BASIC STATISTICS

• Full country name: Republic of Uganda

• Area: 237,000 so. km. (92,300 so. ma.)

• Population: 22,804,973

• Terrain: mostly fertile plateau (average elevation 4,000 feet/1,220 meters) rimmed by mountains

• Capital city: Kampala; also the largest city

• People: Baganda, Lingo, Equally, Pygmy, European, Asian, Arab

• Languages: English (official national language taught in grade schools, used in courts of law and by most newspapers and some radio broadcasts), Panda or Luanda (most widely used of the Niger-Congo languages, preferred for native language publications and may be taught in school), other Niger-Congo languages, Nil-Sahara languages, Swahili, Arabic

• Religion: Roman Catholic (33%), Protestant (33%), indigenous beliefs (18%), Muslim (16%)

• Government: Republic President: Yoweri Museveni, who was directly elected for a five-year term.

• Major industries: Coffee, sugar, brewing, cotton, tea, textiles, tobacco

• Major trading partners: Spain, Germany, the Netherlands, France, Italy, Kenya, UK., Japan, India, South Africa.

HISTORY

Archaeology tells us that prehistoric man walked in what is now Uganda, and many sites have been excavated showing habitation over the centuries. One of the more recent excavations is at Cabaret near Lake Albert, where traces of village life going back a thousand years have been found. By the 700's and 800's, the people had developed agriculture and the use of iron, and by 1200, they had a simple form of government headed by chiefs. Indigenous kingdoms popped up in the 14th century. Among them were the Baganda, Beanery, Too, Ankle and Busoga.

Over the following centuries, the Baganda people created the dominant kingdom. But, by the time Arab traders came to the area around 1850 the Ganda had formed a rich and powerful kingdom, called Buganda. This kingdom had a large army and a highly developed system of government. Explorers and missionaries from Great Britain arrived during the 1860's and 1870's, the most famous of which was the Anglo-American explorer Henry Stanley, who came in search of Dr. David Livingstone with whom little had been heard since 1866, when he went to search for the source of the Nile. Stanley reached Zanzibar in January 1871 and proceeded to Lake Tanganyika, Livingstone's last known location. There he found the sick explorer, greeting him with the famous words 'Dr. Livingstone, I presume?" When Stanley arrived in Uganda he was welcomed by king Kabaka Mutesa I (ruled 1852-1884) and reported the king's eagerness to understand Christianity. Soon both Protestant and Roman Catholic missionaries were working in Buganda. When Livingstone died in 1873, Stanley resolved to take up his search for the source of the Nile. His epic journey is described in "Through the Dark Continent."

After the Treaty of Berlin in 1890, Buganda, Kenya and the islands of Zanzibar and Pemba became British protectorates. The colonial administrators introduced coffee and cotton as cash crops and adopted a policy of indirect rule, giving the traditional kingdoms considerable autonomy, but favoring the recruitment of Buganda tribes people for the civil service. A few thousand Bugandan chiefs received huge estates from the British, on the basis of which they made fortunes. Other tribes people, unable to get jobs in the colonial administration or make inroads in the Buganda-dominated commercial sector, were forced to seek other ways of gaining influence. Thus were planted the seeds for the intertribal conflicts that were to tear Uganda apart in later years.

In 1962 Uganda gained independence from Great Britain and Milton Oboe, a school teacher from the Lingo tribe became president. But, tribal warfare caused a state of near anarchy until Oboe was overthrown by the Uganda Army in 1971, which then set up a military government. Major General Id Akin Dada, commander of the armed forces, headed the new government as president. However, Amens crazed dictatorship destroyed Uganda's economy and social fabric. the country's prolific wildlife was machine-gunned by soldiers for meat, ivory and skins, and the tourism industry evaporated. Over two million Ugandans murdered during Amen's eight year reign of terror. Uganda also suffered intense religious persecution during his dictatorship.

In 1978, a border dispute led to fighting between Uganda and Tanzania to the south. In 1979, Tanzanian troops, aided by Ugandans opposed to Akin, overthrew the government and took control. Milton Oboe returned from exile in Tanzania to an enthusiastic welcome in many parts of the country and swept to victory in a blatantly rigged election.

Shortly after Oboe became president in 1980, a guerrilla army opposed to his tribally biased government was formed in western Uganda. It was led by You're Museveni, who, like Oboe, had lived in exile in Tanzania during Amens reign. From a group of 27 grew a guerrilla force of about 20,000, many of them orphaned teenagers. In the early days few gave the guerrillas, known as the National Resistance Army (NRA), much of a chance, but by the time Oboe was ousted and Oakley had taken over, the NRA controlled a large slice of western Uganda. Fighting proceeded in earnest between the NRA and Oakley government troops, and by January 1986 it was clear that Equalize days were numbered. The NRA launched an all-out offensive and took the capital.

Despite Massiveness Marxist leanings, he proved to be a pragmatic leader, appointing several arch-conservatives to his cabinet and making an effort to reassure the country's influential Catholic community. Meanwhile, almost 300,000 Uganda refugees returned from across the Sudanese border. The economy took a turn for the better and aid and investment began returning to the country. Museveni won elections in 1994 and again in 1996 and 2001. The 1996 elections were seen as Uganda's final step on the road to rehabilitation and the country was rewarded by a visit from US President Bill Clinton in 1998, despite its blemished human rights record. In August 1999, Uganda signed onto the Congo peace agreement.

Uganda has come a long way from the days under Edit Akin, and in many ways reflects the new face of emerging Africa. There is now religious freedom and economic prosperity. Today, professing Christians comprise 95% of the population. Under leadership of President Museveni, Uganda has been transformed into a politically stable country with a secure democratic government and a dynamic economy based on free market principles. Although Museveni has won praise among Western governments for cutting government spending and urging African self-reliance, he has also come in for criticism over Uganda's involvement in conflicts in neighboring Sudan, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. For the most part, however, Uganda has become a model for other developing African nations in terms of human rights, economic development, and political stabilization. Moreover, Uganda has greatly reduced the HIV infection rate and the number of deaths from AIDS, which has ravaged much of its adult population, leaving orphans with little means of support for the future. In Uganda, there are 1.2 million children who have lost at least one parent to AIDS, a figure that is unfortunately increasing.

Against this background Uganda sits as a critically strategic nation in Africa both economically and spiritually. Saving Uganda's children and bringing up a generation that is healthy, educated and filled with love for Jesus will enable them to transform their own country and reach out to the rest of Africa.

Uganda has one of the fastest growing economies in Africa and is one of Africa's most stable and prosperous countries. Though largely flat, the country is high, with an average altitude of over 3,280 feet (1000 meters). The bulk of the country enjoys a tropical climate tempered by altitude. The hottest months are from December to February, when it gets up to 84 F (29 C). The rainy seasons in the south are from April to May and October to November, the wettest month being April. In the north the wet season is from April to October.

Below: Kampala, the modern, bustling capital of Uganda

The White Nile, the most important source of the Nile River, the longest river in the world (4,184 miles/6695 km), begins in Uganda. But, for centuries the real source remained a mystery that baffled indigenous populations and explorers alike. Noted Greek astronomer and geographer Ptolemy (c.100-70 AD) attempted to map the immortal waterway. In the 18th and 19th centuries many European explorers dreamed of locating the source of the waterway that Egyptians saw as the source of life. Many tried, and many died in the attempt.

Eventually it was discovered that the Nile is actually comprised of several small streams that form two main tributaries joining at Khartoum in Sudan: the Blue Nile, which starts at Lake Tan in the highlands of western Ethiopia, and the aforementioned White Nile, originating in Burundi and Uganda, where it flows out of Lake Victoria.

Below, Lake Victoria at Jinja, Uganda's second largest city

Below: White Nile River, here known as the Victoria Nile, flowing out of Lake Victoria

On leaving Lake Victoria at the site of the now-submerged Owen Falls, the Nile rushes for 300 miles/483 km over rapids and cataracts, at first northwest and then west, until it enters Lake Albert. The section between the two lakes is called the Victoria Nile. The river leaves the northern end of Lake Albert as the Albert Nile, flows through northern Uganda, and at the Sudan border becomes the Bahr al Jabal. It then continues through Sudan and Egypt, finally emptying into the Mediterranean Sea after a 4100 mile/6600 km journey. Ten countries make up the Nile River Basin: Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda.

Uganda is extraordinarily diverse in natural resources. Within its borders are fresh water lakes, elevated plains, swamps, arid depressions, high, snowcapped mountains, forests, woodland and grassland, all supporting an incredible range of plant and animal life. Uganda is, in fact, 2nd in Africa and 9th in the world inmammal species and bird life (the country is home to half of Africa's bird species).

Below, rolling hills near Kabale in extreme southwestern Uganda

 

Travelers are drawn to Uganda by the extraordinary diversity of its natural resources. Owing to a variety of habitats with abundant grass, Uganda supports an incredible range of wildlife, including mountain gorillas and chimpanzees. In order to protect these invaluable resources, the Uganda National Parks department was established in 1952. Presently it manages 10 parks. Here are some highlights:

Rwenzori Mountains National Park, in western Uganda, comprises the main part of the Rwenzori mountain range and stretches for sixty miles along the Ugandan-Congo border. The legendary "Mountains of the Moon" were first described by the celebrated 2nd century AD Greek geographer Ptolemy. Mount Stanley, named after the famed explorer who first saw the mountain during his expedition in 1887, is Uganda's highest point and Africa's third highest peak after Mount Kilimanjaro (19,344 feet/5,896 meters) and Mount Kenya (17,057 feet/5,198 meters). Also called Margherita Peak, it was first climbed in 1906 by an Italian expedition, who subsequently named it for Queen Margherita of Italy. After reaching the summit, one Australian climber recently commented: "I am virtually on the equator, I have never been as cold as this before, I have mild frost bite in my toes, and I can see lush steamy jungles below me."

 

The glacial summits of the Rwenzori (meaning "rainmaker") are enshrouded in cloud and midst for much of the year. They were formed when violent tectonic activity forced together two halves of the African continent. Located near the equator, these volcanic mountains form part of the western branch of the East African Rift System. On the eastern border are several extinct volcanoes, including Mount Elgon. The park offers a plentiful habitat to several primate species, including chimpanzee, and other mammals such as elephant, bushbuck, hyrax and leopard.

Below: Almost constant cloud cover hugs the peaks of the Rwenzori Mountains, whose snow-capped peaks rise to a height of 16,763 feet (5,109 meters.

 

Below: Altitude, high rainfall and almost constant cloud-cover with drenching mists nourish prolific plant life in Rwenzori Mountains National Park

Below, Mount Stanley/Margherita Peak, Uganda's highest peak

Kidepo Valley National Park - This spectacular park has unsurpassed scenery. Isolated in the extreme northeastern corner of Uganda, the Kidepo has a great altitude change, with wide climatic conditions supporting diverse plant life. The landscape is studded with small hills and rocky outcrops from which spectacular views are obtained. The park has two major game viewing loops and it is the only park in Uganda where zebra and giraffe can be seen together. Other animals with a very high chance of being viewed include lions, the rare white buffalo, cheetah, kudu, bush baby, baboon, oryx, elephant and much more. The park also boasts 465 species of birds, including ostrich and Kori bustard, which are found nowhere else.

Below: A pair of giraffes in Kidepo Valley National Park

 

Murchison Falls National Park is one of the most spectacular in Uganda, and indeed in the whole of Africa. It is also the largest game park in the country with the most intense concentration of animals along the Nile River. Passenger boats steer from shore to shore, where hippos can be counted in the hundreds. Every little bay seems to be occupied with their bubbling and snorting sounds. On sandbanks huge crocodiles bask in the sun, and along the shores one can often spot elephants, giraffes, buffaloes, etc. The major focus of interest, however, is the birds, which can be observed all around in the swampy reeds, the sandy beaches, or the huge trees along the Nile.

 

The Victoria Nile flows out of Lake Victoria into Lake Albert, and from there into the White Nile. Twenty miles east of Lake Albert, its colossal volume of water forces its way through a cleft in the rocks little more than twenty feet (7 meters) wide before dropping 131 feet (40 meters) in a series of three great cascades called Murchison Falls (below). After exploding through this narrow gap, the Nile becomes a placid river whose banks are thronged with hippos and crocodiles, waterbucks and buffaloes. Other park wildlife includes lions, leopards, elephants, giraffes, hartebeests, oribis, Uganda kobs, chimpanzees, and many bird specie

	Mother hippo and her baby

Queen Elizabeth National Park - The second largest national park in Uganda, it lies north and south of the equator in southwest Uganda. Contiguous with Kibale National Park and Parc Nationale des Virunga in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Queen Elizabeth Park includes a wetland site and an important bird area, with 568 of Uganda's 1017 species of birds (over a quarter of Africa's bird species), more than any other park in Africa. Here you may see crater lakes filled with huge flocks of flamingos. You can also spot soaring eagles and perching vultures. Here, too, you can view lions, elephants and the giant forest hog. In its lakes you'll see hippos and kingfishers. Any visitor will to be amazed by the enormous diversity of God's creation. It's simply a visual feast.

 

Bwindi National Park - Located in the southwestern tip of Uganda, Bwindi National Park is true African jungle, with dense undergrowth, vines and other vegetation. The lowland rain forest and montane forest vegetation constantly struggles to reach heights that will allow it to receive more light. Huge trees are festooned with creepers and parasitic plants such as mistletoe and orchids. Giant thickets of bamboo thrive in the humid atmosphere and, where sunlight breaks though, the elegant heliconia, or lobster claw, spreads its colorful petals.

 

Amongst the dense vegetation the Colobus Monkey jumps from branch to branch, chattering its warning to its fellows hidden by the foliage. Chimpanzees, in families of 20 or 30, make the rounds, searching for fruit and edible plants. As you walk among the shadows of the leafy canopy, this ages-old rain forest reveals the smells and sounds of Africa. Bwindi also encompasses one of the last remaining habitats of the mountain gorilla, and is home to half the surviving mountain gorillas in the world an estimated 320  individuals.                                                                                      Wandering elephants in Queen Elizabeth National Park

 

Without doubt, the first impression of this dense jungle is its almost audible silence. Jungle creatures are very, very shy, but, as you pick your way along the trail, through the dense undergrowth, you'll realize that the jungle is very much alive. Thousands of living organisms are discreetly watching and waiting while you pass through their protective home. From time to time, the complete tranquility will be shattered by a darting forest bird or group of chattering monkeys leaping through the stands of ancient trees, disturbing the secretive residents and setting up a chain reaction. Now, the ever-wary jungle comes to colorful and noisy life for a moment, until silence returns once again. Uganda has five other National Parks. Together the country's ten parks provide a complete cross section of Uganda's wildlife. In character each is blessed with a diversity of flora and fauna, which gives a totally different feel from the others.

• THE UGANDAN PEOPLE

• The contrasts between the various peoples of Uganda reflect the variety of surroundings and are demonstrated in the multiplicity of cultures traditions and lifestyles. Uganda has been created by the union of many peoples with their own traditional lands, customs, languages, dances, dress and ways of life inherited from their ancestors. They now live together as one people, proud to be Ugandans.

• The largest cultural group are the Baganda people, whose kingdom has always been influential in Ugandan affairs. Amongst the ethnic groups are many others that include those in the the Kingdom of Toro, the Banyankole, the Acholi, Basoga and Lugbara. Religious tolerance is an important part of present-day Uganda. Christians, Muslims, Jews, Hindus and others all live in harmony, free to practice their own religion.

About 90% of Uganda's inhabitants live in rural areas. Approximately 70% of the people speak one of the Bantu languages. English is the country's official language, but Swahili is widely spoken in commercial centers.

A quick lesson in Swahili, one of the languages of Uganda... Learn some new words.

About two thirds of the people are Christian; the rest either follow traditional religious beliefs or are Muslim.

Below, typical rural kitchen in Uganda

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