Uganda is an elegant adventure from the moment you land at Entebbe’s modern and efficient international airport, with its breathtaking equatorial location on the forest shore of island-strewn Lake Victoria, it is clear that Uganda is no ordinary safari destination. Dominated by an expansive golf course leading down to the lake shore, and a century –old botanical garden alive with the chatter of acrobatic monkeys and colorful tropical birds, Entebbe itself is the obviously urban of all comparably sized African towns. Then, just 40km distant, sprawled across seven hills there is the Kampala. The bright modern feel of this bustling, cosmopolitan city reflects the ongoing economic growth and political stability that has characterized Uganda since 1986, and is complemented by the sloping spaciousness and runaway greenery of its green setting.
For the visitor, Uganda’s reputation as “Africa’s Friendliest Country” offers exceptional diversity combining some of the best features that Africa has to offer. The country lies at the overlap between the tropical East African Savannah and the West African rain-forest zones. It is a country blessed with contrasting physical features ranging from extensive plains with undulating hills to snow-capped mountains, waterfalls, meandering rivers and spectacular flora and fauna. Seven of Africa’s plant kingdoms are represented in Uganda, which is more than any other country on the continent. In addition, Uganda ranks among the top ten in the world in terms of the diversity of its mammal groups. For example, by comparison with the UK, Uganda supports five times more bird species, six times as many mammals, ten times as many reptiles and amphibians and three times the number of plant species.
Uganda is also the source of the Great River Nile and Africa’s largest fresh water lake, the Lake Victoria. Such is Uganda’s potential in Africa that the former British Premier, Sir Winston Churchill after his many journeys across the length and width of the African continent, concluded that the country (Uganda) was indeed the Pearl of Africa. His verdict did not only describe the wealth of Uganda’s resources, but also the peaceful environment and social system in which the people of Uganda lived. Uganda welcomes you.
Uganda Fact File
Time
Uganda is GMT +3 hrs.
ADMINISTRATIVE DIVISIONS: 111 districts across four administrative regions.
AREA: 93,065 sq km ( land: 76,101 sq km, water 16,965 sq km)
BORDERS: 2,698 km ( Democratic Republic of Congo 765km, Kenya 933km, Rwanda 169km, Sudan 435km, Tanzania 396km) or 1,676 miles.
BANKING HOURS: Mon to Fri 8.30 am to 6.00 pm; Sat 9.00 am to 4.00pm
BUSINESS HOURS: Mon to Fri 8.30 am to 5.30 pm.
CAPITAL: Kampala
CLIMATE: Tropical, rainy seasons, March to May, and September to November; dry seasons, December to February and mid June to mid August. Mean annual temperatures range from about 16 C ( 61 F) in the southwestern highlands to 25 C (77 F ) in the northwest; but in the north east, temperatures exceed 30 C ( 80 F) about 254 days per year.
CURRENCY: The shilling ( UGX).
ELEVATIONS: HIGHEST point ; margherita peak on mount Stanley at 5,110 metres.
ETHNIC GROUPS: Buganda, iteso, Basoga, Banyankole, Banyarwanda, Bakiga, Lango ,Acholi, Lugbara, Banyoro, Batoro, Karamojong and Europeans.
ELECTRICITY: 240 VOLTS ac 50 hz. SQUARE-PIN PLUGS MOSTLY USED.
EXCHANGE RATE; UGX 2350 per US dollar (2011).
HISTORY: Uganda gained independence from Britain in 1962, maintaining its commonwealth membership.
INDUSTRIES: Cotton, coffee, tea, sugar , tobacco and textiles.
GEOGRAPHY: Uganda is landlocked. The south of the country includes a substantial portion of lake Victoria.
LANGUAGES: the official language is English, although many other languages are spoken in Uganda.
PUBLIC HOLIDAYS: 1 JANUARY, 26 January ( liberation day), 8 march( international women’s day), good Friday, easter Monday, 1 may ( labour’s day), 3 June( martyrs day), 9 June ( national heroes day), 30 August ( eid-al-fitr/ end of Ramathan ), 9 October (independence day), 6 november ( Eid-al-Adha/ Feast of the sacrifice), 25 December (Christmas day), 26 December ( Boxing day).
POPULATION: 33.8 million ( 2009 estimate)
INTERNATIONAL DIALING CODE: +256
TIME: GMT +3.
RELIGIONS: Christian 84%, muslim 12%, other 1%,none 0.7% ( 2002 cencus)
TOPOGRAPHY: The greater part of Uganda consists of a plateau. Along the western border are the Rwenzori mountains. The eastern frontier is dominated by mount Elgon, while the western rift valley runs from north to south through the western half of the country.
Location
Uganda is located in the heart of Sub-Saharan Africa and lies astride the equator. Officially called Republic of Uganda it is found in East Africa with a population of 26,404,543 at a growth rate of 3.0%. It is bordered by Sudan in the north, DRC (Kinshasa) in the west, Kenya in the east and Tanzania and Rwanda in the south with Lake Victoria forming part of the southern border.
The total area of the country is about 241,039 square kilometres of which about 43,942 sq. km are covered by fresh water bodies and swamps. Uganda is a country strategically positioned within East and Central Africa, a region that includes some of Africa’s most economically important and resource rich countries with a substantial market and great future potential.
The country is land-locked and borders the Sudan to the north, the Democratic Republic of Congo to the west, Kenya to the east, and Tanzania and Rwanda to the south.
Tourism in Uganda
Tourism in Uganda is focused on Uganda’s landscape and wildlife. Uganda has a very diverse culture, landscape, flora, and fauna. In the late 1960s, Uganda had a prosperous tourist industry with 100,000 visitors each year. Tourism was the country’s fourth largest earner of foreign exchange.
The tourist industry ended in the early 1970s because of political instability. By the late 1980s, Uganda’s political climate had stabilised and conditions were suitable for reinvestment in Uganda’s tourist industry.
However, the loss of charismatic wildlife in previously popular safari parks such as Murchison Falls National Park and Queen Elizabeth National Park prevented these parks from competing with similar tourist attractions in neighboring Kenya and Tanzania. Uganda’s tourist industry instead promoted its tropical forests.
The keystone of the new industry became Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. With more than 300 Mountain Gorillas, Bwindi Impenetrable National Park has approximately half of the world’s population of Mountain Gorillas.