly forgotten United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) that remains unratified by the US, the only major country not to do so. Yet, UNCLOS serves the interests of both sea-every country because what happens in, under and on the sea affects the food, water, and air that every living thing depends on. 

Before the development of a market economy, Ugandans used bags, strings, pots, and baskets made from local materials such as palm leaves, papyrus, banana leaves and fibers, grass, fibrous shrubs (jute and sisal), or clay for packaging, storage, and transporting of goods. Other than baked clay pots, all these materials are biodegradable, and they pose little danger to the environment. However, plastics rapidly replaced most natural fibers because they more convenient, but they pose tremendous threat to the environment.

When someone dies, we feel sad and grieve for the life lost. This was the case with the passing of Lapwony Mzee Isaiah Lazaro Loka who was born on January 15, 1939. He passed on April 15, 2021 at his home near St. Mary’s Hospital, Lacor, Gulu District, Uganda. We mourn his passing because he was a husband, a father, uncle, grandpa, a friend, and a teacher to many.