Population and Demographics

Africans of three main ethnic groups - Bantu, Nilotic, and Central-Sudanic (traditionally called Nilo-Hamitic) - constitute most of the population.

The Bantu are the most numerous and include:

• Baganda in the central area (18%)
• Basoga in the south-eastern area (11%)
• Banyankole in the south-western area (8%)
• Bakiga in the most south-western area (8%)
• Banyaruanda in the south-western area (6%)
• Banyoro in the mid-western area (3%)
• Batoro/Batooro in the mid-western area (3%)
• Bahima in the south-western area (2%)

Residents of the north, largely Nilotic, are the next largest group, including the Langi, 6%, and the Acholi, 4%. In the northwest are the Lugbara, 4%. The Karamojong, 2%, occupy the considerably drier, largely pastoral territory in the northeast. Europeans, Asians, and Arabs make up about 1% of the population with other groups accounting for the remainder.

Uganda's population is predominantly rural, and its density population highest in the southern regions. Until 1972, Asians constituted the largest non-indigenous ethnic group in Uganda. In that year, the Idi Amin regime expelled 50,000 Asians, who had been engaged in trade, industry, and various professions. In the years since Amin's overthrow in 1979, they have slowly returned.

Christians of all denominations made up the majority of Uganda's population. The Catholic Church has the largest number of adherents, followed by the Anglican Church of Uganda. The remaining population adhere to indigenous beliefs (18%) or Islam (16%).

The average age in Uganda is 15, the lowest in the world.

AIDS

Uganda has been hailed as a rare success story in the fight against HIV and AIDS, widely being viewed as the most effective national response to the pandemic in sub-Saharan Africa. President Museveni established the AIDS Control Program (ACP) within the Ministry of Health (MOH) to create policy guidelines for Uganda's fight against HIV/AIDS. Uganda soon realised that HIV/AIDS was more than a 'health' issue and in 1992 created a "Multi-sectoral AIDS Control Approach".

In addition, the Uganda AIDS Commission, also founded in 1992, has been instrumental in developing a national HIV/AIDS policy. A variety of approaches to AIDS education have been employed, ranging from the promotion of condom use to 'abstinence only' programmes. To further Uganda's efforts in establishing a comprehensive HIV/AIDS program, in 2000 the MOH birth practices and safe infant feeding counselling. According to the WHO, around 41,000 women received PMTCT services in 2001. Uganda was the first country to open a VCT clinic in Africa and pioneered the concept of voluntary HIV testing centres in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Facts and Figures

• Population: 28,195,754
• Age Structure:
  • 0-14 years: 50% (male 7,091,763/female 6,996,385)
  • 15-64 years: 47.8% (male 6,762,071/female 6,727,230)
  • 65 years and over: 2.2% (male 266,931/female 351,374)
• Median Age:
  • Total: 15 years
  • Male: 14.9 years
  • Female: 15.1 years
• Population Growth Rate: 3.37%
• Birth Rate: 47.35 births/1,000 population
• Death Rate: 12.24 deaths/1,000 population
• Net Migration Rate: -1.4 migrant(s)/1,000 population
• Sex Ratio:
  • At birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
  • Under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
  • 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
  • 65 years and over: 0.76 male(s)/female
  • Total population: 1 male(s)/female
• Infant Mortality Rate:
  • Total: 66.15 deaths/1,000 live births
  • Male: 69.51 deaths/1,000 live births
  • Female: 62.69 deaths/1,000 live births
• Life Expectancy at Birth:
  • Total population: 52.67 years
  • Male: 51.68 years
  • Female: 53.69 years
• Total Fertility Rate: 6.71 children born/woman
• HIV/AIDS:
  • Adult prevalence rate: 4.1%
  • People living with HIV/AIDS: 530,000
• Ethnic Groups:
  • Baganda 17%,
  • Ankole 8%
  • Basoga 8%
  • Iteso 8%
  • Bakiga 7%
  • Langi 6%
  • Rwanda 6%
  • Bagisu 5%
  • Acholi 4%
  • Lugbara 4%
  • Batoro 3%
  • Bunyoro 3%
  • Alur 2%
  • Bagwere 2%
  • Bakonjo 2%
  • Jopodhola 2%
  • Karamojong 2%
  • Rundi 2%
  • Non-African (European, Asian, Arab) 1%
  • Other 8%
• Religions:
  • Roman Catholic 33%
  • Protestant 33%
  • Indigenous beliefs 18%
  • Muslim 16%
• Languages:
  • English (official national language, taught in grade schools, used in courts of law and by most newspapers and some radio broadcasts)
  • Ganda or Luganda (most widely used of the Niger-Congo languages, preferred for native language publications in the capital and may be taught in school
  • Other Niger-Congo languages
  • Nilo-Saharan languages
  • Swahili
  • Arabic
• Literacy:
  • Total population: 69.9%
  • Male: 79.5%
  • Female: 60.4%