Masindi District has lost approximately 30 per cent of its wetland cover due to degradation, with only 70 per cent remaining, a district official has revealed. Simon Akweteireho, the Wetland Management and Conservation Specialist at Masindi District Local Government, said wetlands in the district were increasingly under pressure from rapid urbanisation, population growth and the expansion of economic activities, including Read More …
Hoima City – Environmental activists have called on government, through its environmental agencies, to remove paints containing lead from the Ugandan market to protect the environment and public health. The call was made by Mr. Peter Akugizibwe Araali, the Executive Director of Western Media for Environment and Conservation (WEMECO), a non-profit media network of environmental journalists working in the Albertine Read More …
As Uganda joins the world for International Lead Poisoning Prevention Week, the head of NEMA says the country’s rules on lead paint are strong. The hard part, he admits, is catching the people who break them. KAMPALA. “My eye cannot differentiate between 30 and 40 microns.” Dr. Barirega Akankwasah, Executive Director of the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA), is talking Read More …
Our ED, Peter Akugizibwe Araali, interacts with NEMA Executive Director Dr. Barirega Akankwasah during a recent visit by WEMECO and its media partners to NEMA to discuss progress in enforcing regulatory frameworks on lead use in Uganda ahead of International Lead Poisoning Prevention Week, taking place this month.
As firewood becomes harder to find close to their homes, women say they are forced to walk longer distances to collect it.
By Nelson Byaruhanga Margret Atuhairwe, 64, collects water from a dugout hole on the banks of a seasonal river called Kamukule in Kigwera Southeast, Buliisa district. It is the water they use for cooking, bathing, and washing utensils at home. She has to fetch as many jerrycans as possible in less than an hour’s time because the brown running water Read More …
As Uganda participates in the global climate summit in Belém, Brazil, three Ugandan organisations-Fem Earth Organisation, Western Media for Environment and Conservation (WEMECO) and Liberty Pro Bono Initiative, are calling on world leaders, climate financiers and the Government of Uganda to take urgent, inclusive and gender-responsive action to ensure that global climate decisions deliver real benefits for the country’s most Read More …
Most paints where you see the painters using paraffin as a mixture contain lead chemicals which have long term effects on human health especially children, says Mr Peter Akugizibwe, the Executive Director (ED) for Western Media for Environmental Conservation (WEMECO). During a radio talk show held as part of the International Lead Poisoning Prevention Wekk in Hoima city, Mr Akugizibwe elaborated Read More …
As the world marks International Lead Poisoning Prevention Week from 19–25 October 2025 under the theme “No Safe Level: Act Now to End Lead Exposure”, Uganda faces a harsh truth. While the global community is coming together to end all lead exposure, toxic paints continue to coat the walls of our homes, schools, and playgrounds, silently putting children’s health at Read More …
Plastic pollution is not only a problem for oceans and wildlife. It may also be affecting the very food we eat. A new study highlights how nanoplastics can penetrate crops, raising questions about food safety and human health.
