Uganda – Travel Guide At Wikivoyage

Understand

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Capital	Kampala
Currency	Ugandan shilling (UGX)
Population	47.1 million (2021)
Electricity	240 volt / 50 hertz (BS 1363)
Country code	+256
Time zone	UTC+03:00, Africa/Kampala
Emergencies	911 (emergency medical services), 112 (police, fire department), 999 (police, fire department)
Driving side	left
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The term for whites (or other White foreigners) is muzungu (plural Bazungu), and visitors should get used to hearing it shouted out by children in every corner of the country. It is not a derogatory term as such (it means something on the lines of "one who is searching"), so smile and wave in reply - if you can, do this over and over again. Otherwise, ignore.

History

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Evidence of humans living in what is now Uganda stretches back to at least 50,000 years ago, and possibly up to 100,000 years ago, based on stone tools recovered in the area. These people were hunter-gatherers. Between 1,700 and 2,300 years ago, Bantu-speaking populations migrated from central and western Africa to the southern parts of Uganda. The Empire of Kitara in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries was the earliest forms of formal political organization, which was followed by the Bunyoro-Kitara kingdom, and in later centuries, Buganda and Ankole.

Arab traders moved inland from the Indian Ocean coast of East Africa in the 1830s and were the first to bring Islam to the country. They were followed in the 1860s by British explorers searching for the source of the Nile. Protestant missionaries entered Uganda in 1877 and were followed by Catholic missionaries in 1879. The United Kingdom placed the area under the charter of the British East Africa Company in 1888, and ruled it as a protectorate from 1894. As several other territories and chiefdoms were integrated, the final protectorate called Uganda took shape in 1914. From 1900 to 1920, a sleeping sickness epidemic killed more than 250,000 people.

Uganda achieved independence from Britain in 1962, with the first elections held on 1 March 1961. Benedicto Kiwanuka of the Democratic Party became the first Chief Minister. Uganda became a republic the following year, maintaining its Commonwealth membership. In succeeding years, supporters of a centralized state vied with those in favour of a loose federation and a strong role for tribally-based local kingdoms. Political manoeuvring climaxed in February 1966, when Prime Minister Milton Obote suspended the constitution and assumed all government powers, removing the positions of president and vice president. In September 1967, a new constitution proclaimed Uganda a republic, gave the president even greater powers, and abolished the traditional kingdoms.

On 25 January 1971, Obote's government was ousted in a military coup led by the commander of the armed forces, Idi Amin Dada. Amin declared himself "president", dissolved the parliament, and amended the constitution to give himself absolute power. Idi Amin's eight-year rule produced economic decline, social disintegration, and massive human rights violations. The Acholi and Langi ethnic groups were particular targets of Amin's political persecution because they had supported Obote and made up a large part of the army. The ethnic Indian community, long resented for their perceived economic clout, were also targeted by Amin and expelled from Uganda in 1972. In 1978, the International Commission of Jurists estimated that more than 100,000 Ugandans had been murdered during Amin's reign of terror; some authorities place the figure as high as 300,000.

In October 1978, Tanzanian armed forces repulsed an incursion of Amin's troops into Tanzanian territory. The Tanzanian army, backed by Ugandan exiles waged a war against Amin's troops and the Libyan soldiers sent to help him. On 11 April 1979, Kampala was captured, and Amin fled with his remaining forces. This led to the return of Obote, who was deposed once more in 1985 by General Tito Okello. Okello ruled for six months until he was deposed after the so-called "bush war" by the National Resistance Army (NRA) operating under the leadership of the current president, Yoweri Museveni, and various rebel groups, including the Federal Democratic Movement of Andrew Kayiira, and another belonging to John Nkwanga.

Yoweri Museveni has been in power since 1986. In the mid to late 1990s, he was lauded by the West as part of a new generation of African leaders.

Geography

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Uganda is mostly plateau with a rim of mountains and rainforests in the west and savanna in the north. It lies on the southern edge of Lake Victoria and includes many islands.

Climate

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Although generally equatorial, Uganda's climate is not uniform as it varies by altitude, proximity to Lake Victoria and rainfall. Southern Uganda is wetter with rain generally spread throughout the year. At Entebbe on the northern shore of Lake Victoria, most rain falls from the March to June and November to December period. Further to the north a dry season gradually emerges; at Gulu about 120km from the South Sudanese border, November to February is much drier than the rest of the year.

Northeastern Uganda has the driest climate and is prone to droughts in some years. Rwenzori in the southwest on the border with DR Congo receives heavy rain all year round. The south of the country is heavily influenced by one of the world's biggest lakes, Lake Victoria, which contains many islands. It prevents temperatures from varying significantly and increases cloudiness and rainfall.

People

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Uganda is home to several ethnic groups including the Baganda, the largest ethnic group, who comprise just over 15% of the population. The country had a sizable community of 80,000 Indians before they were expelled by Idi Amin in 1972, though some have returned since Amin's overthrow.

Tourist information

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• Uganda website