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UPDF, RDF to hold historic match to boost border security

29 May 2025, 13:41

Maj. Kiconco Tabaro, the Public Information Officer for the UPDF 2 Infantry Division.

By Uziah Tusaasire

In a landmark effort to enhance cross-border cooperation and regional security, the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) and the Rwanda Defence Forces (RDF) are set to engage in a historic football match aimed at fostering peace, unity, and collaboration.

According to Maj. Kiconco Tabaro, the Public Information Officer for the UPDF 2 Infantry Division, the match is scheduled for 31st May 2025 at Kyamate Playground in Ntungamo Municipality, Ntungamo district. The event marks the first-ever joint military sports engagement between the UPDF and RDF since the initiation of the proximity commanders’ engagements.

Maj. Kiconco Tabaro, the Public Information Officer for the UPDF 2 Infantry Division.

The RDF football team will be officially welcomed into Uganda by Maj. Gen. Paul Muhanguzi, Commander of the UPDF 2 Infantry Division, alongside other senior UPDF officers and strategic allies. The friendly match is intended not just as a show of sportsmanship, but as a platform for promoting unity and resolving shared security concerns.

Ahead of the football game, the two forces will participate in a variety of activities including a route march through Ntungamo municipality, tree planting, and a blood donation drive, all of which aim to strengthen ties with local communities and promote peace.

Maj. Tabaro noted that these engagements are designed to streamline border security operations, combat cross-border crime, and foster socio-economic transformation along the Uganda-Rwanda border. He emphasised that improved collaboration between the two armies is key to maintaining stability in the region.

“The engagements are aimed at promoting joint security measures, encouraging cooperation with border communities, and facilitating proximity cooperation in handling cross-border crime,” Tabaro explained.

The joint sports initiative is part of recommendations from the first, second, third, and fourth military engagements held between the two countries in recent years.

As both forces prepare to meet on the field, the event is expected to symbolise a new chapter of military diplomacy, regional stability, and people-to-people solidarity in the Great Lakes region.