Communications
Internet country code [time series]
.ug
Internet users (Internet hosts) [time series]
1,090 (2008)
Internet users [time series]
2 million (2007)
Broadcast media (Radio broadcast stations) [time series]
AM 7, FM 33, shortwave 2 (2001)
Telecommunication systems (Telephone system) [time series]
general assessment: seriously inadequate; mobile cellular service is increasing rapidly, but the number of main lines is still deficient; e-mail and Internet services are available domestic: intercity traffic by wire, microwave radio relay, and radiotelephone communication stations, fixed and mobile-cellular systems for short-range traffic international: country code - 256; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 1 Inmarsat; analog links to Kenya and Tanzania
Telephones - fixed lines (Telephones - main lines in use) [time series]
162,300 (2007)
Telephones - mobile cellular [time series]
4.195 million (2007)
Broadcast media (Television broadcast stations) [time series]
8 (plus 1 repeater) (2001)
Economy
Agricultural products (Agriculture - products) [time series]
coffee, tea, cotton, tobacco, cassava (tapioca), potatoes, corn, millet, pulses, cut flowers; beef, goat meat, milk, poultry
Budget [time series]
revenues: $2.211 billion expenditures: $2.443 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2007 est.)
Central bank discount rate [time series]
14.68% (31 December 2007)
Commercial bank prime lending rate [time series]
19.11% (31 December 2007)
Exchange rates (Currency (code)) [time series]
Ugandan shilling (UGX)
Current account balance [time series]
-$744.7 million (2007 est.)
Debt - external [time series]
$1.498 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
Gini Index coefficient - distribution of family income (Distribution of family income - Gini index) [time series]
45.7 (2002)
Economic overview (Economy - overview) [time series]
Uganda has substantial natural resources, including fertile soils, regular rainfall, and sizable mineral deposits of copper, cobalt, gold, and other minerals. Agriculture is the most important sector of the economy, employing over 80% of the work force. Coffee accounts for the bulk of export revenues. Since 1986, the government - with the support of foreign countries and international agencies - has acted to rehabilitate and stabilize the economy by undertaking currency reform, raising producer prices on export crops, increasing prices of petroleum products, and improving civil service wages. The policy changes are especially aimed at dampening inflation and boosting production and export earnings. During 1990-2001, the economy turned in a solid performance based on continued investment in the rehabilitation of infrastructure, improved incentives for production and exports, reduced inflation, gradually improved domestic security, and the return of exiled Indian-Ugandan entrepreneurs. Growth continues to be solid, despite variability in the price of coffee, Uganda's principal export, and a consistent upturn in Uganda's export markets. In 2000, Uganda qualified for enhanced Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) debt relief worth $1.3 billion and Paris Club debt relief worth $145 million. These amounts combined with the original HIPC debt relief added up to about $2 billion.
Electricity - consumption [time series]
899.7 million kWh (2006 est.)
Electricity - exports [time series]
180 million kWh (2006)
Electricity - imports [time series]
0 kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - production [time series]
1.161 billion kWh (2006 est.)
Exchange rates [time series]
Ugandan shillings (UGX) per US dollar - 1,685.8 (2007), 1,834.9 (2006), 1,780.7 (2005), 1,810.3 (2004), 1,963.7 (2003)
Exports [time series]
$1.686 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)
Exports - commodities [time series]
coffee, fish and fish products, tea, cotton, flowers, horticultural products; gold
Exports - partners [time series]
Netherlands 10.2%, Belgium 9.8%, Germany 7.9%, France 7.2%, Rwanda 5.6% (2007)
GDP (official exchange rate) [time series]
$11.23 billion (2007 est.)
Real GDP (purchasing power parity) (GDP (purchasing power parity)) [time series]
$29.13 billion (2007 est.)
GDP - composition, by sector of origin (GDP - composition by sector) [time series]
agriculture: 30.2% industry: 24.7% services: 45.1% (2007 est.)
Real GDP per capita (GDP - per capita (PPP)) [time series]
$1,000 (2007 est.)
Real GDP growth rate (GDP - real growth rate) [time series]
6% (2007 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share [time series]
lowest 10%: 2.3% highest 10%: 37.7% (2002)
Imports [time series]
$2.983 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)
Imports - commodities [time series]
capital equipment, vehicles, petroleum, medical supplies; cereals
Imports - partners [time series]
Kenya 31.8%, China 7.8%, UAE 7.7%, South Africa 5.9%, India 5.2%, Japan 4.8% (2007)
Industrial production growth rate [time series]
5.8% (2007 est.)
Industries [time series]
sugar, brewing, tobacco, cotton textiles; cement, steel production
Inflation rate (consumer prices) [time series]
6.1% (2007 est.)
Investment (gross fixed) [time series]
25.4% of GDP (2007 est.)
Labor force [time series]
14.02 million (2007 est.)
Labor force - by occupation [time series]
agriculture: 82% industry: 5% services: 13% (1999 est.)
Market value of publicly traded shares [time series]
$103.4 million (2005)
Natural gas - consumption [time series]
0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - exports [time series]
0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - imports [time series]
0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - production [time series]
0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves [time series]
0 cu m (1 January 2006 est.)
Oil - consumption [time series]
11,570 bbl/day (2006 est.)
Oil - exports [time series]
115.2 bbl/day (2005)
Oil - imports [time series]
11,540 bbl/day (2005)
Oil - production [time series]
0 bbl/day (2007 est.)
Oil - proved reserves [time series]
0 bbl (1 January 2006 est.)
Public debt [time series]
20.6% of GDP (2007 est.)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold [time series]
$2.56 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad [time series]
$NA
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home [time series]
$NA
Stock of domestic credit [time series]
$907.3 million (31 December 2007)
Stock of narrow money (Stock of money) [time series]
$1.363 billion (31 December 2007)
Stock of narrow money (Stock of quasi money) [time series]
$1.302 billion (31 December 2007)
Unemployment rate [time series]
NA%
Geography
total: 236,040 sq km land: 199,710 sq km water: 36,330 sq km
Area - comparative [time series]
slightly smaller than Oregon
Climate [time series]
tropical; generally rainy with two dry seasons (December to February, June to August); semiarid in northeast
Coastline [time series]
0 km (landlocked)
Elevation (Elevation extremes) [time series]
lowest point: Lake Albert 621 m highest point: Margherita Peak on Mount Stanley 5,110 m
Environment - current issues [time series]
draining of wetlands for agricultural use; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; water hyacinth infestation in Lake Victoria; widespread poaching
International environmental agreements (Environment - international agreements) [time series]
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification
Total water withdrawal (Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural)) [time series]
total: 0.3 cu km/yr (43%/17%/40%) per capita: 10 cu m/yr (2002)
Geographic coordinates [time series]
1 00 N, 32 00 E
Geography - note [time series]
landlocked; fertile, well-watered country with many lakes and rivers
Irrigated land [time series]
90 sq km (2003)
Land boundaries [time series]
total: 2,698 km border countries: Democratic Republic of the Congo 765 km, Kenya 933 km, Rwanda 169 km, Sudan 435 km, Tanzania 396 km
Land use [time series]
arable land: 21.57% permanent crops: 8.92% other: 69.51% (2005)
Location [time series]
Eastern Africa, west of Kenya
Map references [time series]
Africa
Maritime claims [time series]
none (landlocked)
Natural hazards [time series]
NA
Natural resources [time series]
copper, cobalt, hydropower, limestone, salt, arable land
Terrain [time series]
mostly plateau with rim of mountains
Total renewable water resources [time series]
66 cu km (1970)
Government
Administrative divisions [time series]
56 districts; Adjumani, Apac, Arua, Bugiri, Bundibugyo, Bushenyi, Busia, Gulu, Hoima, Iganga, Jinja, Kabale, Kabarole, Kaberamaido, Kalangala, Kampala, Kamuli, Kamwenge, Kanungu, Kapchorwa, Kasese, Katakwi, Kayunga, Kibale, Kiboga, Kisoro, Kitgum, Kotido, Kumi, Kyenjojo, Lira, Luwero, Masaka, Masindi, Mayuge, Mbale, Mbarara, Moroto, Moyo, Mpigi, Mubende, Mukono, Nakapiripirit, Nakasongola, Nebbi, Ntungamo, Pader, Pallisa, Rakai, Rukungiri, Sembabule, Sironko, Soroti, Tororo, Wakiso, Yumbe note: as of a July 2005, 13 new districts were reportedly added bringing the total up to 69; the new districts are Amolatar, Amuria, Budaka, Butaleja, Ibanda, Kaabong, Kabingo, Kaliro, Kiruhura, Koboko, Manafwa, Mityana, Nakaseke; a total of ten more districts are in the process of being added
Capital [time series]
name: Kampala geographic coordinates: 0 19 N, 32 25 E time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Constitution [time series]
8 October 1995; in 2005 the constitution was amended removing presidential term limits and legalizing a multiparty political system
Country name [time series]
conventional long form: Republic of Uganda conventional short form: Uganda
Diplomatic representation from the US [time series]
chief of mission: Ambassador Steven BROWNING embassy: 1577 Ggaba Road, Kampala mailing address: P. O. Box 7007, Kampala telephone: [256] (414) 259, 306-001 FAX: [256] (414) 258-451
Diplomatic representation in the US [time series]
chief of mission: Ambassador Perezi Karukubiro KAMUNANWIRE chancery: 5911 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20011 telephone: [1] (202) 726-7100 through 7102, 0416 FAX: [1] (202) 726-1727
Executive branch [time series]
chief of state: President Lt. Gen. Yoweri Kaguta MUSEVENI (since seizing power 26 January 1986); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government head of government: President Lt. Gen. Yoweri Kaguta MUSEVENI (since seizing power 26 January 1986); Prime Minister Apolo NSIBAMBI (since 5 April 1999); note - the prime minister assists the president in the supervision of the cabinet cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president from among elected legislators elections: president reelected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 23 February 2006 (next to be held in 2011) election results: Lt. Gen. Yoweri Kaguta MUSEVENI elected president; percent of vote - Lt. Gen. Yoweri Kaguta MUSEVENI 59.3%, Kizza BESIGYE 37.4%, other 3.3%
Flag (Flag description) [time series]
six equal horizontal bands of black (top), yellow, red, black, yellow, and red; a white disk is superimposed at the center and depicts a red-crested crane (the national symbol) facing the hoist side
Government type [time series]
republic
Independence [time series]
9 October 1962 (from UK)
International organization participation [time series]
ACP, AfDB, AU, C, COMESA, EAC, EADB, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MINURCAT, NAM, OIC, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Judicial branch [time series]
Court of Appeal (judges are appointed by the president and approved by the legislature); High Court (judges are appointed by the president)
Legal system [time series]
in 1995, the government restored the legal system to one based on English common law and customary law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Legislative branch [time series]
unicameral National Assembly (332 seats; 215 members elected by popular vote, 104 nominated by legally established special interest groups [women 79, army 10, disabled 5, youth 5, labor 5], 13 ex officio members; to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 23 February 2006 (next to be held in 2011) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NRM 191, FDC 37, UPC 9, DP 8, CP 1, JEEMA 1, independents 36, other 49
National holiday [time series]
Independence Day, 9 October (1962)
Political parties (Political parties and leaders) [time series]
Conservative Party or CP [Ken LUKYAMUZI]; Democratic Party or DP [Kizito SSEBAANA]; Forum for Democratic Change or FDC [Kizza BESIGYE]; Justice Forum or JEEMA [Muhammad Kibirige MAYANJA]; National Resistance Movement or NRM [Yoweri MUSEVENI]; Peoples Progressive Party or PPP [Bidandi SSALI]; Ugandan People's Congress or UPC [Miria OBOTE] note: a national referendum in July 2005 opened the way for Uganda's transition to a multi-party political system
Political parties (Political pressure groups and leaders) [time series]
Lord's Resistence Group or LRA [Joseph KONY]; Young Parliamentary Association [Henry BANYENZAKI]; Parliamentary Advocacy Forum or PAFO; National Association of Women Organizations in Uganda or NAWOU [Florence NEKYON]; The Ugandan Coalition for Political Accountability to Wormen or COPAW
Suffrage [time series]
18 years of age; universal
Introduction
Background [time series]
The colonial boundaries created by Britain to delimit Uganda grouped together a wide range of ethnic groups with different political systems and cultures. These differences prevented the establishment of a working political community after independence was achieved 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 at least another 100,000 lives. The rule of Yoweri MUSEVENI since 1986 has brought relative stability and economic growth to Uganda. During the 1990s, the government promulgated non-party presidential and legislative elections.
Military
Manpower available for military service [time series]
males age 16-49: 6,532,894 females age 16-49: 6,352,416 (2008 est.)
Manpower fit for military service [time series]
males age 16-49: 3,856,365 females age 16-49: 3,769,120 (2008 est.)
Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually [time series]
male: 384,638 female: 381,990 (2008 est.)
Military and security forces (Military branches) [time series]
Uganda Peoples Defense Force (UPDF): Army (includes Marine Unit), Air Force (2007)
Military expenditures [time series]
2.2% of GDP (2006)
Military service age and obligation [time series]
18-26 years of age for compulsory and voluntary military duty; 18-30 years of age for professionals; 9-year service obligation; the government has stated that recruitment below 18 years of age could occur with proper consent and that "no person under the apparent age of 13 years shall be enrolled in the armed forces"; Ugandan citizenship and secondary education required (2008)
People
Age structure [time series]
0-14 years: 50% (male 7,903,935/female 7,789,792) 15-64 years: 47.8% (male 7,528,073/female 7,469,938) 65 years and over: 2.2% (male 284,122/female 392,112) (2008 est.)
Birth rate [time series]
48.15 births/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Death rate [time series]
12.32 deaths/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Education expenditure (Education expenditures) [time series]
5.2% of GDP (2004)
Ethnic groups [time series]
Baganda 16.9%, Banyakole 9.5%, Basoga 8.4%, Bakiga 6.9%, Iteso 6.4%, Langi 6.1%, Acholi 4.7%, Bagisu 4.6%, Lugbara 4.2%, Bunyoro 2.7%, other 29.6% (2002 census)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate [time series]
4.1% (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths [time series]
78,000 (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS [time series]
530,000 (2001 est.)
Infant mortality rate [time series]
total: 65.99 deaths/1,000 live births male: 69.65 deaths/1,000 live births female: 62.21 deaths/1,000 live births (2008 est.)
Languages [time series]
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
Life expectancy at birth [time series]
total population: 52.34 years male: 51.31 years female: 53.4 years (2008 est.)
Literacy [time series]
definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 66.8% male: 76.8% female: 57.7% (2002 census)
Major infectious diseases [time series]
degree of risk: very high food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever vectorborne diseases: chikungunya, malaria, plague, and African trypanosomiasis (sleeping sickness) water contact disease: schistosomiasis (2008)
Median age [time series]
total: 15 years male: 14.9 years female: 15.1 years (2008 est.)
Nationality [time series]
noun: Ugandan(s) adjective: Ugandan
Net migration rate [time series]
0.21 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Population [time series]
31,367,972 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, higher death rates, lower population growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2008 est.)
Population growth rate [time series]
3.603% (2008 est.)
Religions [time series]
Roman Catholic 41.9%, Protestant 42% (Anglican 35.9%, Pentecostal 4.6%, Seventh Day Adventist 1.5%), Muslim 12.1%, other 3.1%, none 0.9% (2002 census)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education) [time series]
total: 10 years male: 11 years female: 10 years (2004)
Sex ratio [time series]
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2008 est.)
Total fertility rate [time series]
6.81 children born/woman (2008 est.)
Transnational Issues
Disputes - international [time series]
Uganda is subject to armed fighting among hostile ethnic groups, rebels, armed gangs, militias, and various government forces that extend across its borders; Uganda hosts 209,860 Sudanese, 27,560 Congolese, and 19,710 Rwandan refugees, while Ugandan refugees as well as members of the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) seek shelter in southern Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo's Garamba National Park; LRA forces have also attacked Kenyan villages across the border
Refugees and internally displaced persons [time series]
refugees (country of origin): 215,700 (Sudan); 28,880 (Democratic Republic of Congo); 24,900 (Rwanda) IDPs: 1.27 million (350,000 IDPs returned in 2006 following ongoing peace talks between the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) and the Government of Uganda) (2007)
Transportation
Airports [time series]
32 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways [time series]
total: 5 over 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways [time series]
total: 27 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 9 (2007)
Ports (Ports and terminals) [time series]
Entebbe, Jinja, Port Bell
Railways [time series]
total: 1,244 km narrow gauge: 1,244 km 1.000-m gauge (2006)
Roadways [time series]
total: 70,746 km paved: 16,272 km unpaved: 54,474 km (2003)
Waterways [time series]
on Lake Victoria, 200 km on Lake Albert, Lake Kyoga, and parts of Albert Nile (2005)