Page 27 - April-May-2019 Edition

ABOUT UGANDA

and Karamojong, who are related to the Maasai and who also speak Nilotic
languages. Pygmies live in the forest of the west.
Uganda is home to many different ethnic groups, none of whom forms a
majority of the population. Around forty different languages are regularly
and currently in use in the country. English became the official language of
Uganda after independence. Ugandan English is a local variant dialect.
The most widely spoken local language in Uganda is Luganda, spoken
predominantly by the Ganda people (Buganda) in the urban concentrations
of Kampala, the capital city and in towns and localities in the Buganda
region of Uganda, which encompasses Kampala. The Lusoga and Runyan-
kore-Rukiga languages follow, spoken predominantly in the south-eastern
and south-western parts of Uganda respectively. Swahili, a widely used
language throughout eastern and central East Africa, was approved as the
country’s second official national language in 2005,[28] though this is
somewhat politically sensitive. Though the Bantu-speaking population of the
south and southwest of the country has not favoured the language, it is an
important lingua franca in the northern regions. It is also widely used in the
police and military forces, which may be a historical result of the
disproportionate recruitment of northerners into the security forces during
the colonial period. The status of Swahili has thus alternated with the political
group in power. For example, Amin, who came from the northwest, declared
Swahili to be the national language.
RELIGION
According to the census of 2002, Christians made up about 84% of Uganda’s
population. The Roman Catholic Church has the largest number of
adherents (41.9%), followed by the Anglican Church of Uganda (35.9%).
Evangelical and Pentecostal churches claim the rest of the Christian popula-
tion. There’s a growing number of Presbyterian denominations like the
Presbyterian Church in Uganda, the Reformed Presbyterian Church in
Uganda and the Evangelical Free Church in Uganda with hundreds of
affiliating congregations. The next most reported religion of Uganda is Islam,
with Muslims representing 12% of the population.
The Muslim population is primarily Sunni. There are also minorities who are
Shia (7%), Ahmadiyya (4%) and those that are non-denominational Muslims,
Sufi Muslims or Muwahhid Muslims. The remainder of the population follow
traditional religions (1%), Baha’i (0.1%), other non-Christian religions (0.7%),
or have no religious affiliation (0.9%). The Muslims in Uganda are allowed to
practice polygamy, and divorce is very rare.
The northern and West Nile regions are predominantly Catholic, while the
Iganga District in eastern Uganda has the highest percentage of Muslims.
The rest of the country has a mix of religious affiliations.
Prior to the advent of religions such as Christianity and Islam, traditional
indigenous beliefs were practiced as a means of ensuring welfare of the
people were maintained at all times. Even today in contemporary times,
these practices are rife in some rural areas and are sometimes blended with
or practiced alongside Christianity or Islam.
In addition to a small community of Jewish expatriates centered in Kampala,
Uganda is home to the Abayudaya, a native Jewish community dating from
the early 1900s. One of the world’s seven Bahá’í Houses of Worship is located
on the outskirts of Kampala. Indian nationals are the most significant
immigrant population; members of this community are primarily Ismaili
(Shi’a Muslim followers of the Aga Khan) or Hindu

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