Ugandans are not employed in Afghanistan by labor export companies.
State Minister for Foreign Affairs John Mulimba said on Wednesday that an undefined number of Ugandans are still stranded in Afghanistan, with some attempting to return home.
According to labor export companies, there are no Ugandans working in Afghanistan.
According to the Uganda Association of External Recruitment Agencies, many Ugandans have worked in the central Asian country over the years under various arrangements (UAERA).
According to Ronnie Mukundane, the association’s head of communications, none of the government-recognized member agencies have hired any Ugandans to work in Afghanistan. Workers who were recruited by their member agencies returned from Afghanistan after their contracts expired, according to Mukundane.
State Minister for Foreign Affairs John Mulimba said on Wednesday that an undefined number of Ugandans are still stranded in Afghanistan, with some attempting to return home.
Hundreds of Ugandans departed the nation between 2001 and 2015 to provide a variety of services, primarily under the auspices of the US government, which was spearheading the fight against the Taliban. They worked as security guards at US military outposts and Afghan government buildings.
Watertight Security Services, for example, which sent 300 Ugandans to Afghanistan in 2013, stated that they were being deployed to perform non-combat security services to help other security organizations.
Mukundane, on the other hand, believes that while Ugandans may be in Afghanistan, it is for a variety of reasons, including being there unofficially, as has been the case in nations not recognized by the Ugandan government as labor markets.
Uganda received the first batch of 51 evacuees from Afghanistan on Wednesday morning, as part of an agreement between the government and the US government to receive a total of 2000 evacuees from Afghanistan.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, it had been planned to bring some Ugandans back with them, but logistical constraints prevented this.
“While some Ugandans were scheduled to go on the aforesaid flight, they were unable to do so due to difficulties gaining entrance to Kabul’s airport. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced in a statement that “arrangements are being made to bring them on the next flight.”
Tensions among Afghans and foreign citizens planning to flee the country for safety reasons rose on Tuesday when Taliban leaders announced that experts would not be allowed to leave.
A large portion of the 300 Ugandan guards hired by Triple Canopy, a private security firm, to man watchtowers and provide protection at access points in Eastern Afghanistan, tested positive for coronavirus last year.
Border closures delayed efforts to remove them in Afghanistan, Europe, and the Far East, according to a US military independent news source.
According to data, between 2005 and 2010, 10,000 to 20,000 Ugandans departed for Iraq and Afghanistan.
