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10 Facts About Uganda You Never Knew

Located in East Africa, Uganda is a landlocked country with diverse landscape, abundant wildlife, and disturbing history. Keep going for some interesting facts about what is officially called the ‘Republic of Uganda’!
Sucheta Pradhan
“For magnificence, for variety of form and color, for profusion of brilliant life — bird, insect, reptile, beast — for vast scale — Uganda is truly the Pearl of Africa.”
-Winston Churchill
Uganda is one of the youngest countries in all of Africa. About 48% of Ugandans are of the age of 14 or less, and only 2% of the Ugandan population is over the age of 65.
Uganda is home to the 3rd-largest lake in the world. Lake Victoria is also the world’s largest tropical lake. Within the lake, there are about 85 different islands.
Uganda is also home to the 3rd-largest mountain peak in Africa. The snow-capped Rwenzori Mountains are situated within the Rwenzori National Park that boasts over 217 bird species.
One of the smallest chapels in the world is in Uganda. The Chapel on Biku Hill is a small stone structure that can only accommodate three people at a time, including the pastor.
Earth’s equator, the imaginary line that divides the planet into Northern and Southern Hemispheres, runs through Uganda. It is mapped some 47 miles south of Kampala, the Ugandan capital.
The Grey Crowned Crane, scientifically known as Balearica regulorum gibbericeps, is Uganda’s national bird and also its national emblem. It is the only species of cranes that nest in trees.
Starting in the early 1970s, the infamous dictator of Uganda, Idi Amin, spearheaded ethnic cleansing and commanded to kill nearly 300,000 people. Owing to this, he was named the “Butcher of Uganda”.
Primarily an agrarian economy, one of the indigenous produces exported from Uganda in large quantities is coffee.
They export both Arabica and Robusta varieties of coffee all over the world, including the US and Switzerland.
Uganda has abundant wildlife, boasting numerous indigenous species of wild animals, some of which are unique to the region. From the famous African elephant and northern white rhinoceros to African leopards and gorillas, this country has it all!
Fried Grasshopper is a delicacy in Uganda. It is quite common to invite someone in a Ugandan household and serve them a plate of fried grasshoppers.