Facts You Didn't Know About Uganda

Let's discover Uganda through these amazing facts.

1. Uganda has been ruled by only one president since 1986 - President Yoweri Musevini. He has been at the helm of the nation for 33 years. In Uganda, it is commonly said that a Ugandan president is called Museveni, no matter the outcome of the elections.

2. The variety of English spoken in Uganda is termed Uglish. Uglish is influenced by Luganda and other local dialects. Uglish has hundreds of words that have their own unique meanings. You might hear Ugandans say, "Please don't dirten my shirt with your muddy hands." "Downer" is often used in place of "lower", e.g. I broke my upper leg, but my downer leg was paining, too."

3. Uganda is the second-highest consumer of alcohol in Africa with an average of 11.93 liters of alcohol consumed per person per year. Just 2% of their alcohol consumption comes from wine, 4% from beer, and 94% from other sources.

4. Uganda has the third youngest population in the world, according to most recent reports. 47.41% of the Ugandan population is under 15. Niger and Mali have the youngest populations of the world, with 50.12% and 47.53% of their populations (respectively) under 15.

5. Uganda is one of the few homes of the formerly near-extinct mountain gorillas. In 2018, there was a 25% rise in mountain gorilla numbers from their 2010 population. There are now more than 1,000 mountain gorillas, thanks to the the introduction of park guards, better veterinary care and reglated tourism. In Uganda, they can be found in Bwindi National Park.

6. If you've ever heard of the saying, "Ugandans don't wear a Rolex, they eat it!”, it's time to find out what that means. The Ugandan Rolex comes from roll eggs; roll eggs = rolex. It is made by rolling an omelet inside a chapati (similar to tortilla but better tasting).

7. Idi Amin Dada, Uganda's despotic ruler, dubbed "The Butcher of Uganda" ruled Uganda from 1971 to 1979 and is considered one of the most brutal despots in world history. Amnesty International estimates that about 500,000 were killed under Idi Amin's regime (out of a population of 12 million). The military leader reportedly ordered 4,000 disabled people to be thrown into the Nile to be ripped apart by crocodiles. On several occasions did he confess to cannibalism. In 1976, he said, "I have eaten human meat. It is very salty, even more salty than leopard meat."

 The erratic leader bestowed the following title upon himself: "His Excellency, President for Life, Field Marshal Al Hadji Doctor Idi Amin Dada, VC, DSO, MC, Lord of All the Beasts of the Earth and Fishes of the Seas and Conqueror of the British Empire in Africa in General and Uganda in Particular", in addition to his officially stated claim of being the uncrowned King of Scotland. He died from kidney failure, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

8. The Equator - an imaginary line that divides the Earth into two equidistant halves (northern and southern hemispheres) - crosses Uganda. It is located in Kayabwe, Mpigi District, about 72 kilometers from Kampala city, the Ugandan capital.

9. Uganda is called "the pearl of Africa", a name given to her by Winston Churchill in 1908 after his tour of Uganda in 1907. In a book he published in 1908, titled "My African Journey", he wrote, "For magnificence, for variety of form and color, for profusion of brilliant life — bird, insect, reptile, beast — for vast scale — Uganda is truly 'the Pearl of Africa'."

There's a four-star hotel in Kampala called Pearl of Africa Hotel, representative of Uganda's identity.

10. Panfried grasshoppers, "Nsenene" in Luganda, are one of the country's favorite treats. It is said that grasshoppers are to Ugandans what hot-dogs are to Americans. Ugandans usually offer their special guests nsenene.

Other facts about Uganda

Official name:Republic of Uganda

Official languages: English, Swahili

Area: 241,038 km²

President: Yoweri Kaguta Museveni 

Capital: Kampala

Currency: Ugandan shilling (UGX)

Poverty rate: 34.6% (2013, World Bank)

Religions: Christianity - 66%, Islam - 16%, Indigenous beliefs - 18%

Life expectancy: 59.89 years (2016)

Population: 41,487,965 (2016 estimate)

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