Vibrant drumbeats, the wooden trumpet called Agwara, Adungu (a bow harp), and fiddle music filled the air at Kaunda Grounds in Gulu City, northern Uganda.
These sounds powered every sweeping dance move from Otole and Bwola to Laraka-raka at a festival that has replaced memories of past gunshots with celebration.
For many years, Gulu was a place accustomed to the sharp reports of gunfire. Now, the city is being recognized for its cleanliness and vitality a transformation showcased during the 10 day celebration called Oktoberfest, inspired by Munich’s famous festival yet adapted to fit Uganda’s culture and tourism landscape.
Gulu rich in heritage and resilient despite its troubled past was chosen as the location for Uganda’s inaugural Oktoberfest.
The festival welcomed a delegation of visitors from Germany in a spirit of intercultural exchange. Among them was Dr. Wolfgang Wiedmann, the German honorary consul’s representative in Uganda (representing Munich’s mayor), who explained the origins of Munich’s Oktoberfest: it began with a royal wedding in Bavaria in October 1810 and merged with a centuries-long beer-drinking tradition tied to harvest’s end.
The festive atmosphere in Gulu remained high throughout, with the energy undiminished from sunrise to sunset.
Jann Engel, one of the German guests, said she was amazed that Uganda was hosting this festival for the first time and that it had drawn such large crowds.
The cultural showcase included German style beer, Acholi traditional cuisine, live musical performances, and dances.
David Onen Acana II, Paramount Chief of Acholi, encouraged local people to heal from the traumas of past insurgencies, especially the Lord’s Resistance Army conflict. He urged them to draw strength from their rich culture as a foundation for recovery and rebuilding.
Gulu City Mayor Alfred Okwonga said that if Oktoberfest becomes an annual event, it will symbolize the city’s transformation from war-torn backwater to thriving center of trade and growth.
Over 200 local businesses set up exhibitions at Kaunda Grounds during the festival. Juliana Kagwa, CEO of the Uganda Tourism Board (UTB), said that with yearly recurrence, Oktoberfest would not only bring more tourists to Northern Uganda but also boost local enterprises.
According to performance reports from UTB spokesperson Dr. Simlicious Gessa, Uganda’s tourism industry saw strong recovery in 2024: international arrivals rose 7.7%, from 1,274,210 in 2023 to 1,371,895. Germany is now among the top source markets by mid-2024, 4,223 German tourists had visited, and Europe overall contributed 39,596 arrivals.