Waragi (pronounced , also known as kasese) is a generic term in
Uganda
}), is a landlocked country in East Africa
East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territor ...
for domestic
distilled beverage
Liquor (or a spirit) is an alcoholic drink produced by distillation of grains, fruits, vegetables, or sugar, that have already gone through alcoholic fermentation. Other terms for liquor include: spirit drink, distilled beverage or hard li ...
s. Waragi is also given different names, depending on region of origin, the distillation process, or both. Waragi is known as a form of homemade
Gin. The term "Waragi" is synonymous with locally distilled gin in all parts of Uganda. However,
Uganda Waragi
East African Breweries Limited, commonly referred to as EABL, is a Kenyan-based holding company that manufactures branded beer, spirits, and non-alcoholic beverages.
Overview
The group's headquarters are located in Nairobi, Kenya, with subsi ...
is a particular brand of industrially distilled gin produced by
East African Breweries Limited
East African Breweries Limited, commonly referred to as EABL, is a Kenyan-based holding company that manufactures branded beer, spirits, and non-alcoholic beverages.
Overview
The group's headquarters are located in Nairobi, Kenya, with subsi ...
. Other brands of distilled gin which are done by individuals at small scale are also available, but they are also unique and different from each other. The most common are: 1. "Kasese-Kasese" which was originally distilled in the district of Kasese in western Uganda and sold all over the country; 2. "Lira-Lira" which first originated in Lira district in northern Uganda and sold all over the country as well. These two brands "waragi" have different tastes and scents from each other. The distillation process in both cases produce highly distilled gin at the level produced industrially.
Moonshining
Moonshine is high-proof liquor that is usually produced illegally. The name was derived from a tradition of creating the alcohol during the nighttime, thereby avoiding detection. In the first decades of the 21st century, commercial dist ...
and consumption of waragi and other alcoholic beverages is widespread in Uganda. In the 2004
WHO
Who or WHO may refer to:
* Who (pronoun), an interrogative or relative pronoun
* Who?, one of the Five Ws in journalism
* World Health Organization
Arts and entertainment Fictional characters
* Who, a creature in the Dr. Seuss book '' Horton He ...
''
Global Status Report on Alcohol'', Uganda ranked as the world's leading consumer of alcohol (per capita). Based on results from 2007, Uganda’s overall alcohol consumption was an average of 17.6 liters per capita. This is unusually high compared to surrounding countries.
In 2016 this seems no longer the case, with total consumption of pure alcohol down to 9.5 litres per capita (≥ 15 years of age).
History
The history of ''waragi'' in Uganda can be traced to the period of
Ugandan history during the colonial era. Gins were introduced to Uganda by
British soldiers who were stationed in the
Uganda Protectorate
The Protectorate of Uganda was a protectorate of the British Empire from 1894 to 1962. In 1893 the Imperial British East Africa Company transferred its administration rights of territory consisting mainly of the Kingdom of Buganda to the Brit ...
, and soon became a popular drink among Ugandans. In 1960, the colonial government passed the ''Liquor Act'', which implemented limitations on the production and consumption of locally produced gins in the colony. Although the act was ostensibly passed in order to prevent Ugandans from experiencing negative health effects as a result of the dangerous production methods of
moonshining
Moonshine is high-proof liquor that is usually produced illegally. The name was derived from a tradition of creating the alcohol during the nighttime, thereby avoiding detection. In the first decades of the 21st century, commercial dist ...
, economic motivations were also in play; the colonial government wished to ensure the dominance of imported gins from Britain in the Ugandan alcohol market, which was being undercut by local gin production via moonshiners. Locally produced gin quickly proved more popular than those imported from Britain, thanks in part due to their cheaper prices. Ugandan politicians, led by the
Uganda People's Congress
The Uganda People's Congress (UPC; sw, Congress ya Watu wa Uganda) is a political party in Uganda.
UPC was founded in 1960 by Milton Obote, who led the country to independence and later served two presidential terms under the party's banner ...
(UPC), protested the act, arguing that the colonial government should have instead ordered the construction of a distillery factory in the colony so Ugandans who desired gin would not resort to the dangerous practice of moonshining. When the UPC came to power, it ordered the construction of a distillery factory, naming the gin produced there ''Uganda Waragi''. The factory was staffed with a group of 26 blenders who formed the ''Association of Uganda Distillers and Vitners'', which was headed by master blender Joel Sentamu.
After Ugandan independence in 1962, the
government of Uganda
Uganda is a presidential republic in which the President of Uganda is the head of state and the prime minister is the head of government business. There is a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is ...
passed the ''Enguli Act of 1965'', which was designed to encourage local producers of
enguli
Waragi (pronounced , also known as kasese) is a generic term in Uganda for domestic distilled beverages. Waragi is also given different names, depending on region of origin, the distillation process, or both. Waragi is known as a form of homemad ...
to supply their produce to the distillery factory, in addition to stipulating that moonshining could only be done with government-issued licenses; this was done so the gin industry in Uganda could be regulated and taxed by the government. Furthermore, those who received their licenses from the Ugandan government were directed to sell their enguli to the distillery. When the factory received shipments of enguli, they used them in the production of ''Uganda Waragi''.
Waragi derives its name from "war gin", as the
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
expatriate
An expatriate (often shortened to expat) is a person who resides outside their native country. In common usage, the term often refers to educated professionals, skilled workers, or artists taking positions outside their home country, either ...
s in the 1950s and 1960s referred to the distilled spirit known in
Luganda language
The Ganda language or Luganda (, , ) is a Bantu language spoken in the African Great Lakes region. It is one of the major languages in Uganda and is spoken by more than 10 million Baganda and other people principally in central Uganda including ...
as ''enguli''. The pronunciation with the hard sound is more common; those who are aware of the English origins of the word often favor a "j" sound for . Its appearance first came about when the
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
were first starting to establish control over East Africa. They used brigades of Sudanese
colonial soldiers to help with the feat, and they concocted the alcohol to help keep up good spirits amongst the troops. It then spread throughout Uganda as a well-known drink.
Another theory is that the name is a corruption of "Arak" the North African spirit with which the Nubian soldiers would have been familiar.
The colonial authorities of Uganda banned the drink and the laws still exist today. Africans at the time would not drink it publicly because drinks that were less harmful to them were also off limits then.
In 1965, "The Enguli Act" decreed that distillation would only be possible under licence, and that distillers should sell their product to the government run
Uganda Distilleries Ltd
}), is a landlocked country in East Africa. The country is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the south by Tanzania. The sout ...
– which produced a branded bottled product, marketed under the name
Uganda Waragi
East African Breweries Limited, commonly referred to as EABL, is a Kenyan-based holding company that manufactures branded beer, spirits, and non-alcoholic beverages.
Overview
The group's headquarters are located in Nairobi, Kenya, with subsi ...
(distilled from millet and today wholly produced by East African Breweries Limited). "The Enguli Act" was never successfully enforced, as unlicensed production of waragi persisted.
[A Study on Sentencing and Offences Legislation in Uganda]
, The Justice Law and Order Sector (JLOS)
People in Uganda now drink the harsh gin and authorities overall ignore the law and do not enforce it regularly. It is sold in shops and bars across Uganda and a distilled version is sold overseas. The product that is sold overseas is double and sometimes triple distilled from the alcohol that village distillers make for the factories in Uganda. When it is distilled, flavors are added and many impurities and dangerous parts of the alcohol are filtered out.
Incidents
In April 2010, 80 people died from
multiple organ dysfunction syndrome
Multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS) is altered organ (anatomy), organ function in an acutely ill patient requiring medicine, medical intervention to achieve homeostasis.
Although Irwin and Rippe cautioned in 2005 that the use of "multiple ...
after drinking waragi
adulterated
An adulterant is caused by the act of adulteration, a practice of secretly mixing a substance with another. Typical substances that are adulterated include but are not limited to food, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, fuel, or other chemicals, th ...
with a high amount of
methanol
Methanol (also called methyl alcohol and wood spirit, amongst other names) is an organic chemical and the simplest aliphatic alcohol, with the formula C H3 O H (a methyl group linked to a hydroxyl group, often abbreviated as MeOH). It is a ...
over a three-week period in
Kabale District
Kabale District is a district in the Western Region of Uganda. Kabale hosts the district headquarters. It was originally part of Kigezi District, before the districts of Rukungiri, Kanungu, Kisoro, Rubanda and Rukiga and were excised to form sepa ...
.
Many of the deaths were blamed on the reluctance of people to openly admit their relatives had been drinking it, allowing the abuse of the substance to continue.
When revelations came about houses were searched, with around 120
jerrycan
A jerrycan (also written as jerry can or jerrican) is a robust liquid container made from pressed steel (and more recently, high density polyethylene). It was designed in Germany in the 1930s for military use to hold of fuel, and saw widesp ...
s uncovered.
The death toll of 80 was arrived at after 15 people died in the period between April 23 and the weekend before.
Deaths in
Kamwenge
Kamwenge is a town in the Western Region of Uganda. It is the site of the Kamwenge District headquarters.
Location
Kamwenge is approximately , by road, west of Kampala, Uganda's capital and largest city. This is approximately , by road, southe ...
went from five to nine after four people died on 21 April.
Two people were hospitalised at Kamwenge's
Ntara Health Centre IV and five were hospitalised at
Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital
Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital, commonly known as Mbarara Hospital, is a hospital in Mbarara in the Western Region of Uganda. It is the referral hospital for the region and specifically for the districts of Mbarara, Bushenyi, Ntungamo, Kiru ...
.
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to the process of making and distributing Waragi. The episode also covered the cultural significance of Waragi in Uganda, with reporter Thomas Morton imbibing various distillations of the traditional beverage.
Waragi can be brewed from bananas.
, depending on the crops grown in the region. The most popular (besides the branded Uganda Waragi) are ''Lira Lira'' and ''Kasese''. ''Lira Lira'' is made mainly from
. ''Kasese'', named after the town of
. Waragi may also be known as "regular" or "super."
Close to 80% of the Waragi today is made in Uganda. A large glass of this unregulated liquor goes for approximately 25 cents, making it easily accessible for Ugandans.