Sub-division Sebei sub-region Time zone EAT (UTC+3) Area 524.9 km² | Website www.bukwo.go.ug | |
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Bukwo District is a district in the Eastern Region of Uganda. The town of Bukwo is its main political, administrative, and commercial center and the site of the district headquarters.
Contents
Map of Bukwo, Uganda
Location
Bukwo District is bordered by Amudat District to the north, Kenya to the east and south, and Kween District to the west and northwest. The town of Nukwo is approximately 83 kilometres (52 mi), by road, northeast of Mbale, the nearest large city. The coordinates of the district are 01 16N, 34 44E.
Overview
The district was created on 1 July 2005. Before then, Bukwo District was part of Kapchorwa District. It was created out of Kongasis county.
The district has many well-educated people, but many have left to find greater prosperity in the neighbouring country of Kenya.
Many of the district's roads are inaccessible or impassable. There is a widespread lack of electricity and telecommunication services throughout the district. The various Ugandan governments have not developed this part of the country, starting with the colonial governments in the early part of the 20th century, through the Obote I, Idi Amin, Obote II, and National Resistance Movement regimes.
Many of the inhabitants of Bukwo District live in abject poverty. The district is also plagued by persistent insecurity due to cattle raids and cattle rustling by ethnic groups from Karamoja located in northeastern Uganda and the Turkana and Pokot peoples from neighbouring Kenya. These challenges date to the 1950s and 1960s.
Most of the people from the northern part of the district have been internally displaced by cattle rustlers and have since not been resettled back in their original land. Some of these people opted to purchase land from areas that appeared secure while others who could not afford to purchase new land continue to exist as squatters on well-wishers' land.
Population
In 1991, the national population census estimated the district population at 30,700. The national census in 2002 estimated the population at 49,000, with an annual population growth rate of 4.2 percent. In 2012, the population was estimated at 73,400.