UK Gives UPDF Sh4.5b for Somalia

By Anne Mugisa

Uganda, Kampala, 16 June 2007 - Britain has given sh4.5b to sustain the UPDF peacekeeping force in strife-torn Somalia. The money is for immediate disbursement, according to the British High Commissioner, Francois Gordon.

Gordon announced the £1.4m contribution on Friday and praised the UPDF for their courage. This was during a cocktail party held at his residence in Nakasero to celebrate Queen Elizabeth's birthday.

"To date, just one government, that of Uganda, has actually made a contribution to AMISOM, the peacekeeping operation in Mogadishu. We salute the courage of the UPDF members deployed in Mogadishu, eight of whom have paid the ultimate price," Gordon said.

The High Commissioner said Uganda also has a unique opportunity during the forthcoming Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) to showcase its progress since 1986. He said that this will "consign the dark days of the 1970s and the early 1980s to where they belong, the past".

However, Gordon warned that the real challenge is not the CHOGM, but that standards are maintained after the meeting.

"The UK welcomes the Government of Uganda's recognition that building a democracy is a dynamic process to which every Ugandan must contribute... We hope and believe that valuable lessons have been learned during the first year of operation of the multiparty system."

Gordon also commended Uganda on investigating corruption allegations and prosecuting the suspects. He asked that the trials be expedited.

The High Commissioner also said that the UK was happy with the Juba peace process, though the talks have been difficult. He praised ministers Dr. Ruhakana Rugunda and Henry Okello Oryem who are leading the Ugandan delegation as well as Sudanese vice-president Riek Machar, who is chairing the talks.

Uganda's Foreign Affairs Minister, Sam Kutesa, thanked Britain for her assistance and role in ensuring debt cancellation for poor countries.

Kutesa said Uganda's biggest challenge now is access to markets. He said Uganda needs an increase in the trade volume and investments here which will lead to poverty eradication.

Meanwhile, the AFP news agency reports that Burundi will deploy a long-awaited battalion of peacekeepers to Somalia next month after African Union (AU) officials confirmed the force was ready to go, Burundi's military spokesman said on Thursday.

Burundi's army spokesman, Col. Adolphe Manirakiza, said AU officials checked this week on his men's readiness to join some 1,600 Ugandan troops already patrolling in Mogadishu.

"The team was satisfied by the technical preparation of our soldiers and confirmed that the first battalion could leave in July," Manirakiza said.

France would airlift the troops to Somalia, while the US was providing some military equipment including uniforms, boots and bullet-proof jackets and helmets. Burundi's deployment has been delayed several times because of financial and logistical problems, Burundian officials say.

The Security Council on Thursday expressed appreciation for the role of Ugandan troops currently deployed in Somalia as part of an AU peacekeeping mission.

The 15-member body reiterated its call to other African troops to contribute troops to the AU operation in Somalia and to "other states and partners to provide financial, technical and logistical support for this effort."

Uganda has deployed at least 1,500 troops in Mogadishu, a vanguard of around 8,000 troops that the AU is struggling to assemble to help Somalia's weak government tighten its tenuous grip.

Source: New Vision