The Ministry of Defence and Veteran Affairs is seeking 57 billion Shillings for revamping Nakasongola Air Force Base.
It is contained in the Ministry’s nine trillion Shillings Budget Framework Paper for the Financial Year 2024/2025 currently being scrutinized by Parliament’s Committee on Defence and Internal Affairs chaired by the Nyabushozi County MP, Wilson Kajwenjye.
While defending the Ministry’s Budget Framework Paper, Vincent Ssempijja, the Minister of Defence and Veteran Affairs explained that Nakasongola Air Force Base, located in Wabisi village in Nakasongola District is a significant alternative to Entebbe International Airport in case of any emergencies.
According to Ssempijja, the Ministry of Finance, Planning, and Economic Development has not allocated any funds towards the crucial project. He expressed dismay that the Ministry faces a shortfall of 5.2 trillion after only 3.8 trillion of the nine trillion has been allocated in the Budget Framework Paper.
With a runway of 3.6km, the Air Force wing was constructed by the Israelites in the 1970s as the headquarters of the Uganda Air Force. It is one of the five national medium-sized military airports in the country alongside Entebbe Airport, Gulu Airport, Jinja Airport, and Soroti Airport.
In 2014, the government through the Civil Aviation Authority and the Ministry of Works and Transport injected US$11 million, about 28 billion Shillings to renovate the airport to enable the relocation of UPDF Air Force headquarters to decongest Entebbe Air Force Base.
However, in 2016 the construction of a radar system on the site was still incomplete and threatened by a land-use dispute. As of 2019, the relocation of the Air Force had reportedly still not occurred.
In January 2022, the UPDF Air Force unveiled a helicopter maintenance, repair, andoverhaul (MRO) unit at the Nakasongola Air Force Base. The installation is a joint venture between National Enterprise Corporation (NEC) and a Russian company, Pro Heli International Services Limited.
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