Uganda lies on the elevated basin which raises between the eastern and western branches of the Great Rift Valley. Most of the country is over 1000 m in altitude and the topography is generally quite flat. Uganda's frontiers are marked by the highest mountain range (the Rwenzoris) and the largest lake in Africa (Lake Victoria). The landlocked country straddles the transition from the vast savannas of Kenya and Tanzania to the even vaster, biologically rich rainforests of the Zaire River basin. With the exception of the semiarid area in the extreme northeast, most of the Uganda is well-watered and fertile. There are a lot of big lakes, rivers and wetlands in the country. The enormous diversity of the landscapes was the sole reason, why Winston Churchil called Uganda the pearl of Africa. Political is Uganda since 1986 a stable democracy and it has a free market economy. The years before was the time of the brutal dictatorships of Milton Obote and Idi Amin. Uganda's equatorial climate is tempered by its elevated altitude. This make the climate relatively well bearable even for the European people.