About Uganda

Uganda is located on the East African plateau, lying mostly between latitudes 4°N and 2°S (a small area is north of 4°), and longitudes 29° and 35°E. It averages about 1,100 metres (3,609 ft) above sea level, and this slopes very steadily downwards to the Sudanese Plain to the north. However, much of the south is poorly drained, while the centre is dominated by Lake Kyoga, which is also surrounded by extensive marshy areas. Uganda lies almost completely within the Nile basin. The Victoria Nile drains from the lake into Lake Kyoga and thence into Lake Albert on the Congolese border. It then runs northwards into South Sudan. One small area on the eastern edge of Uganda is drained by the Turkwel River, part of the internal drainage basin of Lake Turkana.

Lake Kyoga serves as a rough boundary between Bantu speakers in the south and Nilotic and Central Sudanic language speakers in the north. Despite the division between north and south in political affairs, this linguistic boundary runs roughly from northwest to southeast, near the course of the Nile. However, many Ugandans live among people who speak different languages, especially in rural areas. Some sources describe regional variation in terms of physical characteristics, clothing, bodily adornment, and mannerisms, but others claim that those differences are disappearing.

Although generally equatorial, the climate is not uniform as the altitude modifies the climate. Southern Uganda is wetter with rain generally spread throughout the year. At Entebbe on the northern shore of Lake Victoria, most rain falls from March to June and in the November/December period. Further to the north a dry season gradually emerges; at Gulu about 120 km from the South Sudanese border, November to February is much drier than the rest of the year.

The northeastern Karamoja region has the driest climate and is prone to droughts in some years. Rwenzori in the southwest on the border with Congo (DRC) receives heavy rain all year round. The south of the country is heavily influenced by one of the world's biggest lakes, Lake Victoria, which contains many islands. It prevents temperatures from varying significantly and increases cloudiness and rainfall. Most important cities are located in the south, near Lake Victoria, including the capital Kampala and the nearby city of Entebbe.

Although landlocked, Uganda contains many large lakes; besides Lake Victoria and Lake Kyoga, there are Lake Albert, Lake Edward and the smaller Lake

By: Bruce Amp

ALPINE FIRE OUT BREAK ON MT RWENZORI

Hiking of Mount Rwenzori through the Kilembe trail has been suspended following an alpine fire out-break in the famous western Uganda Mountains.

The director Rwenzori Trekking Services (RTS) that runs a concession through the Nyamwamba-Kilembe valley to the Mountain peaks Mr. John Hunwick said that some of his facilities have been burnt down.
He said that he was in the Mountain by the time the fire broke out in the Mountain on Monday last week.
“I had some more than 20 clients in the Mountain by the time the fire broke out but we managed to rescue them to safety in the shortest time possible and they are safely out of the Mountain” Hunwick said.
He said that he had stopped taking tourists up in the Mountains through Nyamwamba –Kilembe valley until the fire is under control and other facilities restored.

He said that the fire was moving about eight kilometers per hour adding that by Saturday evening an estimated 30-40 kilometres of forest cover had been burnt at 4600 metres above sea level..
He added that much as one of his tented camps had been burnt some were rescued and dismantled and hidden into the rock shelter for safety.
A director with a UK based tour organization- Warthog Mountaineering Mr. John Howie who was in the mountain with a group of about fifteen tourists by the time the fire broke out asked the government of Uganda to urgently put in place efforts to put off the fire.
“I am wondering that such a mountain of world importance has not been given urgent attention by government to control such a disaster” Howie told the New Vision at Sandton hotel in Kasese on Sunday.
Rwenzori Mountains were declared a world heritage site in 1996 by UNESCO.
He said that he was leading a big international trekking group with 2 French, 2 Newsland and 15 from the United Kingdom.

Howie noted that it was irresponsible for the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) to allow people to go in the mountains now that the fire was still burning.
“I feel that the park should be closed to the clients until the fire is put off” Howie suggested.
However the senior warden in-charge Rwenzori Mountains National Park Fred Kiiza said that UWA had dispatched a team of fire fighters including the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) to try to fight the fire.
“We may not fight to put off the fire now but we want to create fire breaks so that it does not cross to burnt the whole forest”

He announced that plans have been put in place to compensate clients that had missed the hike.
‘” We have decided to give free extra nights to tourists who may wish to go back to the Mountain and we have also offered them an alternative to visit Queen Elizabeth National park and Lake Mburo” Kiiza added.
He said that the park would not close because the fire had not crossed to Mubuku valley side where a central circuit to the peaks is safe. He said that the fire may have been caused by poachers.
By Sunday evening fire was seen from Kasese town view heading down wards to the community.
Some people have described the fire as the first ever in the history of Rwenzori Mountains worrying that it would affect the ecosystem there.

By: Bruce Amp

Gifted Uganda needs a publicity push

It is no surprise that the world’s most famous travel bible Lonely Planet has recognised the nature, culture, beauty and hospitality that Uganda has to offer.

The Pearl of Africa has many attributes, which  make  it the  perfect  holiday destination. Gone are the days when Uganda was associated with Idi Amin, HIV/AIDS and Joseph Kony.  Indeed I myself have written numerous pieces about my love affair with Uganda and its many attractions. Upon my return to the UK, I have on countless occasions recommended Uganda as a place to visit and invest in; the response though positive has always been one of, ‘Yes I know of Uganda; I just hear more about Kenya and Tanzania as places to holiday in.’

So, are the relevant Ugandan authorities doing enough to promote the country as a tourist destination overseas? How should Uganda’s being brought into the spotlight by Lonely Planet be built on? Is enough being done to market and sell Ugandan made products overseas?

Train stations in London are plastered with posters of South African scenery, inviting people to visit the country. Around the city are advertising boards saying, ‘Incredible India’, ‘Morocco: the country that travels within you’, ‘Nigeria: There’s more beneath the surface’, and ‘Turkey welcomes you’, all aimed at potential visitors. However, missing are the tourism campaigns encouraging people to visit Uganda.

There are no posters with images of the sun-setting on Lake Victoria, no pictures of Bwindi’s mountain gorillas, no billboards informing people of the glistening Pearl of Africa. There are no media campaigns telling adventure seekers about white water rafting in Jinja, or targeting nature lovers through marketing the numerous national parks, or attracting lovers of luxury to the five-star Kampala Serena hotel.

The attractions of Uganda almost speak for themselves, meaning that any advertising need not be complicated. There is no need for gimmicks or celebrity endorsements; the gifts of nature speak for themselves. Perhaps lessons could be learnt from Rwanda, which after the horrors of genocide, has risen as a popular destination for tourists. There, the government created a tourism strategy focusing on all the country has to offer to potential visitors. They created a marketing strategy, which not only revamped the image of Rwanda as a destination for holiday-makers, but also as an attractive hotspot for international conferences and events.

In creating their tourism strategy, Rwanda looked at the tourism developments and campaigns of popular tourist destinations such as Kenya and Mauritius. The Rwanda government has embarked on a strong public relations campaign aimed at the UK and USA, and has designed a 10-year sustainable tourism master plan which has clear recommendations, suggestions and plans to welcome over two million tourists by 2020.

The emergence of Rwanda-made products has also been a by- product of the country’s marketing strategy. Walk into a well-known coffee chain in the UK and available to buy are coffees from Kenya, Tanzania, Ethiopia and Rwanda; yet there is no sign of Ugandan coffee. Similarly, there is no sign in mainstream stores of Ugandan honey; the green beans have a ‘Grown in Kenya’ sticker on them, and products from South Africa have ‘Proudly South African’ plastered on them. No such thing is present on the boxes of tea from Uganda which can be found in UK supermarkets.

Rwanda, Kenya and Tanzania invest large amounts in attracting tourism. For example, Kenya’s tourism marketing budget for 2011-2012 is approximately KShs 1.4bn, far more substantial than the UShs 600m which makes up the budget for Uganda. As a consequence, it is also evident that the more a country invests in attracting tourists, the bigger the economy gains.

The budget for tourism should be expanded, a new marketing strategy drawn up, and a focus on attracting visitors and promoting ‘made in Uganda’ products overseas given importance. Lonely Planet naming Uganda as the number one destination for 2012 should serve as a push for the government to strike while the iron is hot and to take the opportunity to market Uganda around the world through creative advertising campaigns.

In turn, all those that are attracted by the advertising will have the opportunity to live a piece of paradise.

ANOTHER WHITE RHINO BORN

The tourism industry in Uganda has good news, another baby Rhino has been born at the Ziwa Rhino sanctuary, off the Kampala-Gulu highway, Nakasongola district in the Kafu river basin. This new born has brought the total number of the formerly extinct white rhino given birth to in Uganda to five in less than years.

Rhinos were mostly found in Murchison falls national park and Kidepo national park. But with the wars in 1970’s, they were extinct through poaching and currently, they are only in Ziwa rhino sanctuary. Tourists en route to Murchison falls national park for wildlife tour always make a one hour stop over to track the rhinos before proceeding to the park.

The government has a future plan to re-introduce the rhinos in the parks once they breed a good number of them.

 Angie Genade the executive director of the Rhino Fund Uganda noted that this newly born Rhino came months just after the recent birth of “Malaika” calf on 2nd July, 2011 and added that it’s a blessing to Uganda’s conservation society as she is the only country worldwide with such an advancement in Rhino conservation.

Wildlife tours generate more foreign exchange in the tourismindustry in Uganda, only second to Gorilla tracking tours which is done in Bwindi Impenetrable national park and Mgahinga national park

By: Amp Bruce Amp