Flag of Uganda

What the flag means

Black, yellow and red were the colours of the Uganda People's Congress, which won the April 1962 election. Whitney Smith explained them as the people of Africa, sunshine and brotherhood. The crested crane is the national bird and had been the badge of the British protectorate.

History

A committee chaired by Senteza Kajubi proposed a provisional flag in March 1962. After the Uganda People's Congress won the election, a cabinet sub-committee chaired by Justice Minister Grace Ibingira chose a new design based on the party's flag. The cabinet and the British colonial authorities approved it, and it was raised at independence on 9 October 1962.

The British picked the crested crane for the colonial badge because they wanted a symbol that was not tied to any one region.

Earlier flags of Uganda

1. 1914–1962British Blue Ensign with a colonial badge showing a crested crane

Flags of Uganda's neighbours

• DR Congo
• Kenya
• Rwanda
• South Sudan
• Tanzania