Uganda, officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. The country is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the south by Tanzania. The southern part of the country includes a substantial portion of Lake Victoria, shared with Kenya and Tanzania. Uganda is in the African Great Lakes region, lies within the Nile basin, and has a varied but generally modified equatorial climate. As of 2023, it has a population of around 49.6 million, of which 8.5 million live in the capital and largest city of Kampala.
Uganda is named after the Buganda kingdom, which encompasses a large portion of the south of the country, including the capital Kampala, and whose language Luganda is widely spoken throughout the country. From 1894, the area was ruled as a protectorate by the United Kingdom, which established administrative law across the territory. Uganda gained independence from the UK on 9 October 1962. The period since then has been marked by violent conflicts, including an eight-year-long military dictatorship led by Idi Amin.
The official language is English, although the Constitution states that "any other language may be used as a medium of instruction in schools or other educational institutions or for legislative, administrative, or judicial purposes as may be prescribed by law." Luganda, a central region-based language, is widely spoken across the Central and South Eastern regions of the country, and several other languages are also spoken including Ateso, Lango, Acholi, Runyoro, Runyankole, Rukiga, Luo, Rutooro, Samia, Jopadhola, and Lusoga. In 2005 Swahili, which is foreign and so viewed as being neutral, was proposed as Uganda's second official language, but this has yet to be ratified by parliament. However, in 2022 Uganda decided to make Swahili a mandatory subject in the school curriculum.
Uganda's current president is Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, who took power in January 1986 after a protracted six-year guerrilla war. Following constitutional amendments that removed term limits for the president, he was able to stand and was elected president in the 2011, 2016 and 2021 general elections. (Full article...)
A Lango, Obote studied at the Busoga College and Makerere University. In 1956, he joined the Uganda National Congress (UNC) and later split away by founding the Uganda People's Congress (UPC) in 1960. After Uganda gained independence from British colonial rule of the United Kingdom in 1962, Obote was sworn in as prime minister in a coalition with the Kabaka Yekka, whose leader Mutesa II was named president. Due to a rift with Mutesa over the 1964 Ugandan lost counties referendum and later getting implicated in a gold smuggling scandal, Obote overthrew him in 1966 and declared himself president, establishing a dictatorial regime with the UPC as the only official party in 1969. As president, Obote implemented ostensibly socialist policies, under which the country suffered from severe corruption and food shortages. (Full article...)
Image 11Forest Landscape Integrity Index 2019 map of Uganda. Forest condition measured by degree of anthropogenic modification. 0 = Most modification; 10= Least. Created in Google Earth Engine. National boundaries = LSIB 2017: Large Scale International Boundary Polygons, Detailed, US Officer of the Geographer (from Uganda)
Articles here focus upon aspects of the Uganda–Tanzania War. These are all Good articles that meet a core set of high editorial standards.
The Battle of Karuma Falls was one of the last battles in the Uganda–Tanzania War, fought between Tanzania and Uganda Army troops loyal to Idi Amin on 17 May 1979. Soldiers of the Tanzania People's Defence Force attacked Ugandan forces at the bridge over the Nile River at Karuma Falls. Tanzania's 205th Brigade was tasked with advancing from Masindi to Gulu, taking a route which passed over the Karuma Falls Bridge. The brigade assaulted the crossing on the morning of 17 May with tanks and artillery and one of its battalions ran over the bridge to attack the Ugandan positions. The Ugandans destroyed a TPDF tank, delaying the Tanzanians long enough to board buses and retreat to Gulu. The Tanzanians secured Karuma Falls before capturing Gulu several days later. (Full article...)
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