The district headquarters at Bundibugyo are located approximately 83.6 kilometres (51.9 mi), by road, west of Fort Portal city the capital of Rwenzori Sub-region.

[2] In the late 1990s, tens of thousands of civilians were displaced by the insurgency of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) who were operating in the district.

In one such raid on 7 April 1999, rebels killed 11 civilians and looted property during an attack in the district.

[5] Subsistence agriculture and animal husbandry are the two major economic activities in the district.

It is the largest producer of cocoa in Uganda, accounting for unprocessed beans worth UGX:90 billion annually.