ATMIS troop contributors meeting in Uganda

African Union officials from countries contributing troops to the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) gathered in Kampala, Uganda to review and evaluate the mission’s performance in Somalia.

The four-day meeting, which began on April 24, 2023, included officials from the African Union Commission, ATMIS Mission Headquarters, Troop Contributing Countries such as Burundi, Djibouti, Kenya, Ethiopia, and Uganda, as well as Somalia, and representatives from international partners.

The objective of the meeting is to discuss the seamless implementation of the ATMIS troop drawdown, with the initial phase involving the withdrawal of 2,000 troops from Somalia set for the end of June 2023 under revised timelines.

The Kampala meeting will also evaluate the readiness of the Somalia Security Forces to assume security responsibilities from the African Union troops, including force generation and logistical support. 

This comes at a critical time as Somalia has been working on training and recruiting at least 24,000 soldiers by December 2024 to take over from ATMIS.