When Uganda sent its troops to Somalia to keep peace in the war-torn country in East Africa in March 2007, many locals considered the move would backfire miserably.

But the Ugandan armed forces proved their critics wrong and showed their mettle, going on to successfully execute peacekeeping missions not only in Somalia, but also in other countries in the region.

Uganda currently has the most African Union (AU) peacekeepers in the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), with 6,223 soldiers deployed in the country, followed by Burundi (5,432), Ethiopia (4,395), Kenya (3,664) and Djibouti (2,000) according to a recent AMISOM report. Uganda has lost 110 soldiers in the conflict in Somalia at the time of writing.

Despite initial criticism, Ugandan President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni insisted that he was sending the troops for the good of the region's security. "If we leave such chaos to continue in Somalia, in the long run, fighting could spread to neighboring countries," said Museveni. He argued that a destabilized Somalia could be used as a base by militants to attack countries surrounding Somalia.

Even though Somali militia had embarrassed the U.S. elite forces by scoring victories over their troops in 1993, during one of the U.S.'s most high-profile intervention failures in Africa, on March 1, 2007, Museveni authorized a battalion of Uganda's Peoples Defense Force (UPDF) soldiers to head for Somalia.

Museveni told the troops that Ugandan and other foreign forces were being sent to help restore peace in the war-torn Horn of Africa country. "African countries should cooperate in order to solve their own problems," he said at the time.

UN approval

Before Uganda sent troops to Somalia, a trade bloc of eight regional countries with headquarters in Djibouti, known as the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, proposed a peacekeeping force for Somalia in 2004, but fighting inside the country prevented troop deployment. Eventually, on February 21, 2007 the UN Security Council approved Resolution 1744, which authorized the deployment of a new AMISOM.

However, fighting between Somalia's then transitional government and rival militants made any troop deployment difficult.

Yet while other countries wavered, Uganda sent 6,000 peacekeepers to Somalia in March 2007. In other subsequent peacekeeping missions, Uganda sent thousands of troops to countries in the region. This includes 7,000 troops to the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 2008, over 5,000 troops to South Sudan in January 2014 and 2,300 troops to the Central African Republic in 2013. Only troops to Somalia were sent under AU and UN sanction, while the rest were sent and sponsored by Uganda itself.

It did not take long for a cessation of hostilities to return to most parts of Somalia by 2010 and South Sudan in 2014 after deployment of Ugandan troops, indicating the success of their presence. Despite sporadic violence still flaring up in Somalia, the intervention of AMISOM has had much success.

"Uganda has done a lot in improving security and peace in Africa. It sent troops to Somalia to fight militants. It also sent troops to the Central African Republic to hunt for Lord's Resistance Army rebel leader Joseph Kony and to South Sudan to stop bloodshed from warring tribes," said Edward Mugisa, Assistant Commissioner of Ugandan Ministry of Defense and Veterans Affairs.

"It is commendable that a small country like Uganda plays a big role in peacekeeping on the continent and setting an example to other African countries that Africa can solve its own problems," said Mugisa.

The UPDF said it currently has 55,000 soldiers in its ranks and an operating budget for 2017-18 of around $26.6 million.

The AU is also appreciative of Uganda's efforts to keep peace on the continent. Special Representative of the AU for Somalia Francisco Madeira is on record as saying, "Uganda is on the right path. Uganda is doing the right thing. Uganda is sacrificing for Somalia; but more importantly Uganda is playing its part of creating a united AU."

Earlier this year UN Resident Coordinator Rosa Malongo said, "It [Uganda's contribution to regional peace] is recognized by all as a positive contribution by Uganda. UPDF soldiers are contributing significantly to peace efforts and security in the Great Lakes region and Horn of Africa."

Highly trained

UPDF Deputy Spokesman Deo Akiiki said that the Ugandan army's capability is one of the reasons why it plays such a big role in peacekeeping on the continent.

"It is a highly trained army which can take on any situation, at any time, once called for duty," said Akiiki. He said that the UPDF is built on the foundation of Pan-Africanism which makes it unique.

"We do not look at ourselves as only a Ugandan army, but an army for Africa," he said, adding that as long as the mission is to save fellow Africans, the UPDF can be deployed anywhere in Africa.

Lieutenant Joel Okello, who took part in peacekeeping missions in Somalia for two years, said he was motivated by the need to help others. "It was not an easy venture. The Somali militants could hit us anytime in their ambushes. But all the same, my fellow soldiers and I felt great because we were fighting to save fellow Africans," said Okello.

But Esther Nanozi, a businesswoman in the Ugandan capital Kampala, is not happy about the country's army fighting in other countries. Nanozi said, "I wonder why Uganda sends soldiers to fight in other African countries while in some parts of the country there is insecurity," she said. There are a lot of criminal incidents and security threats in the Masaka District where she lives and, according to her, before the troops are deployed to keep peace in other countries, they should first ensure that there is adequate security in Uganda.

However, Muwalimu Mukasa, an Imam at the Kidera Mosque in east Uganda, said that a country sending its troops to help secure another country should be appreciated.

"What Uganda, a country with limited resources, has done, as far as peacekeeping in other countries is concerned, should be appreciated. Other African countries should emulate Uganda," said Mukasa.

Ugandan Government Spokesman Ofwono Opondo said that what makes Uganda get involved in peacekeeping is its Africanist outlook. "Our ruling party, the National Resistance Movement, believes in building Africa together. And President Museveni believes in building an African economic bloc, but this cannot be done if there is insecurity in some parts of the continent," said Opondo.

Head of AMISOM Francisco Caetano Madeira said on November 23, 2018 that he had discussed planned joint military operations with the Somali security forces with Uganda's Chief of the Defense Forces of the UPDF General David Muhoozi, who was on a routine visit to his AMISOM troops in Somalia.

"We both agreed that we need to continue to move together. We also need to make sure that Al-Shabaab is further degraded," said Muhoozi.

On his part, Madeira said the visit by General Muhoozi offers reassurance to the mission leadership and troops. "We talked about how we can move ahead in the coming times, how we can, together, implement the transition, [and] Resolution 2431 of the UN Security Council, which gives us the mandate up to May next year," he said. The resolution extended the mandate of the AMISOM until May 31, 2019 and delays the troops' drawdown scheduled for 2018 to 2019.

"A lot has been done, a lot more remains and I can only say that the resilience of the enemy is matched by the resilience of the troops in AMISOM and all the troops contributing countries," said Muhoozi.

(Reporting from Uganda)

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