9th EAC Military Games and Cultural Event 2015 concludes in Kampala
The Defence Forces of the EAC Partner States (Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi) concluded the Ninth Edition of the East African Community Military Games and Cultural Event on Wednesday, 26 August 2015 at the Mandela National Stadium in Kampala, Uganda.
Officiating at the closure of the 11-day event, Uganda’s Minister of State for Defence, General Jeje Odong said that the EAC had come along way from the humble and bold steps taken in 1998 with the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Cooperation in Defence Matters by the three original Partner States (Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania), amid the suspicions, mistrust and misunderstanding prevailing then among the Partner States.
He said the enthusiasm among the leadership in the armies within the region to renew the bond among them paved the way for the greater cooperation in the defence sector leading to the revision of the MoU in 2001.
“There is no doubt that today the military in our region have made remarkable and exemplary progress in the integration of their operations and if all other sectors could borrow a leaf from the defence sector, we would realise the EAC dreams that we all cherish sooner than later”.
The Secretary-General of the East African Community, Amb. Dr Richard Sezibera noted that it was a great inspiration to see members of the great profession gathered together under the auspices of the Community participating in the various sports and cultural events and that it was a living testimony that EAC integration was moving towards greater heights and the event offered concrete hope and prospects for future integration and progress for the people of East Africa.
He said today the people of East Africa increasingly express confidence and pride in their bright future as one people bound in one destiny under the banner of the Community.
“Their aspirations are for an East Africa that, first and foremost, continues to be peaceful, secure and stable and whose overriding agenda is to raise productivity and savings; and attract foreign investments in order to create wealth and improve the living standards of the people”.
The Secretary-General commended the Armed Forces for promoting the use of Kiswahili, the lingua franca for the East Africa Community and also for adopting a Regional Counter Terrorism Strategy as adopted by the EAC Council of Ministers, and sharing of Intelligence among themselves.
He noted that so far all the Partner States, except one, had ratified the Protocol on Cooperation on Defence and urged that Partner State to expedite the ratification process.
He also commended the sector for agreeing to use Defence Technical Facilities offered for joint utilisation by the Partner States namely; Muzinda Engineering Unit in the Republic of Burundi; Defence Technical College and the Defence Mobile Field Kitchen in the Republic of Kenya; the Kinyinya Asphalt and Concrete Plant in the Republic of Rwanda; Tanzania Automobile Technical Centre workshop facilities in the United Republic of Tanzania; and Uganda Mechanical Engineering College in the Republic of Uganda.
Uganda’s Chief of Defence Forces (CDF), General Katumba Wamala, who spoke on behalf of the other CDFs, said EAC Military Games and Cultural Event was a unifying factor in the regional integration and development process. He said at the parade, all the contingents were matching in unison and were in steps irrespective of which Partner States they were coming from.
“I wish the Partner States and all of us could match in steps in the regional integration process, in fact EAC should match in unison so as to achieve our desired goal”, said Uganda’s CDF.
General Katumba Wamala hailed the EAC Council of Ministers, the Sectoral Committee on Cooperation in Defence and the EAC Secretariat for the support they have continued to give to the defence sector including permission to host the games and cultural event.
He commended the performance of the Contingents and wondered why the Military was not producing country and international champions in the various disciplines.
The East African Community Military Games and Cultural Event is an annual rotating event that started in 2005 when the first edition was held in Kampala, Uganda. Other editions of the games have been held in Nairobi, Kenya (2006), in Zanzibar, Tanzania (2007) and in Kampala (June 2008).
The primary objective of the Military Sports and Culture Week is not competition but to contribute to confidence building and esprit de corps among the EAC Defence Forces; as well as for the individual soldiers to appreciate their diverse cultures.
The Military Games and Culture event is held within the framework of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Cooperation in Defence Matters, which was signed in 1998 and revised in 2001. The MoU has specific provisions for Sports and Cultural co-operation as well as Joint Military Exercises, among other joint activities among the EAC Defence forces.
The MoU has been upgraded into a Protocol. Under it, the EAC Partner States pursue an elaborate programme of activities, which include exchange of visits and regular meetings of Defence Chiefs and other cadre of the defence forces; joint training; joint exercises and promotion of various joint sports, and cultural activities and seminars; and mutual assistance in disaster management, and technical co-operation.
The Chiefs of Defence Forces agreed and announced that Rwanda will host the 10th Edition of the EAC Military Games and Cultural Event 2016 in August 2016 in Kigali, Rwanda.