Demographics trend during the past two decades

Lira City was still at municipal level in the past two decades and had not yet gained its city status. Lira Municipality (currently Lira City) had a population of 80,879 in 2002 and 99,059 by 2014 census with a growth rate of 1.7 as reported by UBOS.

Geographical Location

Lira City is located in Northern Uganda, Lango Sub region. It is geographically located at latitude 20’ 17' north of the equator and longitude 32’ 56' east of the principal meridian. The City is bordered by Pader district in the North, Otuke district to the Northeast, Alebtong district to the East, Dokolo district to the Southeast, Kwania district to the Southwest, and Kole district to the West. It is the chief Town of Lira City. It is located 110 kilometers Southeast of Gulu, the largest City in the Northern region. It is 320 kilometers North of Kampala.

Demographic characteristics of Lira City

Population Size and Structure

Population: 

Lira Municipality (currently Lira City) had a population of 80,879 in 2002 and 99,059 by 2014 census with a growth rate of 1.7 as reported by UBOS.

Official language: 

English is the official language spoken and the main local language is Langi although other local languages like Acholi etc are also spoken.

Households Distribution

Population distribution is a term that is used to describe how people are spread across a specific area. In Lira city, population distribution is uneven. There are divisions which are sparsely populated, that is, contain few people. Some divisions especially those which are peri urban are densely populated, thus containing many people. Densely populated divisions are indeed habitable environments motivated by availability of good social services.

Household Characteristics

Population Density

The Population Density is a measure of the degree of crowding of an area. The Population Density is given in terms of persons per square kilometer of land area. The total land area for Lira City is 1,326 square kilometers. The population density was 307 persons per square kilometers of land in 2014.

Table 1.7 below shows that the population density increased from 307 persons per square kilometers in 2014 to 451 persons per square kilometers in 2030.

Characteristics of the hinterlands.

Land Size

The City covers approximately a total area  of which 3.1% constitute forest reserves, wetlands and geomorphic landforms. City East division is the largest compared to City West

Geology and Soils

The soils of Lira City are categorized as ferruginous sandy loam. The soil has a high percentage of sandy soil and therefore it is vulnerable to erosion. Since the soil is sandy in nature, it has a low water retention capacity and a high rate of water infiltration and this implies the moisture content of the soil is generally low. The colour of the soil is grayish brown in many places but gray clay with poor drainage. The poor drainage of the soils in the swampy area coupled with the high-water retention capacity makes swampy areas water logged.

Topography and vegetation: 

Lira City lies at an approximate altitude ranging from 900 to 1500 metres above sea level. It is principally gentle undulating land merging into isolated rock outcrops. The City is covered by Savanna Vegetation dominated by combretum spp, Acacia spp, Termmalia and Butyspernumparadoxicum in the Eastern and Northern part of the City. 

Climate and Rainfall

The average minimum and maximum temperatures are 22.50C and 25.50C respectively. Absolute maximum temperature hardly goes beyond 360C and absolute minimum hardly falls below 200C.The Equatorial Trough which brings rainfall passes over the city. The South easterly wind which also brings rains to the city passes over City. Land and sea breezes are common in the city. Wind run is low (14m/sec) during the rainy season and moderate (48m/sec) during the dry season.