Legislators have scrapped the Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) Board returning its mandate of overseeing operations of NGOs back to the Ministry of Internal Affairs. 

This was while the lawmakers considered the NGO (Amendment) Bill, 2024 passed during the plenary sitting on Tuesday, 23 April 2024. 

The Chairperson, Committee on Defence and Internal Affairs, Hon. Wilson Kajwengye said that the functions of the National Bureau of NGOs can be performed in the Ministry, like it was the case in 2016 before the Board was created. 

The amendment now mainstreams the Bureau as a department under the Ministry of Internal Affairs, as part of government’s policy to rationalize various entities. 

The new law replaces the NGO Board with a Bureau that will be headed by a Secretary, who will be supervised by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. 

According to the new legal regime, the Secretary shall be responsible for the day to day operations of the Bureau, the management of its funds, as well as administration and management of the property of the Bureau. 

Kajwengye justified that dissolving the Board will save government from accumulating arrears of up to Shs1.1 billion every year, being the costs of facilitating the NGO Board and Adjudication committee. 

“The Non-Tax Revenue collected from NGO registration will also be mainstreamed into the Ministry,” said Kajwengye. 

Hon. Asuman Basalirwa (JEEMA, Bugiri Municipality) said that the stay of the National Bureau of NGOs is not justified because of the current bureaucratic processes entailed in renewal of NGO licenses.   

“Getting information or renewal of licenses from NGO Board is extremely difficult, even basic things are being a challenge, I do not think its stay is justified,” Basalirwa said. 

Hon. Dononzio Kahonda (NRM, Ruhinda South County) however differed from the Committee’s report, arguing that the Board has enhanced registration, monitoring and inspection of NGOs. 

He added that the NGOs and CBOs registered in Uganda are reported to bring into the country a minimum of Shs4.5 trillion annually, and therefore compliments the work of government.

“It is the Minority’s concern that mainstreaming the Bureau as a department will deny the country the unique, specialized expertise required to oversee a rather complex and dynamic NGO sector,” said Kahonda. 

Kiboga district Woman MP, Hon. Christine Kaaya supported the minority report, saying that mainstreaming the Bureau under the Ministry of Internal Affairs will affect inspections and monitoring of NGOs. 

“It will be a very difficult moment if the Board is dissolved because NGOs are bound by donors who need timely responses and we know their contributions in terms of fundraising for this nation,” she said. 

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Parliament of the Republic of Uganda.

We Were Here, a three-part video series produced in partnership by UNHCR, the UN refugee agency, and YouTube to challenge perceptions about refugees, has won the people’s choice award in the documentary category of the Webby Awards.

The series pairs popular content creators with refugees in Jordan, Germany and Uganda who share the same passions for music, food, and innovation.  

The announcement today of the winners of the 28th Annual Webby Awards, which celebrate the best of the internet, acknowledges UNHCR’s commitment to challenging stereotypes and misperceptions about refugees and highlights the importance of making sure refugees have opportunities to develop their skills and pursue their passions while in exile.

“Winning the People’s Voice Webby Award is a significant recognition for the refugees we serve around the world,” said Dominique Hyde, Director of External Relations, UNHCR.

“Too often we see narratives that seek to divide us, but by focusing on what unites us, the passions that drive us all, we are reminded of our universal and basic need for protection. Worldwide, more than 1 in 73 people have been forced to flee their homes. They deserve to be seen and heard. We are incredibly grateful to the refugee creators who have allowed us to share their stories and to all the partners who supported this initiative. This is truly a collective win.”

“YouTube is the place where people come together and find their voice. The video series ‘We Were Here’ talks about challenging stereotypes and perceptions about refugees by shining a light on what unites us – our shared passions. We’re proud that YouTube could play a role in sharing these powerful stories with the world,” said Camilla Hill, YouTube Marketing Director.

In an episode focusing on music as an expression of belonging and identity, English DJ and producer, Jax Jones, meets the female Ukrainian hip-hop trio, For Sho, for a studio recording session. The episode sees the artists collaborate on a track that explores life in exile from the war in Ukraine and their new lives in Germany.  

Welsh chef and vegan entrepreneur, Gaz Oakley, also meets Congolese permaculture expert, Bemeriki, and they discover a shared approach to growing food. When his family fled Congo for Uganda, his grandmother took with her seeds so that she could grow food for the family.  Here is where his love for cultivation began.

In Jordan, Swedish American inventor and innovator, Simone Giertz, meets Syrian toymaker Mohammad at his workshop, exploring the novel materials and mechanisms he uses and working together to create a remote-controlled helicopter.   

The series was created and produced in partnership with Uncommon Creative Studio and Lief, award-winning multi-disciplinary creatives, to mark last year’s World Refugee Day, on 20 June 2023. The team includes renowned director Alma Har’el as executive producer, Oscar-nominated director Laura Checkoway, internationally acclaimed Jordanian director Mahmoud Al Massad, and British-Ghanaian rising star Curtis Essel. The film scores were overseen by music supervisor Bridget Samuels.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

Pesach is a celebration of freedom, and commemorates the liberation of the Jewish people from slavery. 

President Ramaphosa said: “The Jewish community is an important and deeply valued part of our diverse society. As we reflect on the story of Exodus, let us take this moment to appreciate the freedoms we enjoy and commit ourselves to the value of Tikkun Olam, healing the world.”

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of The Presidency of the Republic of South Africa.

It was time to leave for the hospital. Samueline Razafindravao had intended to give birth at her home in southern Madagascar, but after encountering difficulties, decided to go to her local health centre.

Once there, health staff realized she required urgent care they couldn’t provide – she would have to go to a specialist hospital 200 kilometres away. For that, she needed an ambulance, something rarely available in rural Madagascar.

In recent years, three in five deliveries in Madagascar have occurred at home, many unassisted by skilled birth attendants. These circumstances can put mothers at risk of complications and deadly consequences, especially if emergency obstetric care is hard to reach.

For Ms. Razafindravao, the ambulance ride to the hospital felt like a race against time. “The baby was pushing a lot and then suddenly not moving,” she said.

“I thought I was going to die and lose the baby as well.”

A holistic hospital

After Ms. Razafindravao’s ambulance brought her to the Ambovombe Regional Referral Hospital, she underwent surgery and safely delivered a baby girl.

With its happy ending, her story diverges from that of many other women, according to Dr. Sadoscar Hakizimana, UNFPA’s sexual and reproductive health expert in the region; given the shortage of qualified medical staff, he has also put his skills as a surgeon at the service of the hospital.

“Perhaps 60 to 70 per cent of pregnant women who arrive here have already lost their baby because they have sought medical help too late,” he said. “But we have a 100 per cent success rate of healthy births, either natural or via Caesarean section, for those mothers who arrive on time, as we have a range of care options we can offer them.”

The hospital has two ambulances at its disposal, one of which was provided by UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, with funding from the Government of Japan. With this support, the hospital has developed into a specialist facility offering a range of services, including emergency obstetric and fistula repair surgeries.

Meanwhile, two midwives are on hand to help with delivering babies and provide advice on family planning; incubators are available for premature babies.

Midwife Jeanne Bernadine Rasoanirina said, “In the last week I have delivered three babies and over the past month I attended over 330 ante-natal and postnatal consultations – so there is definitely a demand for services.”

The result of these changes and others have been life saving: According to Dr. Germaine Retofa, the acting regional director for public health in Androy, maternal and infant mortality rates are down.

“We can offer a more holistic approach to health care, which may include maternal health services alongside nutrition advice and care for malnourished children,” she said.

Free care saving futures

Ms. Razafindravao is just one of millions of women who intended to give birth at home in Madagascar in recent years. For her, it was a financial decision: “I was worried about the expense of going to hospital,” she said.

To address constraints like these, the Androy Regional Referral Hospital offers all its care for free – a significant consideration in a country where more than 80 per cent of the population confronts persistent poverty.

The hospital’s services are complemented by other services provided by the UN agencies UNDP, UNICEF, WFP and WHO, which work together to provide medical supplies, nutritional advice and support, care for children and services for people with disabilities.

Back at the hospital, Ms. Razafindravao and her now four-day-old baby girl were doing well on the maternity ward. As a young mother, she was learning how to breastfeed her baby, who she named Fandresena.

Before long, it would be time to make the long journey back home, but this time not in an ambulance called in an emergency.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).