town located in northwestern Uganda, situated about 175 miles (285 km) north of Kampala at an elevation of about 3,600 feet (1,100 metres). It is the marketing centre of the main agricultural region of northern Uganda; cotton, tea, coffee, corn (maize), sorghum, and tobacco are grown in the surrounding area. Processing industries in Gulu handle cotton, coffee, tea, and oilseed and grain milling. Cigarettes, textiles, footwear, matches, and beverages are also manufactured in the town. Gulu has a large number of refugee camps where Sudanese, Rwandese, and Congolese refugees, who entered Uganda beginning in the early 1960s, are permanently settled. The town is linked by road and railway with Lira, Soroti, and Pakwach and has an airport as well. Pop. (2008 est.) 141,500.