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87-854: The Luo River is a seasonal stream. Its discharge can reach 400 m/s (14,300 cu ft/s) in September. The upper course of the Luo River is also called the Sue. The Jur River's headwaters flow from the Congo-Nile Divide , which separates the Nile and Congo River basins, along South Sudan's border with the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Central African Republic . The main tributaries being

174-694: A sleeping sickness epidemic in the southern part of Uganda, along the north shores of Lake Victoria, killed more than 250,000 people. World War II encouraged the colonial administration of Uganda to recruit 77,143 soldiers to serve in the King's African Rifles . They were seen in action in the Western Desert campaign , the Abyssinian campaign , the Battle of Madagascar and the Burma campaign . Uganda gained independence from

261-600: A degree of self-government that would have otherwise been limited under a full colonial administration. In the 1890s, 32,000 labourers from British India were recruited to East Africa under indentured labour contracts to construct the Uganda Railway . Most of the surviving Indians returned home, but 6,724 decided to remain in East Africa after the line's completion. Subsequently, some became traders and took control of cotton ginning and sartorial retail. From 1900 to 1920,

348-602: A major tributary of the Congo. Other European explorers who helped map out the region included Panayotis Potagos (1839–1903), Georg August Schweinfurth (1836–1925), who discovered the Uele River , although he mistakenly thought it flowed into the Chad Basin rather than the Congo, Wilhelm Junker (1840–1892), who corrected Schweinfurth's hydrographical theories, and Oskar Lenz 1848–1925). The Berlin Conference of 1885 agreed that

435-659: A measure ostensibly designed to reduce sectarian violence. In the non-party "Movement" system instituted by Museveni, political parties continued to exist, but they could operate only a headquarters office. They could not open branches, hold rallies, or field candidates directly (although electoral candidates could belong to political parties). A constitutional referendum cancelled this nineteen-year ban on multi-party politics in July 2005. In 1993, Pope John Paul II visited Uganda during his 6-day pastoral trip to urge Ugandans to seek reconciliation. During mass celebrations, he paid homage to

522-682: A point near the southwest corner of Lake Victoria in a southwesterly direction through Tanzania and Burundi to the mountains that form the eastern wall of the Albertine Rift . The divide runs northward along the crest of these mountains to the east of Lake Tanganyika and Lake Kivu . This region includes the Nyungwe Forest in Rwanda and the Kibira National Park in Burundi. The parks provide

609-457: A power struggle between the Obote-led government and King Muteesa, Obote suspended the constitution and removed the ceremonial president and vice-president. In 1967, a new constitution proclaimed Uganda a republic and abolished the traditional kingdoms. Obote was declared the president. After a military coup on 25 January 1971 , Obote was deposed from power and General Idi Amin seized control of

696-466: A problem. Colonial governors had failed to come up with a formula that worked. This was further complicated by Buganda's nonchalant attitude to its relationship with the central government. Buganda never sought independence but rather appeared to be comfortable with a loose arrangement that guaranteed them privileges above the other subjects within the protectorate or a special status when the British left. This

783-421: A refuge for various primates of conservation concern, and also for rare bird and plant species. Around these parks the land is heavily populated, and agriculture is practiced intensively. Farming is difficult in this area, where peaks can be over 3,000 metres (10,000 ft) high. The parks are under pressure from the people that live near them. The Rukarara River rises in forested country in southern Rwanda to

870-665: A show down between Buganda and the Central government. Historians may argue about whether this could have been avoided through compromise. This was unlikely as Obote now felt emboldened and saw the Kabaka as weak. Indeed, by accepting the presidency four years earlier and siding with the UPC, the Kabaka had divided his people and taken the side of one against the other. Within Buganda's political institutions, rivalries driven by religion and personal ambition made

957-542: A significant conflict with the Buganda kingdom. Idi Amin 's military coup in 1971 led to a brutal regime characterized by mass killings and economic decline, until his overthrow in 1979. Yoweri Museveni 's National Resistance Movement (NRM) took power in 1986 after a six-year guerrilla war . This brought stability and growth, but authoritarian practices and human rights abuses. The abolition of presidential term limits, allegations of electoral fraud and repression, have raised concerns about Uganda's democratic future. Museveni

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1044-716: A vital sector for the economy. Uganda is a member of the United Nations , the African Union , G77 , the East African Community , and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation . Much of Uganda was inhabited by Central sudanic - and Kuliak -speaking farmers and herders until 3,000 years ago, when Bantu speakers arrived in the south and Nilotic speakers arrived in the northeast. By 1500 AD, they had all been assimilated into Bantu speaking cultures south of Mount Elgon ,

1131-434: Is diverse, with volcanic hills, mountains, and lakes, including Lake Victoria, the world's second-largest freshwater lake . The country has significant natural resources, including fertile agricultural land and untapped oil reserves , contributing to its economic development. The service sector dominates the economy, surpassing agriculture. Uganda's rich biodiversity, with national parks and wildlife reserves, attracts tourism,

1218-471: Is estimated that up to 2,000 people died in the battle which ended when the army called in heavier guns and overran the palace. The anticipated countryside uprising in Buganda did not materialise and a few hours later a beaming Obote met the press to relish his victory. The Kabaka escaped over the palace walls and was transported into exile in London by supporters. He died there three years later. In 1966, following

1305-490: Is surrounded by extensive marshy areas. Although landlocked, Uganda contains many large lakes. Besides Lakes Victoria and Kyoga, there are Lake Albert , Lake Edward , and the smaller Lake George . It lies almost completely within the Nile basin. The Victoria Nile drains from Lake Victoria into Lake Kyoga and thence into Lake Albert on the Congolese border. It then runs northwards into South Sudan . An area in eastern Uganda

1392-678: Is up to Ugandans to critically analyse this. The European Union's Election Observation Mission reported on improvements and flaws of the Ugandan electoral process: "The electoral campaign and polling day were conducted in a peaceful manner. However, the electoral process was marred by avoidable administrative and logistical failures that led to an unacceptable number of Ugandan citizens being disfranchised." Since August 2012, hacktivist group Anonymous has threatened Ugandan officials and hacked official government websites over its anti-gay bills. Some international donors have threatened to cut financial aid to

1479-580: The Democratic Party (DP) that had roots in the Catholic Church. The bitterness between these two parties was extremely intense especially as the first elections for the post-Colonial parliament approached. The Kabaka particularly disliked the DP leader, Benedicto Kiwanuka . Outside Buganda, a soft-spoken politician from Northern Uganda, Milton Obote , had forged an alliance of non-Buganda politicians to form

1566-519: The Empire of Kitara . The arrival of Arab traders in the 1830s and British explorers in the late 19th century, marked the beginning of foreign influence. The British established the Protectorate of Uganda in 1894, incorporating various kingdoms and setting the stage for future political dynamics. Uganda gained independence in 1962, with Milton Obote as the first prime minister. The 1966 Mengo Crisis marked

1653-592: The Nile basin, and has a varied equatorial climate . As of 2024 , it has a population of over 49 million, of which 8.5 million live in the capital and largest city, Kampala . Uganda is named after the Buganda kingdom, which encompasses a large portion of the south, including Kampala, and whose language Luganda is widely spoken; the official language is English. The region was populated by various ethnic groups, before Bantu and Nilotic groups arrived around 3,000 years ago. These groups established influential kingdoms such as

1740-556: The Nile River , and Lake Kyoga . According to oral tradition and archeological studies, the Empire of Kitara covered an important part of the Great Lakes Area , from the northern lakes Albert and Kyoga to the southern lakes Victoria and Tanganyika . Kitara is claimed as the antecedent of the Tooro , Ankole , and Busoga kingdoms. Some Luo invaded Kitara and assimilated with

1827-583: The Republic of Uganda , is a landlocked country in East Africa . It is bordered to the east by Kenya , to the north by South Sudan , to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo , to the south-west by Rwanda , and to the south by Tanzania . The southern part includes a substantial portion of Lake Victoria , shared with Kenya and Tanzania. Uganda is in the African Great Lakes region, it lies within

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1914-481: The 21 Buganda seats were elected by proportional representation reflecting the elections to the Buganda parliament – the Lukikko. KY won a resounding victory over DP, winning all 21 seats. The UPC reached a high at the end of 1964 when the leader of the DP in parliament, Basil Kiiza Bataringaya , crossed the parliamentary floor with five other MPs, leaving DP with only nine seats. The DP MPs were not particularly happy that

2001-771: The 250 passengers originally on board were held hostage until an Israeli commando raid rescued them ten days later. Amin's reign was ended after the Uganda-Tanzania War in 1979, in which Tanzanian forces aided by Ugandan exiles invaded Uganda. In 1980, the Ugandan Bush War broke out resulting in Yoweri Museveni became president since his forces toppled the previous regime in January 1986. Political parties in Uganda were restricted in their activities beginning that year, in

2088-840: The Bantu society there, establishing the Biito dynasty of the current Omukama (ruler) of Bunyoro-Kitara . Arab traders moved into the land from the Indian Ocean coast of East Africa in the 1830s for trade and commerce. In the late 1860s, Bunyoro in Mid-Western Uganda found itself threatened from the north by Egyptian-sponsored agents. Unlike the Arab traders from the East African coast who sought trade, these agents were promoting foreign conquest. In 1869, Khedive Ismail Pasha of Egypt, seeking to annex

2175-483: The Buganda Kabaka (King) Edward Muteesa II holding the largely ceremonial position of president. Uganda's immediate post-independence years were dominated by the relationship between the central government and the largest regional kingdom – Buganda . From the moment the British created the Uganda protectorate, the issue of how to manage the largest monarchy within the framework of a unitary state had always been

2262-410: The Buganda question remained unresolved. Uganda was one of the few colonial territories that achieved independence without a dominant political party with a clear majority in parliament. In the pre-Independence elections, the UPC ran no candidates in Buganda and won 37 of the 61 directly elected seats (outside Buganda). The DP won 24 seats outside Buganda. The "special status" granted to Buganda meant that

2349-463: The Central government. For those outside the UPC (including KY supporters), this was a sign that Obote was vulnerable. Keen observers realised the UPC was not a cohesive unit. The collapse of the UPC-KY alliance openly revealed the dissatisfaction Obote and others had about Buganda's "special status". In 1964, the government responded to demands from some parts of the vast Buganda Kingdom that they were not

2436-561: The Congo . About 29% of them now lived in the Sudan, 68% in the Congo and the rest in the French colony of Ubangi-Shari , now the Central African Republic . In the central section, the divide runs along the mountains that form the west flank of the Albertine Rift from Lake Albert in the north, past Lake Edward and on towards the north end of Lake Kivu . The divide crosses the Albertine rift along

2523-662: The Congo–Nile divide to the east of the Central African Republic. In 1915–16, when the divide defined part of the western frontier of the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan , Cuthbert Christy explored the area. He opined that it was a suitable place to build a railway. France and Britain made a friendly agreement in 1919 to define the boundary between the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan and French Equatorial Africa. The boundary

2610-707: The Jur River was carefully surveyed throughout its course by Lieutenant A.H. Dyé and other members of a French mission under Jean-Baptiste Marchand during the Scramble for Africa . Congo-Nile Divide The Congo–Nile Divide or the Nile–Congo Watershed is the continental divide that separates the drainage basins of the Congo and Nile rivers. It is about 2,000 kilometres (1,200 mi) long. There are several geologically and geographically distinct sections between

2697-450: The Kabaka if it came to that). Obote abolished the constitution and effectively suspended elections due in a few months. Obote went on television and radio to accuse the Kabaka of various offences including requesting foreign troops which appears to have been explored by the Kabaka following the rumours of Amin plotting a coup. Obote further dismantled the authority of the Kabaka by announcing among other measures: The lines were now drawn for

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2784-457: The Kabaka made his move. He asked for foreign help, and the Buganda parliament demanded that the Uganda government leave Buganda (including the capital, Kampala). In response Obote ordered Idi Amin to attack the Kabaka's palace. The battle for the Kabaka's palace was fierce – the Kabaka's guards putting up more resistance than had been expected. The British trained Captain – the Kabaka with about 120 armed men kept Idi Amin at bay for twelve hours. It

2871-419: The Kabaka was mute – probably content in his ceremonial role and symbolism in his part of the country. However, there were also major divisions within his palace that made it difficult for him to act effectively against Obote. By the time Uganda had become independent, Buganda "was a divided house with contending social and political forces" There were however problems brewing inside the UPC. As its ranks swelled,

2958-460: The Kabaka's subjects. Prior to colonial rule, Buganda had been rivalled by the neighbouring Bunyoro kingdom. Buganda had conquered parts of Bunyoro and the British colonialists had formalised this in the Buganda Agreements. Known as the "lost counties", the people in these areas wished to revert to being part of Bunyoro. Obote decided to allow a referendum, which angered the Kabaka and most of

3045-541: The Kabaka. They were now aligned to opposing Obote. Second – the security forces – the British colonialists had recruited the army and police almost exclusively from Northern Uganda due to their perceived suitability for these roles. At independence, the army and police was dominated by northern tribes – mainly Nilotic. They would now feel more affiliated to Obote, and he took full advantage of this to consolidate his power. In April 1966, Obote passed out eight hundred new army recruits at Moroto , of whom seventy percent came from

3132-600: The Lol, Jur, Tonj, Bahr al-Arab, and others streams, are all tributaries of the Bahr el Ghazal, but that their channels disappear in the wetlands before reaching any outlet. Among the ethnic groups living in the Jur basin are the Dinka , and Luo who call themselves Jo-luo . "Jur" is a Dinka word for "alien" or "non-Dinka". The Jur River was explored by John Petherick between 1853 and 1865. In 1897–98

3219-629: The Lugbara, Acholi, and Langi, all of whom have bitter rivalries that were to define Uganda's military politics later. Despite these ambiguities, these events unwittingly brought to fore the northerner/southerner political divide which to some extent still influences Ugandan politics. The UPC fragmentation continued as opponents sensed Obote's vulnerability. At local level where the UPC dominated most councils discontent began to challenge incumbent council leaders. Even in Obote's home district, attempts were made to oust

3306-612: The Nile–Congo watershed would form the boundary between the British Sudan and the Congo State. Under an agreement of 12 May 1894 between Britain and King Leopold II of Belgium , the sphere of influence of Leopold's Congo Free State was limited to "a frontier following the 30th meridian east of Greenwich up to its intersection by the watershed between the Nile and the Congo, and thence following

3393-521: The Northern Region. At the time there was a tendency to perceive central government and security forces as dominated by "northerners" – particularly the Acholi who through the UPC had significant access to government positions at national level. In northern Uganda there were also varied degrees of anti-Buganda feelings, particularly over the kingdom's "special status" before and after independence, and all

3480-622: The Ruzizi, thought that it might flow north out of the lake toward the White Nile . Their research and follow-up explorations by David Livingstone and Henry Morton Stanley established among Europeans that this was not the case. The Ruzizi flows into Lake Tanganyika, which overflows into the Lukuga River about 120 kilometres (75 mi) south of Ujiji . The Lukuga flows west into the Lualaba River ,

3567-554: The Sue River (itself sometimes called the Jur), Busseri River, Wau River, and Numatinna River. The spelling and precise meaning of these river names differ among sources. The tributaries come together near Wau , the capital of the state of Western Bahr el Ghazal . Below Wau the Jur River bends eastward, entering the swampy Sudd region. Due to the nature of the wetlands it is not always clear whether one river flows into another or merely merges in

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3654-608: The UK on 9 October 1962 with Queen Elizabeth II as head of state and Queen of Uganda . In October 1963, Uganda became a republic but maintained its membership in the Commonwealth of Nations . The first post-independence election, held in 1962, was won by an alliance between the Uganda People's Congress (UPC) and Kabaka Yekka (KY). UPC and KY formed the first post-independence government with Milton Obote as executive prime minister, with

3741-512: The UPC. The "North/South" ethnic divide that had been evident in economic and social spheres now entrenched itself in politics. Obote surrounded himself with mainly northern politicians, while Ibingira's supporters who were subsequently arrested and jailed with him, were mainly from the South. In time, the two factions acquired ethnic labels – "Bantu" (the mainly Southern Ibingira faction) and "Nilotic" (the mainly Northern Obote faction). The perception that

3828-475: The Uganda People's Congress (UPC). The UPC at its heart was dominated by politicians who wanted to rectify what they saw as the regional inequality that favoured Buganda's special status. This drew in substantial support from outside Buganda. The party however remained a loose alliance of interests, but Obote showed great skill at negotiating them into a common ground based on a federal formula. At Independence,

3915-556: The area, which had yet to be mapped. It separated members of the ethnic groups that live on both sides of the divide. The Congo–Nile divide starts at the triple divide where the Congo, Chad and Nile basins meet. This point is located on the boundary between the Central African Republic and the Sudan , at the limit between the Vakaga and Haute-Kotto prefectures. From this triple point: The Congo–Nile divide runs southeast and then south along

4002-408: The border between South Sudan and Uganda to the east and the Central African Republic and Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to the west. The Ironstone Plateau region between South Sudan and the DRC is cut by many streams that have formed steep and narrow valleys. The vast Sudd wetlands in South Sudan are fed by the Bahr al Jabal river that drains Lake Albert and Lake Victoria in

4089-416: The civil war against the Lord's Resistance Army, which has been guilty of numerous crimes against humanity, including child slavery , the Atiak massacre , and other mass murders. Conflict in northern Uganda has killed thousands and displaced millions. Parliament abolished presidential term limits in 2005, allegedly because Museveni used public funds to pay US$ 2,000 to each member of parliament who supported

4176-442: The country if anti-gay bills continue. Indicators of a plan for succession by the president's son, Muhoozi Kainerugaba, have increased tensions. President Yoweri Museveni has ruled the country since 1986 and he was latest re-elected in January 2021 presidential elections . According to official results Museveni won the elections with 58% of the vote while popstar-turned-politician Bobi Wine had 35%. The opposition challenged

4263-464: The country. Amin ruled Uganda as dictator with the support of the military for the next eight years. He carried out mass killings within the country to maintain his rule. An estimated 80,000–500,000 Ugandans died during his regime. Aside from his brutalities, he forcibly removed the entrepreneurial Indian minority from Uganda. In June 1976, Palestinian terrorists hijacked an Air France flight and forced it to land at Entebbe airport . One hundred of

4350-511: The death of the Uganda Martyrs in 1885—after the conversion of Muteesa I and much of his court, and the succession of his anti-Christian son Mwanga. The British government chartered the Imperial British East Africa Company (IBEAC) to negotiate trade agreements in the region beginning in 1888. From 1886, there was a series of religious wars in Buganda, initially between Muslims and Christians and then, from 1890, between "ba-Ingleza" Protestants and "ba-Fransa" Catholics, factions named after

4437-401: The east of the divide. The source of the Rukarara is now known to be the overall source of the Nile – the point at the furthest distance upstream from the river's mouth. The East African great lakes plateau was difficult for the nineteenth-century European explorers to access, with inhospitable arid or semi-arid land to the north, east and southeast, and the difficult Congo Basin forests to

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4524-433: The economic and social benefits that came with this status. "Obote brought significant numbers of northerners into the central state, both through the civil service and military, and created a patronage machine in Northern Uganda". However, both "Bantu" and "Nilotic" labels represent significant ambiguities. The Bantu category for example includes both Buganda and Bunyoro – historically bitter rivals. The Nilotic label includes

4611-450: The ethnic, religious, regional, and personal interests began to shake the party. The party's apparent strength was eroded in a complex sequence of factional conflicts in its central and regional structures. And by 1966, the UPC was tearing itself apart. The conflicts were further intensified by the newcomers who had crossed the parliamentary floor from DP and KY. The UPC delegates arrived in Gulu in 1964 for their delegates conference. Here

4698-427: The general Sudd swamps. Some sources cite the Lol River as a tributary of the Jur while others do not. Some sources say the Jur joins the Bahr al-Arab and the confluence marks the start of the Bahr el Ghazal, but more recent sources say that the Jur joins the Bahr el Ghazal at Lake Ambadi and that the Bahr al-Arab joins the Bahr el Ghazal some distance downriver from Lake Ambadi. According to author Mamdouh Shahin,

4785-410: The government was at war with the Bantu was further enhanced when Obote arrested and imprisoned the mainly Bantu ministers who backed Ibingira. These labels brought into the mix two very powerful influences. First Buganda – the people of Buganda are Bantu and therefore naturally aligned to the Ibingira faction. The Ibingira faction further advanced this alliance by accusing Obote of wanting to overthrow

4872-520: The head of the local district council in 1966. A more worrying fact for the UPC was that the next national elections loomed in 1967 – and without the support of KY (who were now likely to back the DP), and the growing factionalism in the UPC, there was the real possibility that the UPC would be out of power in months. Obote went after KY with a new act of parliament in early 1966 that blocked any attempt by KY to expand outside Buganda. KY appeared to respond in parliament through one of their few remaining MPs,

4959-403: The highest peak in Uganda, which is named Alexandra and measures 5,094 meters. Much of the south of the country is heavily influenced by one of the world's biggest lakes, Lake Victoria, which contains many islands. The most important cities are located in the south, near this lake, including the capital Kampala and the nearby city of Entebbe . Lake Kyoga is in the centre of the country and

5046-521: The hostility of their leader, Benedicto Kiwanuka, towards the Kabaka was hindering their chances of compromise with KY. The trickle of defections turned into a flood when 10 KY members crossed the floor when they realised the formal coalition with the UPC was no longer viable. Obote's charismatic speeches across the country were sweeping all before him, and the UPC was winning almost every local election held and increasing its control over all district councils and legislatures outside Buganda. The response from

5133-417: The imperial powers with which they were aligned. Because of civil unrest and financial burdens, IBEAC claimed that it was unable to "maintain their occupation" in the region. British commercial interests were ardent to protect the trade route of the Nile, which prompted the British government to annex Buganda and adjoining territories to create the Uganda Protectorate in 1894. The Protectorate of Uganda

5220-428: The institutions ineffective and unable to respond to the central government moves. The Kabaka was often regarded as aloof and unresponsive to advice from the younger Buganda politicians who better understood the new post-Independence politics, unlike the traditionalists who were ambivalent to what was going on as long as their traditional benefits were maintained. The Kabaka favoured the neo-traditionalists. In May 1966,

5307-486: The introduction of iron may have allowed Bantu -speakers to migrate south through the region into Buganda no more than 1,500 years ago. From there, they would have continued yet further south. The people who now live along the Congo–Nile divide in South Sudan speak Central Sudanic languages , and include the Kresh people . They once lived to the west of the divide in the region to the south of Lake Chad , but were forced east and south by expanding populations further to

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5394-428: The line of the Virunga Mountains , to the north of Lake Kivu. The Virunga Massif along the border between Rwanda and the DRC consists of eight volcanoes. Two of these, Nyamuragira and Nyiragongo , are still highly active. South of the Virungas, Lake Kivu drains to the south into Lake Tanganyika through the Ruzizi River . Lake Tanganyika then drains into the Congo River via the Lukuga River . It seems likely that

5481-461: The location of the divide was extremely difficult. The technique was to march along a compass bearing until a stream was reached, then to follow it up to its ultimate source, which was often a marsh, and to determine its location. The surveyors suffered from poor food, although there was abundant game, from malaria and from torrential rainfall. It took eighteen months to complete the task. Further reading Uganda Uganda , officially

5568-469: The measure. Presidential elections were held in February 2006. Museveni ran against several candidates, the most prominent of them being Kizza Besigye . On 20 February 2011, the Uganda Electoral Commission declared the incumbent president Yoweri Kaguta Museveni the winning candidate of the 2011 elections that were held on 18 February 2011. The opposition however, were not satisfied with the results, condemning them as full of sham and rigging. According to

5655-405: The official results, Museveni won with 68 percent of the votes. This easily topped his nearest challenger, Besigye, who had been Museveni's physician and told reporters that he and his supporters "downrightly snub" the outcome as well as the unremitting rule of Museveni or any person he may appoint. Besigye added that the rigged elections would definitely lead to an illegitimate leadership and that it

5742-400: The point on the border between the Central African Republic and South Sudan where the Congo and Nile basins meet the Chad Basin , and the southern point in Tanzania to the southwest of Lake Victoria where the boundaries of the Nile and Congo basins diverge and border several endorheic basins in the Gregory Rift , of which the largest are Lake Eyasi in the north and Lake Rukwa in

5829-400: The present hydrological system was established quite recently when the Virunga volcanoes erupted and blocked the northward flow of water from Lake Kivu into Lake Edward , causing it instead to discharge southward into Lake Tanganyika. Before that Lake Tanganyika, or separate sub-basins in what is now the lake, may have had no outlet other than evaporation. In the south, the divide runs from

5916-452: The resistance as an act of treachery, and he denounced the Banyoro in a book ( Ismailia – A Narrative Of The Expedition To Central Africa For The Suppression Of Slave Trade, Organised By Ismail, Khadive Of Egypt (1874)) that was widely read in Britain. Later, the British arrived in Uganda with a predisposition against the kingdom of Bunyoro and sided with the kingdom of Buganda . This would eventually cost Bunyoro half of its territory, which

6003-453: The rest of Buganda. The residents of the counties voted to return to Bunyoro despite the Kabaka's attempts to influence the vote. Having lost the referendum, KY opposed the bill to pass the counties to Bunyoro, thus ending the alliance with the UPC. The tribal nature of Ugandan politics was also manifesting itself in government. The UPC which had previously been a national party began to break along tribal lines when Ibingira challenged Obote in

6090-492: The result because of allegations of widespread fraud and irregularities. Another opposition candidate was 24 year old John Katumba. Uganda is located in southeast Africa between 1º S and 4º N latitude, and between 30º E and 35º E longitude. Its geography is very diverse, consisting of volcanic hills, mountains, and lakes. The country sits at an average of 900 meters above sea level. Both the eastern and western borders of Uganda have mountains. The Ruwenzori mountain range contains

6177-464: The scheme. Parliament overwhelmingly voted in favour of a motion to censure Amin and investigate Obote's involvement. This shook the government and raised tensions in the country. KY further demonstrated its ability to challenge Obote from within his party at the UPC Buganda conference where Godfrey Binaisa (the Attorney General) was ousted by a faction believed to have the backing of KY, Ibingira and other anti-Obote elements in Buganda. Obote's response

6264-674: The slain Christian martyrs. In the mid-to-late 1990s, Museveni was lauded by western countries as part of a new generation of African leaders. His presidency has been marred, however, by invading and occupying the Democratic Republic of the Congo during the Second Congo War , resulting in an estimated 5.4 million deaths since 1998, and by participating in other conflicts in the Great Lakes region of Africa . He has struggled for years in

6351-452: The south, and also from ten smaller rivers flowing from the Congo–Nile divide which together provide 20 billion cubic meters of water annually. The easily traveled northern section of the divide may have been the main route for Bantu expansion to the east and south in the Iron Age . The combination of deforestation due to seed agriculture, cattle ownership and changes in weapons technology with

6438-408: The south. The people who live along the divide are diverse, mainly speaking Central Sudanic languages in the northern parts and Bantu languages further south. The European colonialists used the Congo–Nile divide as a boundary between British-controlled territories to the east and territories controlled by the French and Belgians to the west. This was decided at a time when few Europeans had visited

6525-481: The terminally ill Daudi Ochieng. Ochieng was an irony – although from Northern Uganda, he had risen high in the ranks of KY and become a close confidant to the Kabaka who had gifted him with large land titles in Buganda. In Obote's absence from Parliament, Ochieng laid bare the illegal plundering of ivory and gold from the Congo that had been orchestrated by Obote's army chief of staff, Colonel Idi Amin . He further alleged that Obote, Onama and Neykon had all benefited from

6612-423: The territories north of the borders of Lake Victoria and east of Lake Albert and "south of Gondokoro ," sent a British explorer, Samuel Baker , on a military expedition to the frontiers of Northern Uganda, with the objective of suppressing the slave-trade there and opening the way to commerce and "civilization." The Banyoro resisted Baker, who had to fight a desperate battle to secure his retreat. Baker regarded

6699-408: The territory was extended beyond the borders of Buganda by signing more treaties with the other kingdoms ( Toro in 1900, Ankole in 1901, and Bunyoro in 1933 ) to an area that roughly corresponds to that of present-day Uganda. The status of Protectorate had significantly different consequences for Uganda than had the region been made a colony like neighboring Kenya , insofar as Uganda retained

6786-462: The watershed in a northerly and north-westerly direction." In 1907 D.C.E. Comyn published a survey, Western Sources of the Nile , in the Geographical Journal . He claimed to be the only living "white man who had crossed the headwaters of all the rivers from river Wau to Bahr al-Arab." In 1911 Comyn, in his Service and Sport in the Sudan , described the tributaries of the Nile that came from

6873-456: The west. The Europeans knew little about the area in 1885, when they made the divide the boundary between Belgian and French spheres of influence to the west and the British sphere of influence to the east. The line ran through the territory of the Zande people , who lived in the dense woodland in the extreme southwest of what is now South Sudan and northeast of what is now the Democratic Republic of

6960-469: The west. The route from the south via the rift valley lakes, Nyasa and Tanganyika , was easier, and the Congo–Nile divide from the northwest provided the easiest route. The Ruzizi River, flowing south into Lake Tanganyika, is part of the upper watershed of the Congo River . Nineteenth-century British explorers such as Richard Francis Burton and John Hanning Speke , uncertain of the direction of flow of

7047-660: Was a protectorate of the British Empire from 1894 to 1962. In 1893, the Imperial British East Africa Company transferred its administration rights of territory consisting mainly of the Kingdom of Buganda to the British government. The IBEAC relinquished its control over Uganda after Ugandan internal religious wars had driven it into bankruptcy. In 1894, the Uganda Protectorate was established, and

7134-709: Was elected president in the 2011 , 2016 , and 2021 general elections. Human rights issues, corruption, and regional conflicts, such as involvement in the Congo Wars and the struggle against the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), continue to challenge Uganda. Despite this, it has made progress in education and health, improving literacy and reducing HIV infection, though challenges in maternal health and gender inequality persist. The country's future depends on addressing governance and human rights, while leveraging its natural and human resources for sustainable development. Geographically, Uganda

7221-525: Was evidenced in part by hostilities between the British colonial authorities and Buganda prior to independence. Within Buganda, there were divisions – between those who wanted the Kabaka to remain a dominant monarch and those who wanted to join with the rest of Uganda to create a modern secular state. The split resulted in the creation of two dominant Buganda based parties – the Kabaka Yekka (Kabaka Only) KY, and

7308-439: Was given to Buganda as a reward from the British. Two of the numerous "lost counties" were restored to Bunyoro after independence . In the 1860s, while Arabs sought influence from the north, British explorers searching for the source of the Nile arrived in Uganda. They were followed by British Anglican missionaries who arrived in the kingdom of Buganda in 1877 and French Catholic missionaries in 1879. This situation gave rise to

7395-486: Was the first demonstration as to how Obote was losing control of his party. The battle over the Secretary-General of the party was a bitter contest between the new moderate's candidate – Grace Ibingira and the radical John Kakonge. Ibingira subsequently became the symbol of the opposition to Obote within the UPC. This is an important factor when looking at the subsequent events that led to the crisis between Buganda and

7482-592: Was to arrest Ibingira and other ministers at a cabinet meeting and to assume special powers in February 1966. In March 1966, Obote also announced that the offices of President and vice-president would cease to exist – effectively dismissing the Kabaka. Obote also gave Amin more power – giving him the Army Commander position over the previous holder (Opolot) who had relations to Buganda through marriage (possibly believing Opolot would be reluctant to take military action against

7569-577: Was to run along the Nile–Congo divide until the 11th parallel of northern latitude, and then along the boundary between Darfur and Wadai . Most of this area had not previously been explored by Europeans. A joint Anglo-French surveying party left Khartoum at the end of 1921. The section along the divide from the 11th to 5th parallel, where French Equatorial Africa met the Belgian Congo, was densely wooded and uninhabited. The expedition could not buy food locally, but had to carry all they needed. Pinning down

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