The Uganda Senior Command and Staff College (USCSC) is a training facility for senior commanders in the Uganda People's Defense Force (UPDF), including the army, air force, and special forces.
Location
The facility is located in Kimaka, a suburb of the city of Jinja, approximately 82 kilometres (51 mi), by road, east of Kampala, Uganda's capital and largest city.[1] This location is adjacent to Jinja Airport, the civilian and military airport that serves the city of Jinja. The coordinates of Kimaka are 0°27'09.0"N, 33°11'55.0"E (Latitude:0.452490; Longitude:33.198600).[2]
History
The college was established in 2003. The first commandant was Major GeneralBenon Biraaro.[3] The first group of students was admitted in 2004 to attend the senior command course that lasted one year. The first officers to graduate from the college included some of the most senior leaders of the UPDF.[4] The course has been given every year since and has been attended by the majority of the senior commanders in the UPDF.[5] As of June 2020, the commandant of USCSC was Lieutenant GeneralAndrew Gutti.[6]
Courses
The most popular and widely attended course is the senior command course, conducted annually. The course is attended by senior officers from the UPDF and by senior military officers from other African countries including Kenya, Tanzania, South Sudan and Rwanda.[7] Other courses, including strategic courses in peacekeeping, have been in the planning stages.[8]
In 2018, the college graduated the first class of military officers who had undergone a year's education, graduating with a Master of Arts degree in Defence and Security.[9]
Alumni
The graduates of the USCSC include, but are not limited to, the following:[10][11]