Regional Center on Small Arms and Light Weapons

Uganda

Achievements by Member States to the Nairobi Declaration.

Uganda NFP hands Marking Machine to UPDF

The Uganda National Focal Point (NFP) has handed to the Uganda Army (UPDF) a modern arms marking machine to facilitate an arms making project being undertaken in the country. The Couth 2000 electronic arms making equipment was handed over to Col. Martin Temera who represented the UPDF at the military headquarters.

The equipment is intended to facilitate the marking of SALW in the hands of the army starting with those destined for a peace keeping mission in Somalia. UPDF will mark the rest of its arms as stipulated in the National Action Plan, the country’s strategy on small arms control and management.

While handing over the machine, Mr. Joe Kagoro (ACP) Deputy Coordinator of the NFP, who also represented the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Internal Affairs, reiterated that the marking exercise was in conformity with the Action Plan and the Nairobi Protocol. Under the two documents, marking of all arms in state possession is a requirement.

RECSA’s Best Practice Guidelines on the implementation of the Nairobi Protocol and Nairobi Declaration detail the process of marking of SALW to ensure uniformity in the region.

The marking machine was procured through the assistance of RECSA which has provided similar equipment to its other Member States. The Secretariat donated two machines to each Government, one for marking arms in possession of the Police, the other for the army. This is part of RECSA’s support to stockpile management programmes in the region.

The arms marking process had commenced earlier in Uganda using a manual marking machine. The two electronic machines will speed up the process.

The Uganda NFP is also aggressively undertaking collection and disposal of small arms as well as awareness and sensitization programmes as stipulated in the NAP.

UGANDA DESTROYS EXPLOSIVES

On November 2nd 2007, the Uganda Peoples Defence Forces (UPDF) destroyed over 460 tons of ammunition and ordinances at Nakasongola Military Base.

The public function highlighted the importance of destruction of obsolete, redundant and captured stocks and served to raise public awareness about the Government’s arms reduction and control measures.

This destruction exercise is part of national measures to control arms and reduce availability and access to weapons. In particular the destruction aimed to remove dangerous ammunition from society in order to make communities safe.

The destruction once again demonstrated the Uganda Government’s commitment to rid the country of surplus and redundant stocks of weapons. This is in line with the country’s obligations under international agreements and Protocols along with National commitments in the National Action Plan on Small Arms and Light Weapons (NAP). These instruments call for action to collect and ensure safe storage and disposal of surplus, redundant, captured and surrendered weapons. They include the United Nations Programme of Action, the Nairobi Declaration and the Nairobi Protocol.

The destruction exercise was supported by UNDP through the Conflict Prevention and Recovery Unit, which supports the Uganda National Focal Point on Small Arms and Light Weapons (NFP) in the implementation of the NAP especially in the areas of stockpile management, capacity building and awareness-raising. SaferAfrica, a South African NGO specializing in arms control and demolition activities and a team of Explosives and Ordinances Demolition experts provided by the South African Defence Forces offered technical support for the exercise.

The public destruction ceremony was presided over by the Minister of Defence, Hon Chrispus Kiyonga, and coordinated by the Uganda NFP, a government agency responsible for the implementation of national measures to prevent, combat and eradicate the proliferation of small arms and light weapons.

In May/June 2006, over 57,000 small arms and light weapons were destroyed at Steel Rolling Mills, Jinja and 34,000 rounds of ammunition at Kigo Prisons.

Some of the types of explosives and ordinances that were destroyed

An EOD expert and a UPDF officer prepare for detonation above; the ring of smoke after detonation below.

The speeches, (Clockwise from top) Minster of Defense, Hon Chrispus Kiyonga, UNDP RR, Theophane Nikyema, Coordinator NFP Mr. Richard Nabudere, Director SaferAfrica Rik

The tour by conducted by Col Eric Mukasa of the UPDF (the Minister is in a dark suit and the UNDP RR s in the grey suit while the NFP coordinator tries his hand at photography

Nationwide consultations on draft Uganda National Policy Document
The Uganda National Focal Point on Small Arms and Light Weapons (NFP), which is under the Ministry of Internal Affairs, is embarking on a nationwide consultation exercise on the new draft National Policy on Firearms.
The exercise is aimed at gathering and incorporating the views of citizens to ensure that the document reflects national ownership and consensus.
The first National Consultation on the National Policy was carried out in 2003-2004.

The process to draft a new National Policy falls under Chapter 2 of the National Action Plan which focuses on formulation of a firearms policy in conformity with international and regional standards.

In March 2007, the NFP held a workshop on Harmonisation of Legislation to agree on minimum standards and procedures outlined in the Best Practice Guidelines on legislation agreed upon by the Council of Ministers of the Member States of the Great Lakes Region, the Horn of Africa and Bordering States. These countries signed on to the Nairobi Protocol in April 2006.

The Best Practice Guidelines contain internationally agreed minimum standards and procedures on legislation.
The policy which is now at the third stage, if approved, will be the basis for formulating a draft bill to replace the existing 1970 Firearms Act.

Key areas covered in the draft policy include
possession of firearms (state and private use)
marking and tracing
a new licensing system
classification of firearms
import, export, transport, transit and brokering of firearms
stockpile management

The consultation process started on 27th September and is supported by GTZ. Other partners who support the NFP in implementing the National Action Plan include UNDP, SaferAfrica and Saferworld.

For more information contact Joe Burua, Communications and Public Relations Officer, Uganda NFP on genpol25@utlonline.co.ug or Tel: 0772504943

The Uganda National Focal Point was established in 2001 and became fully operational in March 2003. A full time Administrator was assigned to the Uganda NFP Secretariat in June 2003 by the Uganda Police Force to manage the day-to-day functions of the Secretariat.The Uganda NFP is a multi – sectoral body now placed under the Ministry of Internal Affairs and composed of a number of Government Ministries and Departments and also four civil society organizations. Altogether the NFP has a membership of 20 people.

The Uganda NFP in collaboration with Civil Society Organizations partners completed the mapping exercise in February 2003. The formulation of the National Action Plan (NAP), was completed by end of November 2003. Other major achievements include:

Recovery of over 10,000 firearms from Karamoja disarmament exercise which was launched in 2002;

Destruction of 6,300 landmines in July 2003;

30,000 small arms and large quantities of explosives to be destroyed soon

Seizure of 684 firearms and 45,000 rounds of ammunitions from Lords Resistance Army during the year 2003;

Voluntary surrender of 400 firearms and large quantities of ammunitions in Yumbe District( August 2003)

Uganda is a member of the Training Task Force that developed the training curricula for senior management, Civil society and law enforcement agencies

For more details, please refer to the Annual Report 2003, pages 33,34,35

Major achievements to date

Approval of the Draft Uganda National Action Plan on small arms policy and its management by the Uganda National Security Committee on 24 th June 2004.

Appointment of a Drafting Committee to prepare guidelines for the National Firearms Policy and also to examine all Ugandan legislation that have small arms elements in them with a view to proposing necessary amendments to harmonize them with international and regional standards

In August 2004, Uganda NFP Participated in preparations for the destruction of a stockpile of obsolete , captured and surplus weapons and equipment declared unsafe by the Uganda People's Defense Force ( UPDF) and the Uganda Police

In September 2004, The Ministry of Defense appointed the Uganda NFP on small arms to coordinate preparations for Topical Seminar on small arms organized by Africa Center for Strategic Studies of the National Defense University of United States of America, from 3 rd to 8 th October 2004 . The Director / Coordinator of Nairobi Secretariat , Mr. Francis K. Sang was among the panelists who made presentations

Workshop on Capacity building for civil society held in Kampala from 15 th to 19 th November 2004

Commemoration of the 5 th Anniversary of the signing of the Nairobi Declaration
As part of the activities to mark the 5 th anniversary of the signing of the Nairobi Declaration, a press conference was held in Kampala on 10 th March 2005 . Several speeches were given by various speakers and the main one was delivered by Hon. Kezimbira Muyingo, Minister of State of Internal Affairs who reiterated Uganda Government commitment to eliminate the scourge of small arms in the country in cooperation with other States in the region and international stakeholders. Among other activities which marked the public awareness week ( 7 – 15 March 2005 ), the same Minister delivered another speech during the Public Way of the Cross – Good Friday Procession under the theme “ Christ is the Shield , Defender and Promoter of Peace and Security and other Gospel Values”. Under the Topic: “The Problem of Illicit Small Arms and Light Weapons and Community Action to address the Issue”. In his speech, the Minister emphasized on the danger and impacts of small arms before giving a kind of lecture to the citizen present on : who is authorized to acquire and possess a firearm ; what type of firearms can a private person be licensed to own ? Who needs an illegal firearm for what and responsibilities of individuals and communities etc?

H.E. Hon. Augustine Nshimye Sebuturo, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs (Regional Cooperation), Republic of Uganda, signing the 3rd Ministerial Declaration, in June 2005, Nairobi.

Official Launch of Uganda National Action Plan
Uganda Launched National Action Plan on small arms with Destruction of 3000 weapons On Monday 26th September 2005, the National Focal Point carried out the long awaited destruction of small arms. Altogether 3000 assorted small arms were set on fire by the Minister of Internal affairs, Dr. Ruhakana Rugunda who represented the Vice-President of Uganda Professor Gilbert Bukenya. The minister simultaneously opened a two-day Stakeholders Conference and also officially launched the Uganda’s National Action Plan on small arms, which was approved in June 2004. Cabinet Ministers, military and police officers, senior government officials, religious leaders and members of the general public witnessed the events.

The minister assured the audience that the government of Uganda was gravely concerned about the problem of small arms and light weapons. He said small arms had destroyed countless lives and left countless casualties and loss of property. He said in Uganda small arms have escalated armed conflict and protracted cattle rustling in Karamoja that has led to suffering and displacement of populations. He said Uganda would cooperate with other states and the international community to promote collective and comprehensive action to fight the scourge of small arms and light weapons and their devastating impacts on the society.

In his speech the minister said efforts to reduce arms and prevent their misuse demand responsibility from all the citizens. The public, he said, must know the dangers firearms pose to the community and appealed to all law-abiding citizens to be always vigilant and report illegal possession of weapons to police, security officers or local councilors and be prepared to help them fight insecurity in their areas.

Referring to the National Action Plan, the minister said it constituted a unique opportunity for Uganda to find a sustainable solution to the problem of illicit small arms and light weapons. Uganda’s Plans to destroy the arms begun in August 2004 but failed to mature until now. The Minister of Internal Affairs told the audience that Uganda government was determined to implement all aspects of the Nairobi Protocol.

The representative of the Army Commander, the Deputy Chief of Staff Brigadier Benon Biraro observed that the UPDF was determined to cooperate with armed forces in neighboring countries to ensure that all illegal guns are collected from the population and destroyed to enhance peace and development in the region. The stockpile destroyed included weapons captured from criminals, those captured or surrendered by pastoral communities and a few obsolete ones from both the UPDF and the Uganda Police.
The two-day Stakeholders Conference brought together the members of the Uganda’s twelve Regional Task Forces, Government Ministry officials, members from Civil Society Organizations, the Intergovernmental Organizations and NGOs.

Arms Destruction in Uganda September 2005.

The Conference examined the role of government agencies in the implementation of the National Action Plan and how to coordinate the objectives with existing development and security programmes. The Conference further identified relevant contact points and other security frameworks to which the National Action Plan should link and specific opportunities or forums through which to engage donors. The Conference finally discussed specific actions and agreed on measures to enhance the relationship between Civil Society and Regional Task Forces during the implementation of the National Action Plan.

Uganda hosts Eritrea, Ethiopia, Seychelles and Sudan National Focal Points (NFPs) personnel in an exchange program and training

September 11-15, 2006 RECSA, in conjunction with Uganda NFP organized between 11th September and 15th September 2006, the first round of the Inter-State Exchange Programme for National Focal Points of the States of the Great Lakes Region and Horn of Africa. This was held in Kampala, Uganda. Present at the exchange program were two representatives from each of the National Focal Points, NFPs, of the States of Ethiopia, Eritrea, Seychelles, Sudan, Uganda and a liaison officer from RECSA.

The objective of the program was to enable sharing of experiences and lessons learnt in the implementation of the Nairobi Declaration, Nairobi Protocol and other International instruments on the problem of illicit small arms and light weapons. It was also an opportunity to discuss the challenges met in efforts towards the fight against SALW and to chart out possible means to remedy the situation.

In the course of the program:

Participants noted that due to the diversity and complex nature of small arms, a combination of measures should be applied simultaneously at all levels.
It was also observed that no State can hope to eradicate the small arms problem single-handedly, given the international and regional dimensions of the problem. A consensus among the participants was that collective effort through international co-operation is required.
It was also observed that at the sub-regional level, the Nairobi Declaration and Nairobi Protocol articulate the commitments of States of the Great Lakes Region and the Horn of Africa to tackle the problem of the proliferation of small arms and light weapons through concerted regional action.

It was noted that in some states such as Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania governments have adopted National Action Plans, NAPs, establishing strategies and mechanisms to facilitate systematic and coordinated national action. It was therefore felt that this would be good reference points for other governments in the process of the implementation of the Nairobi Declaration and the Protocol.

RECSA participates in a meeting of EAANSA on the enhancement of Civil Society Participation in the management of the proliferation of illicit SALW in the Great Lakes Region and Horn of Africa
November 23 – 24, 2006
Ridar Hotel, Kampala, Uganda

In due regard to the professional interface between RECSA and EAANSA, it is worth noting that it is in line with provisions of the Program of Action, Nairobi Declaration and Nairobi Protocol that State parties recognized the role of CSOs as partners in the fight against the proliferation of SALW in the sub-region. As such EAANSA’s mandate was in lieu of a confirmation by the Council of Ministers in 2004 as the main convener of CSOs on the Regional Centre on Small Arms, RECSA.

It is worth noting that participants of the meeting included EAANSA chapters, RECSA, NFP Uganda, EAC and ISS.

Specific objectives of the meeting cut across efforts towards:

Deepening the stakeholders’ undertaking of effective networking among and consolidation of action against the proliferation of illicit SALW through shared experiences and lessons learnt in the Great Lakes Region and Horn of Africa.
Preparing a comprehensive activity schedule and budget.
Defining the working structure of EAANSA and approving the draft constitution.
Approving 2 nominations with gender considerations to represent civil society on RECSA Technical Advisory Committee and other 2 for the Council of Ministers Meetings. This is in line with the provisions of the Agreement on the establishment of RECSA and the rules of procedure developed by the Technical Advisory Committee regarding the accreditation of National or Regional civil society organizations.
Reviewing the effectiveness of Benchmarks on National Focal Points which were developed by EAANSA Technical Committee and developed by EAANSA Technical Committee and thereof develop an implementation plan.

RECSA was represented at the meeting by Mr Quirinus Onono Oyugi, the Planning and Operations Officer who stressed the importance of CSOs networking and cooperating with Government in information exchange, coordination of activities and lobbying for support of the implementation of the Nairobi Declaration and Protocol. The officer stressed that EAANSA has created a platform in which like-minded civil society organizations both at grassroots and national level in Great lakes and Horn of Africa region, inter-relate and work towards a common agenda in areas of peace and security.

The RECSA delegate also stressed further that cooperation is a critical force for development as States and societies can combine their strengths, overcome their weaknesses and maximise their resources. CSOs therefore have vital roles to play as participants, legitimizers and implement change.

The Executive Secretary of the Regional Centre on Small Arms, RECSA, Presents a Diplomatic Brief, to Hon Isaac Musumba, Minister of State For Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Uganda and Chair, RECSA Council of Ministers on Activities Carried out by RECSA after the 3rd Ministerial Review Conference
December 1 2006

The essence of the occasion of the presentation of the diplomatic brief, was pursuant to RECSA’s general mandate and in fulfillment of tasks issued by the 3rd Ministerial Review Conference on the Nairobi Declaration and the Nairobi Protocol for the prevention, control and reduction of SALW in the Great Lakes Region and the Horn of Africa, held in Nairobi between 20th-21st June 2005.

The Executive Secretary asserted that in conformity with the recommendations of the 3rd Ministerial Review Conference, RECSA developed the following documents: draft rules of procedure for the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC); draft work-plan and budget for the period 2006-2011; draft RECSA staff manual, and the draft RECSA financial rules and regulations.

He further asserted that the drafts of the documents were discussed and approved with the amendments by Government experts during the 1st Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) Meeting, held in Kampala, Uganda, on 8th-9th September 2005. RECSA then forwarded the documents to Ministers of Foreign Affairs in the member states to NFP Coordinators in preparation of the Extra-ordinary Council of Ministers meeting.

In line with this therefore, the Executive Secretary reiterated that RECSA organized and facilitated the Extra-Ordinary Council of Ministers’ conference on the 25th April 2006.

In due regard to RECSA activities in line with its general mandate after the 3rd Ministerial Review Conference, some of the undertakings commenced were as follows;

A workshop on the harmonization of legislation on SALW in the Great Lakes region and Horn of Africa was jointly organized, co-hosted and co-founded by RECSA and Safer World. This was held in Nairobi from 22nd to 23rd September 2005.
In conjunction with the Association of European Parliamentarians for Africa (AWEPA), the Great Lakes Parliamentary Forum on Peace (AMANI Forum), RECSA and Safer World convened and hosted jointly from 8th to 9th December 2005 in Mombasa, Kenya, the Regional Parliamentary Workshop on the implementation of the Nairobi Protocol for the Prevention, Control and reduction of the Nairobi Protocol which was attended by Parliamentarians from Angola, Burundi, DR Congo, Djibouti, Eritrea, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Somalia, as well as East African Legislative Assembly.
RECSA hosted a Round table workshop on the enhancement of regional cooperation and coordination in the management of the proliferation of illicit SALW in Nairobi, Kenya. RECSA organized, on 26th April 2006, a Technical Advisory Committee Meeting which brought together coordinators of National Focal Points with the objective of reviewing progress of implementation since their last meeting in Kampala in August, 2005 and Also to put into better perspective amendments and recommendations made by the Extra-Ordinary Council of Ministers’ meeting.
With financial support from the Government of the Royal Netherlands, RECSA, from the 27th to 28th April, 2006 also organized and participated in the “Regional Consultative seminar to integrate small arms into development issues.

The Executive Secretary RECSA also highlighted the activities carried out by the IGO for financial and technical assistance.