Uganda on Tuesday opened the first ever defense and security expo, where the armed forces displayed the country’s efforts to modernise the army through the manufacture of various military weapons.
President Yoweri Museveni opened the three-day expo dubbed the 1st Kampala Defense and Security Expo 2024.
Held in honour of the country’s longest-serving Chief of Defense Forces, Gen Aronda Nyakairima, the expo which ended Thursday ran under the theme, Celebrating the life of the late Hon Gen Aronda Nyakairima; A paragon of revolutionary sacrifice, pan-Africanism, patriotism, courage and an accomplished freedom fighter.
Museveni who first toured the different stalls displaying locally made guns, ammunition and armoured vehicles plus other military stores called for the adoption of modern technology if the east African region is to defend itself on sea, land, air and space.
He held various guns to check their quality and came close to trying them out as he pointed them in different directions as if aiming at a target.
“We need the [formation of] the east African federation for our strategic security. We need a powerful defense force with the ability to defend us on the four spheres of land, sea, air and space,” Museveni noted.
He added that African countries should work on expanding the sizes of their armies to fend off any external threats.
The country’s prisons and police departments also featured in the expo, displaying various items, machinery and agricultural products.
The expo which attracted military personnel and envoys from various countries featuredlectures by distinguished people on the second day.
