Editorial
Uganda People’s Defence Forces-UPDF, has on Wednesday started recruiting youths from all the districts across the country including districts in Acholi sub region.
For Gulu city, Omoro and Gulu districts, the recruitment exercise took place today at Pece stadium in Gulu city and the target is 117 recruits and for Nwoya and Amuru districts, the exercise has been slated for tomorrow also at Pece stadium.
According David Kamya, the public information officer of UPDF’s recruitment team in Acholi sub-region, the exercise started largely smoothly.
The candidates being recruited are part of the 13,000 shortlisted youths who applied to join the force via the online portal.
The ongoing phase will involve physical screening at designated district recruitment centers from August 5 to August 15.
The physical screening will further reduce the number of qualified applicants from 13,000 to the final target of 11,500.
The UPDF recently conducted a nationwide recruitment drive from July 7 to July 11, 2025, aiming to enlist 11,500 new soldiers.
The process began with online applications submitted through the UPDF website.
According to Major General Felix Kulaigye, the Director of Defence Public Information, the force received a total of 78,000 applications.
Of these, only 13,000 applicants successfully qualified for the next stage, leaving 65,000 disqualified.
