Uganda has made considerable advances politically and economically since the era of dictatorship, violence and hardship that marked much of the 1970s and 1980s. It has seen annual economic growth of 7 to 8 per cent in the past 10 years. The discovery of oil reserves in the west of the country should give the economy an additional boost.
The country has also made progress towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals. It is close to halving poverty and has been quite successful in promoting gender equality and expanding access to information and communication technologies. Moreover, primary school gross enrolment rate has increased and the country may achieve the target for combating HIV/AIDS, malaria and other communicable diseases.
The capital is Kampala, which has a population of just under 1.5 million. The country itself has a population of around 31 million. It is divided into 112 districts, sub-divided into counties. Within these lie 6 traditional Bantu kingdoms, which enjoy a degree of cultural autonomy and influence. This is beside a number of tribal chieftaincies elsewhere in the country.
It has been a long journey since independence from British colonial rule in 1962. The first Prime Minister, Milton Obote, was toppled in 1971 by the Commander of the Ugandan Army, Idi Amin. Under his regime during the following eight years several hundred thousand people were killed or expelled from the country. Idi Amin was forced from power in 1979. Seven years later, Yoweri Museveni and his National Resistance Movement seized power after a successful guerrilla war. He began gradually restoring democracy in the 1990s and in 2005 held a referendum in which the Ugandan people voted overwhelmingly to restore multi-party politics.
Uganda has been building strong relations in the region, notably forming the East African Community with Kenya, Tanzania, Burundi and Rwanda in 2000. It also helps keep peace in the region with the largest contribution to the African Union Mission in Somalia.
In July 2010 Uganda became a victim of a terrorist attack when a bomb explosion in Kampala killed 76 people and left many others injured. In December 2010 in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, 40 people were injured in a grenade attack on a bus bound for Kampala.
The Lords Resistance Army, which caused widespread insecurity and atrocities in northern Uganda for more than 20 years, has left the country and is now based in eastern DRC, the Central African Republic and Southern Sudan.
Uganda is located on the East African Plateau, west of Kenya. The altitude of the plateau averages about 1,100 metres (3,600 ft) above sea level. Uganda is landlocked, but has many lakes, including the largest, Lake Victoria, whose waters are shared with Kenya and Tanzania in the east and south east. Southern Sudan lies to the north, the Democratic Republic of Congo to the west and Rwanda to the south.
Uganda sits on the equator and has an equatorial climate tempered by altitude. December to February are the hottest months, with the heat averaging around 29°C (84°F) during the day and cooler temperatures in the mountains. The rainy seasons in the south are from March to May and October to November. In the north the wet season is from April to October. The source of the White Nile River is in Uganda. It converges with the Blue Nile River in Sudan to form the Nile River.
Uganda
country profile and political background
