A dark cloud hovered over the country last week as news emerged of 11 children that were killed in a fire that broke out at Salaama School for the blind. Police are investigating the cause of a fire at the boarding school for visually impaired students that killed the 11 girls, aged four to 13.
The fire at the school in Uganda’s central Mukono district broke out shortly after midnight last Monday, in a girl’s dormitory that was occupied by 17 children.
Kampala deputy police spokesman Luke Owoyesigire said police have deployed a forensics team that will carry out DNA tests before the bodies of the dead children were handed over to family members.
Following the fire, the Ministry of Education and Sports has warned private school owners to take caution over the rampant school fires which could be a result of negative competition.
Speaking during the workshop with school Proprietors of Private Education Institutions Association in Uganda (PPEIAU) at Nakawa headquarters last week, the supervisor of education services in private schools, Paul Malaala, noted that neighbouring schools take advantage of a crisis to admit children from nearby schools. He noted that private schools should stop the negative competition that has claimed children’s lives in the name of tarnishing the image of the competitor.
According to the Police preliminary report of the case, most fires in schools are set deliberately by unknown individuals who target school dormitories.
Between January and July 2022, government registered more than 28 school fires, 25 of which were in private schools, and only 3 were government schools.
Ethiopia cries foul
Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed says there is “heavy foreign interference” in the continuing talks between the government and Tigray administration but remains hopeful a peace pact will be reached.
Speaking to the China Global Television Network (CGTN), Mr Abiy said Ethiopians can solve their matters despite international pressure for a ceasefire.
“Of course, if there are lots of interventions from left and right, it’s very difficult,” Mr Abiy said.
“Ethiopians should understand we can solve our own issues by ourselves.”
He also confirmed the federal army’s capture of the Tigray towns of Shire, Axum and Adwa last month from the rebel Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF).
“We are trying to convince TPLF to respect the law of the land, to respect the constitution and to act as one state in Ethiopia,” he said.
Meanwhile, a spokeswoman for the African Union Commission chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat on Monday said “there was no date limitation” on the talks, according to the AFP news agency.
The negotiations, which began on 25 October in South Africa, continued on Monday although they were initially expected to end on Sunday.
Kenya to deploy in DR Congo
Kenya is deploying the first contingent of a regional peacekeeping force to eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.
President William Ruto will on Wednesday morning preside over a flagging-off ceremony in Nairobi for the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) battalion joining the regional forces.
The Kenyan troops, who will be in DR Congo as part of the East African Community (EAC) force, will help the Congolese army’s efforts to quell the violence in the region.
Some Kenyan troops have already been installing logistical support systems in DR Congo since September in readiness for the planned operations against the rebels.
The EAC agreed on a troop deployment deal to combat rebels early this year.
The Kenyan contingent’s first mission will be to help recapture the border city of Bunagana that was seized by the M23 rebels in June.
DR Congo has consistently accused Rwanda of supporting the M23 group. Kigali has always denied those accusations.
Tanzania deploys army to fight fires
Tanzania’s army has deployed hundreds of troops to help firefighters who have been battling fires on Africa’s highest peak, Mount Kilimanjaro, for close to two weeks now.
Army officials say the Tanzania People’s Defence Forces (TPDF) will co-operate with other agencies and volunteers to ensure the fire is controlled before it causes more damage to vegetation on the mountain.
“Officers and men of TPDF have already arrived in Siha and Mweka areas in Kilimanjaro Region ready to fight the fire,” a statement by the TPDF says.
A BBC team on the slopes of the mountain witnessed some of the soldiers arriving at the two entry points to the mountain on Tuesday.
A series of wildfires have been breaking out in different areas on the mountain, after an initial fire started near a camp along a popular hiking route on 21 October.
Hundreds of people, including firefighters, national park staff, tour guides and civilians, have been battling to put out the fires with little success.
The cause of the fires is not known yet but the government says human activities are most likely to blame.
The government says a prolonged drought, layers of decaying organic material and strong wind are part of the reasons the fire has been hard to control.
Two years ago, a week-long inferno destroyed thousands of hectares of woodland on the mountain’s slopes.
