Arua District | |
---|---|
Coordinates: 03°00′N31°10′E / 3.000°N 31.167°E | |
Country | Uganda |
Region | Northern Uganda |
Sub-region | West Nile sub-region |
Capital | Arua |
Area | |
• Land | 3,236.4 km2 (1,249.6 sq mi) |
Population (2012 Estimate) | |
• Total | 776,700 |
• Density | 240/km2 (600/sq mi) |
Time zone | UTC+3 (EAT) |
Website | www |
Arua District is a district in the Northern Region of Uganda. Like many Ugandan districts, it too shares its name with its administrative center of Arua. The name Arua is said to be derived from the Lugbara name for prison (Arujo) and prisoner (Aru), since the white settlers (Belgians and later British) had a detention center at Arua Hill.
Arua District is bordered by Yumbe District to the north, Adjumani District to the northeast, Amuru District to the east, Nebbi District to the southeast, Zombo District to the southwest, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to the west, and Maracha District to the northwest. The district headquarters at Arua are located about 425 kilometres (264 mi), by road, northwest of Kampala, the capital and largest city of Uganda. [1] The coordinates of the district are:03 00N, 31 10E.[ citation needed ]
The largest ethnic group in the district is the Lugbara people.[ citation needed ]
Arua District got its name from Arua town. In the late 1970s, the Ugandan president at the time Godfrey Binaisa declared that all districts/provinces acquire their names from their regional capital so that is how Arua district inherited the name from Arua town.[ citation needed ] The district originally included Aringa County, which was later split off to become Yumbe District.
The district is the birthplace of former President Idi Amin. Arua District was a springboard for some units of the Uganda People's Defense Force who entered the DRC at the beginning of the Second Congo War.
Arua District is a peaceful district save for the disruption caused in the late 1990s by the Lord's Resistance Army rebels on the Karuma-Pakwach road that provides the main road link into the district. In 2005, the northeastern part of the district was split off as the separate, new district of Koboko District.
Arua District has five counties after three of the original six counties were split off. Koboko was granted district status. Maracha was, in 2006, also granted district status, (Maracha District). Initially, Terego County was also included in Maracha District (Maracha-Terego District). However, failing to agree on were the new district headquarters should be located, Terego County opted to remain part of the larger Arua District. Later, Terego and Madi-Okollo were each offered district statuses effective July 2020. The remaining counties in Arua District are: Vurra and Ayivu; where the Arua District headquarters are located.
The 1991 national census estimated the population of the district at about 368,200. In 2002, the national census gave a population estimate of 559,100, with an annual growth rate of 4 percent. In 2012, the population of Arua District was estimated at 776,700. [2]
Located in a corner of the country that borders both South Sudan and the DRC, a significant amount of local economic activity is the result of cross-border trade. Agriculture is the backbone of Arua District's economy:
Due to a high influx of refugees from South Sudan (estimated at 50,000 at one time), the natural environment in the district has been severely stressed, causing deforestation in some areas. The refugee population extensively engages in the growth of tobacco to raise cash for survival thus putting severe pressure on the land.
In 2008 and 2009, honey is steadily replacing tobacco as a leading income stream, with a ready international market. Piggery is also on the increase in the district. The district produces about 30 tons of fish from over 600 private fish farms and from the River Nile. The district has about 117,000 head of local Zebu cattle. However the district milk output remains low.
The biggest asset of the district is perhaps the continued prevalence of peace and security for the last 25 years and denunciation of rebellion which has attracted many developmental projects. Major achievements include infrastructural transformation such as the tarmacking of the Arua to Karuma Highway, the West Nile Rural Electrification Project and numerous telephone communication networks that have been established in the region. During 2013, the tarmacking of the Vurra-Arua-Koboko-Oraba Road began. [3]
Yumbe District is a district in Northern Region, Uganda. Like most other Ugandan districts, it is named after its 'chief town', Yumbe, where the district headquarters are located.
Arua is a city and commercial centre within the Arua District in the Northern Region of Uganda.
Koboko District is a district in the Northern Region of Uganda. The town of Koboko is the site of the district headquarters.
The Lugbara are a Central Sudanic ethnic group who live primarily in the West Nile region of Uganda, in the adjoining area of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) with a few living in South Sudan. They speak the Lugbara language, a Central Sudanic language similar to the language spoken by the Madi, with whom they also share many cultural similarities.
Koboko is a town in Northern Region of Uganda. It is the main municipal, administrative, and commercial centre of Koboko District. Koboko is also the hometown of former dictator Idi Amin who ruled Uganda from 1971 to 1979.
Lugbara, or Lugbarati, is the language of the Lugbara people. It is spoken in the West Nile region in northwestern Uganda, as well as the Democratic Republic of the Congo's Orientale Province with a little extension to the South Sudan as the Zande or Azande people.
Ombaci, also Ombachi, is a neighborhood in Arua City in the Northern Region of Uganda.
Simon Ejua is a Ugandan politician. He was the state minister for transport in the Ugandan Cabinet from 1 June 2006 until 27 May 2011. He survived the cabinet reshuffle of 16 February 2009. In the cabinet reshuffle of 27 May 2011, he was dropped from the cabinet and was replaced by Stephen Chebrot He also served as the elected Member of Parliament, representing Vurra County, Arua District, from 2006 until 2011. In the 2011 national elections, he lost his parliamentary seat to Sam Agatre Okuonzi, an independent politician, who is the incumbent MP for that constituency.
Tara is a subcounty at the north-eastern end of Maracha District of Uganda. It is an area endowed with rocks and is neighboured in the Northwest by Koboko; to the Northeast by Yumbe; to the East by Omugo subcounty plus to the South by Nyadri. Other subcounties in Maracha include Yivu, Aiivu, Oleba, Uriama, Omugo and Nyadri.
Agofe is the noble title for the chief cultural leader among all the Lugbara people or King of Lado Kingdom which covers the regions of West Nile, Ituri, Torit, Uele and Yei. The term means 'Pillar' or 'Paramount Chief' but a king is also called opi in Lugbara; an opi is usually the clan leader of a lineage. Around 1967, President Milton Obote abolished kingdoms, then the 1995 Constitution reinstated cultural institutions but the Lugbara only chose county chiefs. In 2012, the Government of Uganda finally recognised this revised Agofe institution. The Agofe's duty will be to preserve Lugbara culture through literature and other assignments.
Barifa Forest is a forest near Arua in the Northern Region of Uganda. Located southeast of Arua Hill, it extends up to Mvara and Muni. It was gazetted in 1948 but may soon be degazetted after consultations to pave way for the Nile Eco-City, a satellite city in Arua Municipality. The new forest will be located in Logiri, Vurra County.
Mount Wati is one of the highest mountains in West Nile. It is located in Terego District, near the border with Maracha. The peak of Mount Wati also known as Eti is referred to as Ortega Peak. This followed a 28 February 2024 group hike. The Ranges next to it include the Offude Hills. Rebels used to hide there and monitor advancing government soldiers. It is also reported to harbour big snakes that use lights for trapping prey at night. Its elevation is approximately 1250 meters above sea level.
Vurra is a town in Uganda.
Vurra–Arua–Koboko–Oraba Road is a road in the Northern Region of Uganda, connecting the town of Vurra at the International border with the Democratic Republic of the Congo with the city of Arua, the town of Koboko, and the town of Oraba at the International border with the Republic of South Sudan.
Maracha is a town in the West Nile sub-region, in Northern Uganda. It is the main municipal, administrative and commercial center of Maracha District and the headquarters of the district are located there. The district is named after the town.
St. Joseph's College Ombaci is a boys-only boarding middle and high school located in Arua City in the Northern Region of Uganda.
Mvara Secondary School is a mixed, co-educational secondary school in Arua District in the Northern Region of Uganda.
St. Joseph's Hospital Maracha, also Maracha Hospital, is a hospital in Maracha District, in the West Nile sub-region of the Northern Region of Uganda. It is a private, community hospital, serving the district of Maracha and surrounding communities.
Lugbara Kari refers to the official traditional and cultural institution of all Lugbara people on Earth and headed by the Agofe.
Bako Christine Abia is a Ugandan politician and she was the Arua District woman Member of Parliament in the eighth and ninth Parliament of Uganda. She belongs to the Forum for Democratic Change political party.