Uganda Peoples’ Defense Forces (UPDF) will benefit from an 11-month training on Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) from technicians assigned to US military Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Unit (EODMU) 8. The UPDF side will benefit from the training on proper munition disposal procedures and techniques.
The US EODMU has commenced the mission at Magamaga, Uganda that will run between October 2019 to September 2020. The training will equip UPDF with adept skills and expertise on conventional munitions disposal (CMD) and improvised explosive device disposal (IEDD) techniques and procedures.
During the training, two groups of approximately 30 UPDF soldiers will receive about 20 weeks of training each. The curriculum is the first use of this material in Africa and is part of a larger effort by the United Nations (UN) to establish explosive hazard awareness and IED disposal standards for nations that provide support to peacekeeping missions.
The UPDF which is the largest troop contributor for AMISOM in Somalia has been facing the huge threat of IEDs in its fight against al Shabaab. Hence, the aim of providing security force assistance is to enhance the capability of the already strong and capable UPDF to better mitigate the threat of IEDs in Somalia.
