Kampala is the largest city and capital of Uganda. The city is divided into five boroughs that oversee local planning: Kampala Central Division, Kawempe Division, Makindye Division, Nakawa Division and Lubaga Division. The city is coterminous with Kampala District.
Before the arrival of British, Kabaka of Buganda had chosen the zone that would become Kampala as one of its refuges of hunting. The zone is formed of hills waved and ebullient humid zones, good for several antelopes - particularly impala. When the British arrived at the zone they called Hills of the Impala. The language of baganda, luganda, adopted many words of the English due to the interaction of its speakers with the British. Of this form, baganda translated " the Hills of Impala " like Kasozi ka Empala - " Kasozi" means " colina", " ka" means " de" and " empala" means " impala". When speaking in lugandés, the words ka and empala pronounce meetings, like a single word, Kaampala. Soon, when kabaka was going to hunt baganda said Kabaka agenze and "ka Empala", that means, "Kabaka has gone to Ka'mpala". The Kampala name soon was adopted.
Mutesa I, the Kabaka (king) of Buganda, had chosen the area that was to become Kampala as one of his favorite hunting grounds. The area was made up of hills and wetlands. It was an ideal breeding ground for various game, particularly a species of antelope, the impala (Aepyceros melampus). When the British arrived in the area they called one of the hills 'The Hill of the Impala' due to the large presence of impala. The native Baganda used this reference in their local dialect (Luganda) - 'Akasozi K'empala. It is worth noting that it is not unusual for Luganda to adopt the soundings of English words into the language - for example a car in Luganda is 'emotoka’ (a motor car). So K'empala formally became 'Kampala' with repeated usage, and when the British colonial rulers needed a name for the city they adopted this reference.
The city grew as the capital of the Buganda kingdom, from which several buildings survive, including the Kasubi Tombs (built in 1881), the Lubiri Palace, the Buganda Parliament and the Buganda Court of Justice. Severely damaged in the Uganda-Tanzania War, the city has since then been rebuilt with constructions of new buildings including hotels, banks, shopping malls, educational institutions, hospitals and improvement of war torn buildings and infrastructure. Traditionally, Kampala was a city of seven hills, but over time it has come to have a lot more.
The main campus of Makerere University, one of East and Central Africa's premier institutes of higher learning, can be found in the Makerere Hill area of the City. Kampala is also home to the headquarters of the East African Development Bank, located on Nakasero Hill, and the national Uganda Local Governments Association on Entebbe Road.[4]
Kampala is said to be built on seven hills, although this is not quite accurate.
The first hill in historical importance is Kasubi Hill, which is where the Kasubi Tombs of the previous Kabakas are housed.
The second is Mengo Hill where the present Lubiri (Kabaka's Palace) is and the Headquarters of the Buganda Court of Justice and of the Lukiiko, Bugand's Parliament (Bulange).
The third is Kibuli Hill, which is home to the Kibuli Mosque. Islam was brought to Uganda before Christianity.
The fourth is Namirembe Hill, home to the Namirembe Anglican Cathedral. The Protestants were the first of the Christian missions to arrive.
The fifth is Lubaga Hill, where the Rubaga Catholic Cathedral is, and was the headquarters of the White Fathers.
The sixth Nsambya Hill, was the headquarters of the Mill Hill Mission. It now houses Nsambya Hospital.
The seventh is Kampala Hill, (also known as Old Kampala), meaning "the hill of the impala" and whence Kampala got its name, is where the ruins of Lugard's Fort were. However, the ruins were in 2003 when the Uganda Muslim Supreme Council (UMSC) started on reconstruction of a large mosque (15,000-person capacity) on land that included the fort. The mosque was begun by Idi Amin but was never completed. The fort was then relocated to a nearby area, a move that has since been a source of controversy between the Historic Buildings Conservation Trust (HBCT) of Uganda and the UMSC. The UMSC was given the gazetted land as a gift by President Idi Amin in 1972 during its inauguration.
The city spread to Nakasero Hill where the administrative centre and the wealthiest residential area are. Nakasero is also the location of the most upscale hotels in the city including:
The Grand Imperial Hotel
The Kampala Hilton Hotel
The Kampala Intercontinental Hotel
The Imperial Royale Hotel
The Kampala Serena Hotel
The Kampala Sheraton Hotel
The Kampala Speke Hotel
There is also Tank Hill, where the water storage tanks that supply the city are located. Mulago Hill is the site of Mulago Hospital, the largest hospital in Uganda. The city is now rapidly expanding to include Makindye Hill and Konge Hill. Makindye Division incorporating Kibuli, Tank Hill and Makindye now has over 300,000 residents. Medical provision in this part of town, being more recently developed, is limited. Hospitals include Kibuli Hospital, St. Francis Hospital Nsambya and the International Hospital Kampala (IHK). Philanthropic health services are provided by Hope Clinic Lukuli situated between Tank Hill, Makindye and Konge. Kololo Hill to the east of Nakasero, is the highest hill in the city, at 1,300 metres (4,300 ft) above sea level. The Uganda Museum is located at the foot of Kololo Hill in the neighborhood called Kamwokya.
In 2001, the city limits were substantially expanded to include many of the surrounding communities within the city; including: Namirembe, Naakulabye, Kasubi, Bwaise, Kawempe, Kikaaya, Mpererwe, Lubaga, Nateete, Busega, Mutundwe, Ndeeba, Katwe, Kibuli, Kabalagala, Ntinda, Kiwaatule, Kisaasi; Najjanankumbi; Nakawa, Kyambogo, Nagulu, Bugoloobi, Mbuya, Luzira, Port Bell and Butabika.
The eastern and northeastern suburbs of Banda, Kireka, Bweyogerere, Namanve Kirinnya, Namugongo, Kyaliwajjala, Bulindo and Nsasa, among others, were carved out into a separate municipality called Kira Municipality. Today, Kira Municipality is the second largest town in Uganda with an estimated population of about 180,000 in 2011.[5]
Other features of the city include the Uganda Museum, Ugandan National Theatre, Nakasero Market and St. Balikuddembe Market (formerly Owino Market). Kampala is also known for its nightlife, which includes several casinos, notably Casino Simba in the Garden City shopping center, Kampala Casino and Mayfair Casino. Entebbe International Airport is located at Entebbe, 22 miles (35 km) away, while Port Bell on the shores of Lake Victoria is 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) away.
Kampala hosts one of only seven Bahá'í houses of worship in the world. It is known as the Mother Temple of Africa and is situated on Kikaya Hill on the outskirts of the city. Its foundation stone was laid in January, 1958; it was dedicated on January 13, 1961. See Bahá'í Faith in Uganda.
The Ahmadiyya Central Mosque in Kampala is the central mosque of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, which has six minarets and can hold up to 9,000 worshippers.[6]
Kampala going westwards has Kabaka's Lubiri, the palace of the king of Buganda. Buganda is one of the oldest kingdoms in Africa, dating back to the late 13th century. Other landmarks include the Kasubi tombs, the magnificent mosque at old Kampala, Namirembe and Rubaga Cathedral, at the very edge there is Kasumba Square Mall at the intersection of Northern Bypass and Busega roundabout.
ampala is served by Entebbe International Airport, which is the largest airport in Uganda.
In early 2007, it was announced that Kampala would remove commuter taxis from its streets and replace them with a comprehensive city bus service. (It should be noted that in Kampala the term "taxi" refers to a 15-seater minibus used as public transport.) The bus service was expected to cover the greater Kampala metropolitan area including Mukono, Mpigi, Bombo, Entebbe, Wakiso and Gayaza. The decision is yet to be implemented.[7]
Boda-bodas (local motorcycle transportation) are a popular mode of transport that gives access to many areas within and outside the city. Standard fees for these range from UGX 1,000 to 2,000 or more. Boda-bodas are useful for passing through rush-hour traffic although they are usually poorly maintained and often dangerous. [8]
In January 2007, the mayor of Kampala City announced plans to introduce a congestion fee of Sh30,000 per vehicle per day when the bus network is launched.[9] This decision is also yet to be implemented.
Having successfully completed the Northern Bypass, the government, in collaboration with its stakeholders, now plans to introduce the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system in Kampala by 2014. On 12 March 2012, Pioneer Easy Bus Company, a private transport company, started public bus service in Kampala with an estimated 100 buses each with a 60-passenger capacity (30 seated and 30 standing), acquired from China. Another 422 buses are expected in the country in 2012 to complement the current fleet. The buses operate 24 hours daily. The company has a concession to provide public transportation in the city for the next five years.
Kampala has a tropical rainforest climate (Af),[12] however, due to the city’s higher altitudes, average temperatures are noticeably cooler than what is typically seen in other cities with this type of climate. Kampala seldom gets very hot during the year; the warmest month is January.[citation needed]
Another facet of Kampala’s weather is that it features two annual wet seasons. There is a long rainy season from August through December and a short rainy season from February through June. However, the shorter rainy season sees substantially heavier rainfall per month, with April typically seeing the heaviest amount of precipitation at an average of around 175 mm of rain.
ampala has a diverse ethnic population, although the Baganda, the local ethnic group, make up over 60% of the greater Kampala region. The city's ethnic makeup has been defined by political and economic factors. During the rule of Milton Obote and Idi Amin, who were both from northern Uganda, a significant number of northern Ugandans moved to Kampala from the 1950s until the mid-1980s. Most served in the armed forces and the police around the areas where the military and police barracks were located - Ntinda, Naguru, Bugolobi and Mbuya. With the overthrow of Milton Obote in 1986, many northern Ugandans left the city. At the same time, a large number of western Ugandans, particularly the Banyankole, moved to the capital, reflecting the large proportion of western Ugandans in the new government of Yoweri Museveni.[15]
The mismanagement of Uganda's economy during the 1970s and 1980s meant that there were fewer employment opportunities outside Kampala. This encouraged many people from around the country to move into the city, and some have not moved back to their home districts after the revitalization of the economy in the 1990s and 2000s.[citation needed]
Inter-tribal marriage in Uganda is still rare, and although many Kampala residents have been born and raised in the city, they still define themselves by their tribal roots and speak their ancestral language. This is more evident in the suburbs, where tribal languages are spoken widely alongside English, Swahili and Luganda. In addition to the Baganda and Banyankole, other large ethnic groups include the Basoga, Bafumbira, Batoro, Bakiga, Alur, Bagisu, Banyoro, Iteso, Langi and Acholi.
The national census in 2002 estimated the population of the city at 1,189,142. The Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) estimated the population of Kampala at 1,420,200 in 2008. In 2011, UBOS estimated the mid-year population of the city at 1,659,600.
