Islam
Islam arrived in Uganda from the north and through inland networks of the East African coastal trade by the mid-nineteenth century. Muslims today are more prevalent in the south-central and eastern parts of Uganda than in the north or southwest. Approximately 16% of the Ugandan population claim Islam as their religion. Kibuli Mosque, the first mosque in Kampala, stands on Kibuli Hill. The early building has been replaced by a mosque built in 1941.
The imposing Old Kampala Mosque, (also known as the National Mosque or Gaddafi Mosque) was completed in 2006 with money from Libya, mainly Muammar al-Gaddafi. The mosque itself was started by the late Ugandan dictator Idi Amin in the 1970s but the project stalled after the dictator’s overthrow. It is said that the mosque can hold 5,000-9,000 worshippers, depending on sources.
There are many small mosques in the rural areas.
