Some Information about Mbale

Mbale District

Mbale lies approximately 237 kilometers (147 mi), by road, northeast of Kampala, on an all weather tarmac highway. The coordinates of the city are: 01 04 50N, 34 10 30E. Mbale is well connected with the rest of Uganda and Kenya through their tarmac road networks and along the main trading route to South Sudan.

Mbale is one of the biggest towns in Eastern Uganda with about 100,000 population, and therefore a regional trading hub, serving the hinterlands of Teso region and Karamoja. It is cuddled onto the foothills of the biggest extinct volcanoe (70 x 50 km)on the earth's surface, the Mount Elgon (Wagagai, 4321m), locally called Masaba. Nights are generally cool and days can become quite hot, especially during the dry season.

The slopes of Mount Elgon offer scenic panorama views reaching hundreds of kilometers into the African plains of Uganda and Kenya. Quite many waterfalls are skirting these slopes, some of them plunging down almost 100m! Here the best Ugandan Coffee is grown, processed and exported mainly to Japan and Switzerland, which already indicates its high quality. The primary economic activity in the district is agriculture. Some of the main crops are coffee, beans, Matooke, maize, onions, potatoes, carrots, and sweet potatoes

Mbale town is a small city but with a bustling population. The town centre is well laid out and has a slightly oriental touch, dominated by Indian and colonial architecture. Of the 1,200,000 people in the district, 90% are considered rural and illiteracy rates are as high as 40%. Most schools are affected with poor staffing, inadequate physical facilities, and underdeveloped curriculum.

The local Hotel industry offers some of its best in Uganda, the top end reaching three to four stars according to international standards. It has many restaurants, internet cafes, and tourist opportunities. The local food delicacy is smoked bamboo shoots (Malewa) from the slopes of Mount Elgon, best served with posho (maize flour).Tourism is booming due to high security, attractive offers as well as tranquility. Sports and leisure offers include two swimming pools, a clay tennis court, a lovely mini golf course, sauna and steam bath, gymns, mountaineering, mountain biking, paragliding, forest walks etc. The 18 hole golf course is not maintained.