Helpful Hints while living in Uganda

While everyone’s situation is different, we’ll try to cover information for the average traveler who is not on business. In particular, we’ll cover topics for those that will be staying for a few months in a village setting.

Arrivals: The airport is modern and fairly simple to navigate. For those that require a visa, this can be purchased upon entry very easily for $50 US cash. Mailing your passport in your home country can be time consuming and unnecessary. If your stay exceeds one month, ask for the visa to be the maximum of three months.

              Once outside the airport, there are many “special hires” or individual taxis available. There are no meters so rates are negotiated BEFORE leaving. Fares to Kampala usually cost around $20-25. There is no public transport from the airport.

Lodging: There are expensive hotels and there are hostels. If you are a “budget traveler”, there are hostels which offer reasonable accommodations at good prices. These can be found in Kampala, Entebbe and several other main areas. Most popular are Entebbe Backpackers, Backpackers in Kampala and Hot Chilli Pepper, also in Kampala. It is best to reserve online whenever possible.

Money:   The local currency is Ugandan shillings. If you are bringing cash into the country, there are three currencies which can be easily exchanged; British pounds, Euros and US dollars. Notes must be free of any damage for acceptance in a bank. US dollars must be $50 or $100 denominations AND 2001 series or newer. Otherwise, they could be rejected or given a low exchange rate. There are also several forex’s in Kampala that offers very good exchange rates. The airport offers much lower exchange rates.

              An alternative is to preload a VISA credit card and withdraw from an ATM which is now common in major cities and towns. This can reduce the chance of theft. You need to check with your provider for charges (if any). MasterCard is not common and not recommended. Credit cards are only accepted in Kampala, at major tourist spots. Otherwise, you need cash at all other times.

Medical: Be sure to receive medical shots before leaving your home country. Some doctors recommend yellow fever shots. There have been no reported cases for several years so judge accordingly. Malaria is a serious problem and anti-malarial drugs are available in Uganda at a very low cost. Mosquito nets are also very inexpensive. It is recommended to take out medical coverage before you leave. There is universal health care in Uganda but it is not at an acceptable standard in more serious cases. Best care is obtained at private hospitals.

Travel:   Vehicles adhere to the British system and can be difficult for drivers from North America and Europe. Public transport can be hectic and confusing for the novice. Vehicle rentals can range from $15 - $140 per day, depending on where you get it and the type required. If prices are not posted, you need to negotiate the rate first. Some roads are in good shape but most are dirt and can be very poor.

Clothes: Although Uganda is on the equator, it can be very cool at times. Some areas are very cool at night and require heavy sweaters. It is recommended that you pack some warm clothes. Shorts are worn only by children in Uganda and are not considered in good taste for both men and women. Men commonly wear dress pants though cargo type pants are acceptable. Long sleeve shirts are recommended but short sleeve or polo shirts are fine. Women normally wear dresses with a hemline below the knee or full length. It is becoming more acceptable to wear long pants or jeans. For women, it is not recommended to wear jewellery. You become a target for theft.

Food:     The local favorites are matooke (steamed banana), cassava (cook tree root), porsho (steamed maize flour), rice, Irish potato and sweet potato. There is a small assortment of cooked vegetables along with chicken, beef, goat and pork. Better restaurants will cater to the European taste. Imported foods from outside of East Africa are fairly expensive. Fruits are plentiful and extremely good (and cheap).  The main meal is normally lunch and is taken early afternoon.

Religion: The split between Christian and Islam is almost even. There is little or no religious tension among the people.

Uganda is a country whose beauty will continue to surprise you! Named the “Pearl of Africa” by Winston Churchill, Uganda’s magnificent scenery includes snow-capped mountains, rolling plains, thick tropical forests, as well as semi-desert areas. It is a landlocked country in East Africa, sharing borders with Kenya, Sudan, Rwanda, Tanzania and the Democratic Republic of Congo (formerly Zaire). Uganda lies astride the Equator covering an area of about 240,000 square kilometres, between the two East African Great Rift Valleys.

Capital: Kampala

Major Towns: Jinja, Entebbe, Masaka, Mbarara, Mbale, Fort Portal, Soroti, Lira and Gulu, among others. Entebbe is the country’s International airport town. There are 56 administrative districts or towns throughout the country.

Population: In 2007, the estimated population of Uganda is 28 million. 

Languages: Although English is the official language, it is a second language for most Ugandans. Over 33 native languages are spoken in different parts of the country. The most common is Luganda. English is also the language of instruction from primary school up to university.

Currency: The local currency is the Ugandan shilling. In January 2008, a Canadian dollar buys roughly 1600 Ush, and a US dollar buys 1650 Ush. These rates can experience dramatic changes during the year.

Natural resources: copper, cobalt, hydropower, oil, limestone, salt and timber. Most of the land is used for arable farming. Agriculture is the backbone of the Ugandan economy.

Main exports: coffee, cotton, tea, fish and fish products, tobacco, maize, beans, pyrethrum and vanilla.

Climate: Although Uganda is situated on the equator the relatively high altitude tempers the heat, and humidity is usually low. Day temperatures range between 25C and 34C. The hottest month is January. There are two rainy seasons, the long rains from late February to beginning of May, and the short rains from October to middle of December. The area around Lake Victoria receives rain almost any time of year. The vegetation ranges from thick rainforests, to grasslands, high altitude moor land, arid savannah and marshy wetlands.

Time Zone: Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) plus 3 hours.

International dialing code: +256

Although Uganda is a relatively small country with an area about the size of the UK or Ghana, the country boasts a population that is very rich in diversity, cultures and languages. Uganda is divided into 45 districts, however, the six main cooperating districts are Acholi, Lango, Bunyoro, Buganda, Busoga and Ankole. The country’s name “Uganda” came from the ancient kingdom of Buganda.

While the people in Southern Uganda largely belong to one language, the Bantu speakers (also found in Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique, all the way to the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa), the people in the North have three language groups (also found in Dem. Rep. of Congo, Sudan and Kenya). These are Sudanic, Western Nilotic and Eastern Nilotic groups of languages.  The Bantu speakers make up 50% of Uganda’s total population and can be found in the districts of Kampala, Mpigi, Mukono, Masaka, Kalangala, Kiboga, Rakai, and Mubende. Bantu-speakers make up the following languages and dialects: Luganda, Lusoga, Runyoro, Runyankole, Rutooro, Rukiga, Rukonjo, Rwanba, Runyarwanda, Lumasaba, Lunyole, Lugwe, Lugwere, Ruruli, Rugungu, Lukenyi, as well as other smaller dialects.

Ugandans are warm, friendly and full of humour, despite their traumatic history. They are anxious to make friends with visitors and will go to great lengths to ensure you are comfortable and enjoying yourself. A popular Bantu proverb is ‘Omusajja gyagenda gyasanga banne’, literally meaning, ‘Wherever a man goes he will find friendly people’.

Music and dance in many areas reflect the geographical and economic environment of the people. For example, the pastoral people emphasize cattle in their music and occasionally imitate cattle in their dances, whereas traditional hunters reflect the various sounds of birds and different animals in their music.

Ugandan traditional attire consists of a ‘kanzu’ (long tunic) for the men, which is of Arabic origin and the ‘gomez’ for women. The ‘gomez' is an elegant dress covering practically the entire body and is completed by a large embroidered belt worn around the waist. In Western Uganda, the women also wear a large coloured piece of cloth, known as the ‘kitambi’ under a long dress and cover themselves with another large piece of cloth on top. Otherwise, modern or Western modes of dressing are the most common in Uganda.

There are common foods throughout most parts of Uganda, such as millet, sorghum, beans, groundnut, sweet potatoes, cassava and maize. Green bananas, known as ‘Matooke’, and sometimes referred to as the ‘national dish’ of Uganda, are predominantly grown in the south. Traditionally, Ugandans eat with their right hand (the left being reserved for hygiene purposes). They use ‘matooke’ and/or millet, rolling it into a ball or mashing it to pick up the food. Utensils are also used and can be found in most homes and restaurants.

Between 1650 and 1850 rivalry existed between the kingdoms of Bunyoro-Kitara, Buganda and Ankole, in the form of cattle raiding and attempts to acquire more territory. By the mid-19^th century, the Buganda, Akole and Toro kingdoms occupied the majority of the country, reducing the once powerful kingdom of Bunyoro-Kitara to a quarter of its original size. The 19^th century also saw the arrival of different groups of foreigners, namely the Arab traders in 1852 and the first Europeans in 1862. Foreign influence led to religious rivalry – Arab traders’ Islamic faith, French Catholics and British Protestants – each eager to get their hands on the fertile kingdom of Buganda. In 1893 Sir Gerald Portal arrived in Kampala and raised the Union Jack over Old Kampala Hill. Unwillingly, Mwanga, the king of Buganda signed a formal treaty with Portal, giving Britain freehold land rights in return for British protection to Buganda’s chiefs. British rule began in 1900 and continued for the next 62 years. Uganda gained independence on October 9^th, 1962, which was led by the Uganda People’s Congress (UPC) under Milton Obote leadership. The first Obote government ruled from 1962 till 1971.

Idi Amin’s reign of terror extended from 1971 to 1979 - murdering 2000 of the Kabaka Buganda supporters; expelling all Asians from Uganda and taking over their businesses and possessions; purging the army of Acholi and Langi soldiers; killing 8 Obote cabinet ministers, and torturing to death about 300,000 Ugandans. Amin’s unpopularity with his own people was growing and in 1978 when he overreached himself by declaring war on Tanzania, many Ugandan exiles joined forces with Tanzania driving him into exile in Saudi Arabia.

The preceding seven years Uganda continued in a downward spiral. The elections were rife with corruption and intimidation and despite the overwhelming evidence that the elections had been rigged, the Obote government was once again triumphant. Other political parties, including Museveni who formed the National Resistance Movement (NRM), opposed the results, which led to massive guerrilla warfare against Obote’s government. Obote responded by killing civilians by the thousands, exceeding even Amin’s terror. In July 1985, Tito Okello, commander of the army, took over the government in a military coup, and for the second time Obote was forced out of office by his own army. At this time, the NRM tried negotiating with Okello during talks in Nairobi, but was unsuccessful and returned to the bush. On January 26, 1986, the NRM besieged Kampala, Okello surrendered and Museveni became the new President of Uganda, a country worn out and brutalized for many years.  

The Social Origins of Violence in Uganda by Prof. Kasozi provides a detailed account of the nature and practice of violence in Uganda between 1964 and 1985. More than one million Ugandans faced violent deaths and other violations of human rights, invoke for political purposes. There are also “those uncounted and unrecorded victims who died, and are still dying, from the legacy of violence caused by the breakdown of the social fabric and structures that formerly supported Ugandan society” (Kasozi, 1994, 5). According to Kasozi the conditions that let to the Ugandan holocaust include: social inequality, sub states, the failure to create a central political institution and mechanisms for conflict resolution, ethnic and religious factionalism, class divisions, decrease in national production, poorly educated leaders and the absence of a common language (6-11). Those scars are found in every facet of life in Uganda, but the people and the country are taking steps in the right direction. Peace and stability has returned to Uganda, and the ‘Pearl of Africa’ is regaining its lustre!

A footnote to volunteers

It is difficult at times to witness the extreme poverty, disease and hunger that plaques many Africans. You will have your moments but I encourage you to focus instead on their spirit, their strength and resiliency in the face of these challenges.  It should be your goal to experience, to share your knowledge and to learn from the people, as they have much to teach you and the Western world. Go to the people of Uganda as learners rather than teachers and be ready and open to change. Enjoy their hospitality, take tea and laugh with the women and men and run and play with the children. Put your Western eyes, assumptions and judgments on hold (or save them for your journal). Be alive to experience all that is Africa. Time is of no consequence here, you simply are. The rat race of North America and Europe will soon be forgotten.

Invoke the logic and wisdom inside you, but also of those around you. Do not perceive them as un-educated. There is more to education then books, degrees and initials. Instead, they have experience and a traditional knowledge of life forgotten in many areas of the world.

There are no answers to the many problems the world faces, but the longing for answers is an ignorant journey without end as no one “answer” can solve the many challenges. Instead of searching for answers, seek life, equity, peace and prosperity, based on an understanding, an awareness between cultures, world economy, a knowledge of the history of how we got here and how our generation could mobilize together to eliminate the poverty and disease that remains. History has a lot to teach us.

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