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Uganda, Africa

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Geography

  • Area: 149,774 square miles; slightly smaller than Oregon.
  • Capital: Kampala
  • Climate: Tropical; generally rainy with two dry season (December to February, June to August); semiarid in northeast.
  • Terrain: mostly plateau with rim of mountains
  • Features: Uganda is landlocked; fertile, well watered country with many lakes and rivers.

 

Current Environmental Issues

Draining of wetlands for agricultural use; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; water hyacinth infestation in Lake Victoria; widespread poaching.

 

People

  • Nationality: Ugandan(s)
  • Population: 34,612,250 (July 2011 est.)
  • Urbanization: 13% of total population (2010)
  • Primary ethnic groups: Baganda 17 %, Banyakole 10%, Basoga 8%, Iteso 6%, Langi 6%, Acholi 5%, Bagisu 5%, Lugbara 4%, Bunyoro 3%, Other 30% (2002 census)
  • Religions: Christian 84%; Muslim 12%; other 3%, none 1%
  • Languages: English is the official language, Ganda or Luganda (most widely used of the Niger-Congo languages, preferred for native language publications in the capital and may be taught in school), other Niger-Congo languages, Nilo-Saharan languages, Swahili and Arabic.
  • Literacy rate: 67% (Male: 77%/ Female: 57.7%)
  • School Life: 11 years
  • Infant mortality rate: 86/1,000 live births
  • Life expectancy: 53 years (Male: 52/ Female: 54) (2011 est.)
  • HIV/AIDs: 1.2 million people living with HIV/AIDS; ranked 9th in the world, approximately 3% of the total Ugandan population.

 

Government & Economy

  • Number of registered political parties: 8
  • Independence: October 9, 1962 (from the UK)
  • Flag Description: black symbolizes the African people, yellow sunshine and vitality, red African brotherhood; the crane was the military badge of Ugandan soldiers under the UK
  • Resources: fertile soils, regular rainfall, copper, cobalt, crude oil, natural gas. 
  • Average annual income per person: $1,300 (2010 est.)
  • Population below poverty line: 35% (2001 est.)

 

 

Transnational Issues

Uganda is subject to armed fighting among hostile ethnic groups, rebels, armed gangs, militias, and various government forces that extend across its borders; Uganda hosts 209,860 Sudanese, 27,560 Congolese and 19,710 Rwandan refugees, while Ugandan refugees as well as members of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) seek shelter in southern Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s

Garamba national park; LRA forces have also attacked Kenyan villages across the border.

  • Refuges (Country of Origin): 215,700 (Sudan); 28,880 (Democratic Republic of Congo); 24,900 (Rwanda)
  • IDPs (Internally Displaced Persons): 1.27 million (350,000 IDPs returned in 2006 following ongoing peace talks between the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) and the Government of Uganda) (2007)

 

Culture

Food: Most people eat two meals a day: lunch and supper. Breakfast is often a cup of tea or porridge. Popular dishes are: Matoke (a staple made from bananas, millet bread, cassava (tapioca or manioc), sweet potatoes, check and beef stews, and freshwater fish. Other foods include white potatoes, yams, corn, cabbage, pumpkin, tomatoes, millet, peas, sorghum, beans, groundnuts (peanuts), goat meat and milk. Oranges, papayas, lemons, and pineapples are also grown and consumed. (www.everyculture.com)

 

Music: see YouTube.com