UGANDA,

EAST AFRICA

"The Pearl Of Africa"

Basic Uganda Facts

Country Full Name

Republic of Uganda

Population

24,600,000

Currency

Name: Uganda Shilling

Languages Spoken

Official: English

General State of Development

In 1965 Uganda and South Korea were at about the same point on the developing nation scale, yet today South Korea is a strong, industrial nation, while Uganda is impoverished. The reason for this discrepancy rests clearly with poor post colonization leadership, the tyrant Idi Amin from 71 - 79, and a subsequent civil war. It is only since 1986 that Uganda has had opportunity to move forward again but by then, it had almost been driving back to the 1800s

Population:

23,000,000

Life expectancy

42 years (1 in 12 Ugandans is an orphan)

Income

44% make less than 60,000 shillings ($34.00) per month

Geography:

Landlocked nation of 91,000 square miles (about the size of lower Michigan)

Neighbors:

North - Sudan

East - Kenya

South - Tanzania, Rwanda

West - Congo

Language:

English is the official language with a significant number of native Swahili dialects spoken

Religion:

Protestants 33%, Roman Catholic 33%, Indigenous 19%, Muslim 15%

 Flag of Uganda

The official insignia (coat of arms) of Uganda reflects the identity, aspirations and economic activity of Uganda. The Crested Crane (Regulorum gibbericeps) includes all the national colors (black, yellow, and red) plus it is friendly, gentle, and peace loving, characteristics true of the Ugandan people. To the left is a Kob (Adenota kob Thomasi) which symbolizes the abundant wildlife found in Uganda.

The spear and shield are traditional tools of defense in Africa. The sun represents the abundant sunshine found in Uganda as an equatorial nation. The drum is a symbol of the cultural heritage of the Ugandan people. The upper blue lines (top of shield) represent Uganda's abundant rainfall while the lower blue lines (under the shield) represent plentiful lakes and rivers. To the left see coffee growing and to the right cotton, both cash crops of Uganda with cotton being grown less today than in previous years. The motto For God and My Country reflects upon Uganda as a nation of people who fear God and love their country.

The following information compiled (2005) by Abraham Mulindwa, Administration Department, New Hope Uganda.

• Total population of Uganda is 26.8 million

  Distribution by Region

  Central 27% or 7.1 million

  Western 26% or 6.8 million

  Eastern 25% or 6.7 million

  Northern 22% or 6.1 million

  Distribution by Religious Faith

  Catholics 41.9%

  Church of Uganda 35.9%

  Muslims 12.1%

  Pentecostals 4.6%

  Population by Age

  Children, less than 18 years of age = 15.0 million

  Youths, age 18 - 30 = 6.0 million

  Adults, age 30 - 60 = 4.6 million

  Elderly, 60 years of age and above 1.2 = million

  Gender

  Overall, there are 95 males per 100 females

• The biggest tribe is the Baganda, who make up 17.3% of the population, followed by Banyankole with 9.8%, Basoga 8.6% and Bakiga 7.0%. The smallest tribe is the Vonoma with only 128 people by the time of the census, 60 males and 48 females. Other tribes with less than 10,000 people were Mvuba with 870, Mening 2,227, Bahehe 3,403 and Batwa 6,738. The biggest eight tribes make up 70% of the population, while the remaining over 40 tribes constitute 30%.

• Census highlights
  - 97% of households use firewood
  - 92% do not have electricity
  - 48% of households have a radio
  - 49% rely on word of mouth as main source of information
  - 17% have no access to toilet facilities
  - 56% are children below 18 years
  - 12% live in urban areas
  - Gender ratio is 95 males to 100 females
  - Average household size is 4.7 persons
  - One in every 25 persons has a disability
  - Literacy rate 68%
  - 61% have access to safe drinking water
  - 77% engage in agriculture
  - 1.8 million orphans have lost at least one parent
  - 75% use kerosene candles (tadooba) as main source of light
  - 4.5% have a TV set
  - 77.4% still live on rammed earth floors though a majority have iron roofs

 Ugandan National Anthem

Oh Uganda may God uphold thee,
We lay our future in thy hand,
United free for liberty
Together we'll always stand.

Oh Uganda the land of freedom,
Our love and labour we give,
And with neighbours all,
At our country's call
In peace and friendship we'll live.

Oh Uganda! the land that feeds us,
By sun and fertile soil grown,
For our own dear land,
We shall always stand,
The pearl of Africa's Crown