Mubende is a town in the Central Region of Uganda. It is the main municipal, administrative, and commercial center of Mubende District and the location of the district headquarters.[2]
Location
Mubende is approximately 150 kilometres (93 mi), by road, west of Kampala, the capital of Uganda and its largest city.[3] The town is located about 145 kilometres (90 mi) east of the city of Fort Portal along the Mubende–Kyegegwa–Kyenjojo–Fort Portal Road.[4] The geographical coordinates of the town are 0°33'27.0"N, 31°23'42.0"E (Latitude:0.5575; Longitude:31.3950).[5] Mubende Town sits at an average elevation of 1,408 metres (4,619 ft) above mean sea level.[6]
The Nakayima tree found in Mubende Hill at Nakayima Shrine.
Mubende is home to the Nakayima Shrine, said to hold the spirit of Ndahura, a former Bacwezi king.[7] The site, located about 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) outside of the town's central business district, is marked by the Nakayima Tree. Large root buttresses, which form nooks and fissures, lie at the base of the tree.
The shrine is located on top of Mubende Hill, rising 213 metres (699 ft) above the surrounding terrain to a peak of 1,533 metres (5,030 ft) above sea level. The hill has a flat top where an ancient palace once stood.[8] The shrine is visited by people paying homage to the matriarch Nakayima of the Bachwezi, believed to be semi-gods, whose dynasty ruled this region in the period prior to 1,300 AD.[9]
Population
The 2002 national census estimated the population of Mubende to be 16,000. In 2010, the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) estimated the population at 21,400. In 2011, UBOS estimated the mid-year population at 22,200.[10] In 2014, the national population census put the population of the town at 103,473.[1] In 2020 UBOS estimated the mid-population of Mubende Town at 121,600 people. The population agency calculated the annual population growth rate of Mubende at 2.8 percent, on average, from 2014 until 2020.[11]
