Country Flag of Uganda Map of Uganda, Courtesy of WorldAtlas.com

Local time in Kampala:


Facts and Figures

arrow Official Name Republic of Uganda.

arrow Capital City Kampala.

arrow Languages English (official national language, taught in grade schools, used in courts of law and by most newspapers and some radio broadcasts), Ganda or Luganda (most widely used of the Niger-Congo languages, preferred for native language publications in the capital and may be taught in school), other Niger-Congo languages, Nilo-Saharan languages, Swahili, Arabic.

arrow Official Currency Ugandan shilling (UGX).

arrow Ethnic Groups Baganda 17%, Ankole 8%, Basoga 8%, Iteso 8%, Bakiga 7%, Langi 6%, Rwanda 6%, Bagisu 5%, Acholi 4%, Lugbara 4%, Batoro 3%, Bunyoro 3%, Alur 2%, Bagwere 2%, Bakonjo 2%, Jopodhola 2%, Karamojong 2%, Rundi 2%, non-African (European, Asian, Arab) 1%, other 8%.

arrow Religions Roman Catholic 33%, Protestant 33%, Muslim 16%, indigenous beliefs 18%.

arrow Population 24,699,073. Note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2002 est.).

arrow Land Area 199,550 sq km (77,046 sq miles).

History

Uganda achieved independence from the UK in 1962. The dictatorial regime of Idi AMIN (1971-79) was responsible for the deaths of some 300,000 opponents; guerrilla war and human rights abuses under Milton OBOTE (1980-85) claimed another 100,000 lives. During the 1990s the government promulgated non-party presidential and legislative elections.

UNAIDS Epidemiological
Fact Sheets

[English] [French]

Global Surveillance of HIV/AIDS and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) is a joint effort of WHO and UNAIDS. The UNAIDS/WHO Working Group on Global HIV/AIDS and STI Surveillance, initiated in November 1996, guides respective activities. The primary objective of the working group is to strengthen national, regional and global structures and networks for improved monitoring and surveillance of HIV/AIDS and STIs. For this purpose, the working group collaborates closely with national AIDS programmes and a number of national and international experts and institutions. The goal of this collaboration is to compile the best information available and to improve the quality of data needed for informed decision-making and planning at national, regional and global levels. The Epidemiological Fact Sheets are one of the products of this close and fruitful collaboration across the globe.

Uganda Contacts

Country Name Title Office Telephone Fax
Uganda Jonathan Mermin, MD MPH Medical Epidemiologist 256 41 320 776 256 41 321457
 
 Rebecca Bunnell, PhD Epidemiologist, TA to USAID 256 41 347 603 256 41 321 457
 
 Bruce Ross Public Health Advisor 256 41 320 776 256 41 321 457
 
 Robert Downing Virologist/Lab Director 256 41 320 776  
256 41 321 457
 
 Ray Ransom Scientific Info. Specialist 256 41 320 776 256 41 321 457
  Elise Ayers   256 41 235 879 256 41 321 457

Web Sites

U.S. Government Agencies

CDC Uganda Fact Sheet
Uganda was one of the first countries to recognize and respond to the AIDS epidemic. It is also one of the first to show a sustained decline in HIV/AIDS prevalence rates due to a rapid national response. Currently, 8% of the Ugandan population is HIV-infected, about half the rate in 1992. Still, 35,000 infants are infected with HIV each year.

Travel Advisories
U.S. citizens living in or planning to visit Uganda should be aware of threats to their safety from insurgent groups, particularly in the northern region near the border with Sudan, and the western region near the border with the Democratic Republic of the Congo. These groups have at times specifically targeted U.S. citizens. They have engaged in murder, armed attacks, kidnapping, and the placement of land mines. Although isolated, incidents occur with little or no warning. Armed banditry is common in Karamoja (northeastern Uganda).

USAID: Uganda
The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)/Uganda collaborates with and supports the government and NGOs working under the national strategic, multisectoral HIV/AIDS framework. In FY 2001, the USAID/Uganda budget for HIV/AIDS was $13.4 million, up from $9.3 million the previous year.

World Fact Book Uganda Fact Sheet
The Factbook was created as an annual summary and update to the encyclopedic NIS studies. The first classified Factbook was published in August 1962, and the first unclassified version was published in June 1971. The 1975 Factbook was the first to be made available to the public with sales through the US Government Printing Office (GPO).

Uganda

The AIDS Information Centre (AIC)
AIC exists to prevent the spread of HIV and mitigate its impact through spear-heading voluntary counselling and testing and the provision of information, education and the promotion of care and support.

Ministry of Health Online: Uganda
This surveillance report is a compilation of information from all the 45 districts in the country; programs and organizations working on HIV/AIDS related diseases in Uganda. It focuses on data accruing from; HIV sentinel surveillance, Behavioural surveillance, AIDS case reporting, STD syndromic reporting and TB Morbidity reports.

Uganda AIDS Commission
Uganda was among the first hard hit countries by the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Taking stock of the national response for the last two decades, it has been observed that the country has moved from being the 'epicentre' of the epidemic to a 'success story'. This is in spite of limited resources.

Uganda Tourism Board
Over the past three years there has been much work done here by The Ministry of Tourism, through its associated agencies the Uganda Tourist Board and the Uganda Wildlife Authority, to sow the seeds of a brand new conservation-based form of sustainable tourism. This innovative programme has benefited greatly from the invaluable support of the European Union, USAID and the World Bank.

Women, Children, and HIV
This site contains a library of practically applicable materials on mother and child HIV infection including preventing mother-to-child HIV transmission (PMTCT), infant feeding, clinical care of women and children living with HIV infection, and the support of orphans. The goal of this site is to contribute to an improvement in the scale and quality of international HIV/AIDS prevention, care, and treatment programs for women and children by increasing access to authoritative HIV/AIDS information.

United Nations

United Nations Development Programme in Uganda
Uganda is one of the very few countries that have succeeded in reversing HIV prevalence rates. HIV prevalence among pregnant women in urban areas has declined from the peak of 30% in 1992 to 6% in 2001. This "success story" has been largely credited to government's openness about the epidemic and an aggressive anti-HIV/AIDS campaign involving virtually all sections of the society.

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Uganda

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