Uganda has started bringing its soldiers home from Somalia, ending almost twenty years of military presence there, the BBC reported on Monday. Chris Magezi, the acting army spokesperson, said the first contingent sent under a bilateral arrangement was already back in Uganda and more would follow within days.
Magezi said every Ugandan force in Somalia, including those serving with the African Union mission, would be gone by the end of 2027 under a phased plan. According to the BBC, a first group of 109 Uganda People's Defence Forces (UPDF) soldiers left Mogadishu on Friday, shortly after the army chief, Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba, announced the pullout.
Why it matters
Uganda was the first African nation to send troops to Somalia, joining the African Union Mission in Somalia (Amisom) when it was set up in 2007 to shield the transitional government from Islamist attacks. Ugandan forces helped push al-Shabab out of Mogadishu and other major towns, and fought beside the Somali National Army to retake territory and guard government sites.
The exit removes a core contributor from a mission that is already under strain. Roughly 4,500 troops serve in Somalia under the African Union banner, with about 2,000 more deployed through separate bilateral deals, the BBC reported. The African Union Support and Stabilisation Mission in Somalia (Aussom), which took over in 2025, is meant to build up Somali security institutions and get local forces ready to take charge. Its funding is now in question as US and UN backing is wound down, and a 12-month transition plan is due to start in January to give Somalia and the AU time to find other money.
Handover to Somali forces
Gen Muhoozi framed the withdrawal as a promise kept. In a post on X, he said Uganda had begun removing the UPDF after "20 years of a lot of blood and sacrifice" and was handing security to "our Somali brothers." Magezi said the pullout would close Uganda's operations in the Horn of Africa country, with Somalia expected to take full responsibility for security.
The decision followed a visit to Kampala last week by Somali President Sheikh Mohamud, who met his Ugandan counterpart Yoweri Museveni. The talks were set to cover Somalia's security situation as well as trade and economic ties. The BBC reported that the Somali leader sought to persuade Uganda to keep its troops in the country longer, though the result of that request was not made public. During the visit, Museveni called on Somali leaders and citizens to unite against the al-Shabab insurgency.
Uganda's role in Somalia ran through several African Union configurations. After Amisom came the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (Atmis), which was designed to shift security duties gradually to Somali forces. Aussom replaced it in 2025.
Somalia has fought the al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabab insurgency for more than two decades.
What to watch: whether other troop-contributing countries follow Uganda's lead, and how the January transition plan and the search for fresh funding shape Aussom's future.
