Kampala

Kampala (kämpäˈlä) [key], city (2002 pop. 1,189,142), capital of Uganda, on Lake Victoria. It is Uganda's largest city and its administrative, communications, economic, and transportation center. Manufactures include processed foods, beverages, furniture, and machine parts. Agricultural exports include coffee, cotton, tea, and sugar. It is linked by railroad with Kasese, a mining center in SW Uganda, and with Mombasa, Kenya, on the Indian Ocean coast. Steamers on Lake Victoria link the city with ports in Kenya and Tanzania. An international airport is nearby, at Entebbe. Kampala grew up around a fort constructed (1890) by Capt. Frederick Lugard for the British East Africa Company. In 1962, Kampala replaced Entebbe as the capital of Uganda. Despite its proximity (20 mi/32 km) to the equator, the city has a moderate climate, largely because of its altitude (c.4,000 ft/1,220 m). The city is built on and around six hills and has modern government and commercial quarters as well as wide avenues that fan out toward the surrounding suburbs. Much of the city was destroyed after the overthrow (1979) of Idi Amin's dictatorship and subsequent civil war. With the coming of the Museveni regime in 1986, Kampala enjoyed relative stability, and foreign investment provided funding for the rehabilitation of the city's infrastructure and the restoration of services. Kampala is the seat of the East African Development Bank and Makerere Univ.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2012, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.