Uganda lies between the two arms of the Great Rift Valley in East Africa . It is crossed by the Equator. It is roughly the same size as Great Britain having an area of 241,139 sq. km. Of this 17% sq km is made up of swamps and open fresh water bodies, 12% forest reserves and game parks. It is bordered by Kenya to the East, Sudan to the North, DRC to the West and Tanzania and Rwanda to the south.
Uganda Facts
Country: Republic of Uganda
Land Area: 236,580 sq. km
Population: Approximately 33 million
Capital: Kampala
Time Zone: GMT +3 hrs
Where is Uganda
Uganda is a land locked country located in East Africa bordering Tanzania, Rwanda, Kenya, South Sudan and Democratic republic of Congo. Uganda covers an area of 236000 square kilometers, lying along the equator, which makes her climate tropical with two seasons; dry and wet seasons. The country has diverse landscape, which range from mountains, plain fields, water bodies with 18% of the land area covered by water bodies which includes swamps, rivers and lakes and 24% covered by forests.
Uganda is a naturally endowed country with better climate throughout the year, mountains which include Mt.Rwenzori, Mt.Elgon, Mt. Sabinyo, Mt.Muhabura, Mt.Moroto among others. The country also has a lot of forest cover with major tropical forests including Immaramagambo forest, Mabira Forest, Kibale Forest, Budongo forest, Karinzu forest, Mpanga forest, Bwindi Forest among others.
Uganda has many wildlife National parks which include Kidepo Forest national park, Murchison Falls National park, Kibale Forest National park, Queen Elizabeth National park, Bwindi impenetrable Forest National park, Mgahinga National park and Lake Mburo National park. Of the most thought after tourist attraction in Uganda are the mountain gorillas which can only be found in Uganda Rwanda and DR Congo with more than half of the mountain goillas living in Uganda. In trying to understand Uganda’s tourism industry, many questions are asked and some of the questions include;
– Why is Uganda called the pearl of Africa?
Uganda is called the pearl of Africa because of her natural wonders and beauty throughout the year. Uganda’s landscape with a mixture of plain fields and mountains, water bodies which includes lakes, rivers, streams, waterfalls, the great weather, the forest cover, great people and wildlife all make up Uganda’s beauty which is easily experienced from the time one lands at the airport until he/she departs.
Over the years, many Europeans explorers such as Speke, Stanley visited the country and were always amazed by the beauty of this land locked country Uganda which had amazing features that were so out standing. It was until 1906 that Winston Churchill popularized Uganda as a “Pearl of Africa” in his book titled “My African Journey” having been amazed by the beauty of the country after his visit.
The country has lots of wildlife game parks, waterfalls, Mountains, lots of bird species, very hospitable people that is comprised of 56 tribes, many water bodies which include lakes, rivers and swamps, mountains such as Rwenzori Mountain, Mt.Elgon, Mt.Muhabura. The Wildlife national parks offer opportunity to have game drive where animals like Lion, Rhinos, Buffaloes, Elephant, Giraffes, Hippos, Crocodiles, bushbucks among others are seen. In addition to game drive, there is chimpanzee tracking, gorilla tracking, golden monkey tracking as well as other primates. The different cultural diversities all provide Uniqueness to Uganda. The country has two seasons; wet and dry season, which makes the country best and easily visited throughout the year.
Business:
The business environment is stable. Uganda has excellent infrastructure, telecommunication, and transport and business services. Uganda’s capital is Kampala and it is the central business district. Paved roads are in place to connect Kampala and major Ugandan towns, so does railways to some parts of Uganda and neighbouring countries.
The Kampala Industrial Area, Namanve Industrial Area and Jinja industrial development zones are well-placed for industry start-up. If you are planning to invest in Uganda, see the Uganda Investment Authority (UIA) www.ugandainvest.com for business and investment opportunities.
Language: The official language is English though Kiswahili is also spoken
Business hours: On week days, Government offices and businesses are usually from 08h00 to 17h30, closing for lunch from 13h00 to 14h00. Bank hours vary from bank to bank but most are open from 08h30 – 16h00 Monday to Friday and from 09h00 – 12h00 on Saturday.
The country has an average elevation of 1200m above sea level. Mountain areas are the Rwenzori mountains (5000m) with permanent snow cover and Mount Elgon (4300m).
Uganda ‘s climate is equatorial but this is tempered by its elevated altitude and average daytime temperatures range between 20C and 27C. Average annual rainfall is in the region of 1000mm. There are two rainy seasons – March to early May and September to December.
Lake Victoria is the largest lake in Africa and second largest in the world. It is also the source of the River Nile. Lakes Edward and Albert lie to the west of the country.
The landscape and vegetation have exceptional diversity. Uganda lies at the overlap between tropical East African savannah and the West African rainforest zones. The south of the country is mostly covered by forest and sub-tropical cultivation (plantains, coffee and tea). There are woodland and open savannah grassland areas. The north is drier than the rest of the country. It is covered in semi-desert and dry acacia woodland, which lacks the heavy intertwining canopy found in tropical forests.
The many wonders of nature have found a home in Uganda , one of East Africa ‘s premier tourist destinations. With landscapes that range from snow capped mountain peaks and rainforests in the west through broad savannah to arid semi-desert in the north east, as well as wetlands of international importance, Uganda is one of the best traveler destinations for safari holidays.
With the western arm of the Great Rift Valley occupying most of its west and giving it a unique landscape, Uganda has both flora and fauna species of both East and West Africa in addition to having a wide variety of its very own indigenous species. In western Uganda , the mountain ranges of the Rwenzoris and Virungas extend into the neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo, formerly Zaire . On the eastern border lies Mount Elgon , an ancient, extinct volcano that borders Kenya .
A third of Uganda is covered by water. The many lakes and rivers include Lake Victoria , the largest lake in Africa , and the River Nile from its legendary source. In contrast, northern Uganda is arid, giving rise to special types of plant and animal life not found elsewhere. The wildlife to be seen in Uganda is sensational and include the rare mountain gorilla at Mgahinga and Bwindi National Parks .
Gorilla trekking is an activity that has brought many visitors to Uganda . The only remaining populations of mountain gorillas live in the area that covers the southeast corner of Uganda , Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.