BASIC
INFORMATION
Formal
Name: Republic of Uganda.
Short
Form: Uganda.
Term
for Citizens: Ugandan(s).
Capital:
Kampala.
Date
of Independence: October
9, 1962, from Britain.
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GEOGRAPHY
Size:
241,139 square kilometers, including 44,000
square kilometers of open water or swampland.
Topography:
Mostly plateau that slopes gently toward
north, with central downwarp occupied by
Lake Kyoga. Mountains on east and west.
Highest peak of Mount Stanley is Margherita
(5,113 meters). Approximately one-half of
Lake Victoria (10,200 square kilometers)
lies within Uganda and is source of Nile
River.
Climate:
Equatorial climate, moderated by altitude.
Rainfall varies from more than 2,100 millimeters
around Lake Victoria to about 500 millimeters
in northeast. Vegetation heaviest in south;
thins to savanna and dry plains in northeast.
Population:
In 1990, 16.9 million (government estimate);
annual growth rate more than 3.2 percent,
increasingly tempered by impact of acquired
immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS). Nearly
one-half population under age fifteen. Nearly
10 percent urban, almost half in Kampala.
Density varies from more than 120 inhabitants
per square kilometer in far southeast and
southwest to fewer than 30 inhabitants per
square kilometer in northcentral region.
Languages:
Three major language families found in Uganda--Bantu,
Central Sudanic, and Nilotic. Lake Kyoga
rough boundary between Bantu-speakers in
south and Nilotic- and Central Sudanic-speakers
of north. Official language: English. Swahili
and Arabic also widely spoken.
Religion:
66 percent Christian, equally divided between
Roman Catholics and Protestants; largest
Protestant denomination Anglican (Episcopal).
About 15 percent Muslim. Remainder traditional
or no religion.
Education:
Education not compulsory but highly regarded.
Four levels: primary of seven years; lower
secondary of three or four years; upper
secondary of two years; and postsecondary
consisting of university, teachers' colleges,
or commercial training. Pupils share expenses
with central government on primary and lower
secondary levels; thereafter, education
free. 1989 primary enrollment more than
2.5 million; secondary, 265,000. Adult literacy
rate 50 percent or more.
Health:
Large number of infectious diseases, including
measles, pertussis, respiratory tract infections,
anemia, tetanus, malaria, and tuberculosis.
Incidence of AIDS quite high, reaching epidemic
proportions in southern areas. Uganda had
20,000 hospital beds, more than 600 health
centers, and about 700 doctors in late 1980s.
Low expenditures on health care and facilities.
Life expectancy in 1989 about fifty-three
years.
For
more information please visit
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