Use | National flag and ensign |
---|---|
Proportion | 2:3 |
Adopted | 9 October 1962 |
Design | Six equal horizontal bands of black (top), yellow, red, black, yellow, and red (bottom); a white disc is superimposed at the centre and depicts the national symbol, a grey crowned crane, facing the hoist side. |
Designed by | Grace Ibingira |
The national flag of Uganda (bendera ya Uganda) was adopted on 9 October 1962, the day that the nation became independent from the British Empire. It consists of six equal horizontal bands of black, yellow, and red from top to bottom. A white disc is superimposed at the centre and depicts the national symbol, a grey crowned crane, facing the hoist's side.
During the colonial era, the British used a Blue Ensign that was defaced with the colonial badge, as prescribed in 1865 regulations. Buganda, the largest of the traditional kingdoms in the colony of Uganda, had its own flag.[1] However, in order to avoid appearing to give preference to one region of the colony over any other, the British colonial authorities selected the crane emblem for use on the Blue Ensign and other official banners.[2]