Masaka lies approximately 140 kilometres (87 mi) to the southwest
of Kampala, on the highway to Mbarara. The town lies very close to the Equator,
as can be seen from the latitude values. It was Uganda's second-biggest town
for a long time. Today this status has changed, as the city was largely
destroyed in the Uganda-Tanzania War of 1979 and again in the 1981-1986 civil
war that removed Obote from power for the last time
