We have enough manpower to handle any project - UPDF
UPDF engineering brigade contracts engineer Capt Yunus Ntegeka (R) explains to Ministers Bright Rwamirama (L) and Jacob Oboth (C) at newly constructed outpatient department at Kagaga Health Centre II in Isingiro District. Photo / Rajab Mukombozi
What you need to know:
- UPDF says it now has 3,000 engineers, which by next month would have increased to 5,000
The Uganda Peoples Defence Forces (UPDF) has said it has built enough capacity to undertake any major government contracts in the country. State Minister for Defence Jacob Oboth Oboth, while handing over six outpatient departments structures constructed by the UPDF’s Engineering Brigade in Isingiro District, said the army now has enough manpower than any other company in Uganda to take major infrastructure projects.
“Right now there is no single company or contractor in the country … that has a larger number of engineers and technicians than UPDF. As of now we have 3,000 engineers, by the end of this month we will have 5,000,” he said, noting that at the beginning of July 2022, President Museveni gave a directive to the UPDF engineering brigade to take over construction of infrastructure projects in health and education and so far they have completed 60 projects in the whole country.
Brigadier General Besigye Bekunda, the UPDF head of the engineering brigade, said they are right now executing 163 contracts across Uganda at Shs200b, noting that in all their projects priority is given to quality and value for money.
“The funds that we would have spent on foreign companies remains absorbed in our economy,” he said.
State Minister for Animal Industry Bright Rwamirama said using the UPDF to execute government contracts will save the government huge sums of money that would have been spent on private contractors.
“They are going to spend just Shs1.4b on all eight out-patient departments. If it was for private companies, this money would have built just three of them. We need to support the UPDF to undertake major infrastructural developments,” Mr Rwamirama said.
