Hima, Uganda

Hima is a town in the Western Region of Uganda. It is an industrial town, involved primarily in the manufacture of cement.

Location
Hima is located in Kitswamba Parish, Busongora County, Kasese District, in Western Uganda. The town lies along the Fort Portal–Kasese–Mpondwe Road, approximately 23.5 km, by road, northeast of Kasese, the largest town in the Rwenzururu sub-region. This is approximately 57 km, by road, southwest of Fort Portal, the nearest large city. The coordinates of the town are:0°17'26.0"N, 30°10'39.0"E (Latitude:0.290556; 30.177500). Hima sits at an average elevation of 982 m above mean sea level.

Population
The 2002, the national population census gave the population of Hima at 7,075 people. In 2014, the national population census and household survey, enumerated the towns population at 13,135. The Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS), estimated the mid-year population in 2019, at 14,700. The table below illustrates the same data in a tabular format.

Economy
The town is the headquarters of Hima Cement Limited, the second-largest manufacturer of cement in Uganda, producing about 1700000 tonne annually. Hima Cement is a subsidiary of LafargeHolcim, a Swiss conglomerate, that manufactures building materials, with subsidiaries in about 80 countries around the globe, with about 72,500 employees. Hima Cement is the largest employer in town, with 320 permanent employees and about 200 contractors at the company headquarters. The company maintains two production lines at Hima, with combined production capacity at this site of 850000 tonne of cement powder. The company maintains another factory at Tororo, in the Eastern Region of Uganda, with equivalent production capacity.

Transport
The Fort Portal–Kasese–Mpondwe Road passes through the town in a north to south direction. The nearest airport is Kasese Airport, located approximately 23.5 km, south of town.