Uganda is located on the East African plateau, averaging about 1100 metres (3,250 ft) above sea level, and this slopes very steadily downwards to the Sudanese Plain to the north.

The centre is dominated by Lake Kyoga, which is surrounded by extensive marshy areas.

Uganda lies almost completely within the Nile basin. The Victoria Nile drains from the lake into Lake Kyoga and thereafter into Lake Albert on the Congolese border. It then runs northwards into South Sudan.