UN General Assembly
1993

Developing countries paid a heavy price during the height of the cold war as world attention was focused on acquiring additional armaments under the doctrines of deterrence. Many of them were trapped in civil conflict arising from ideological wars. As the resources devoted to building armaments are released in the disarmament process, these should be applied for development both within and between nations. Unfortunately, at the international level, we have yet to see the peace dividend being channelled towards assistance to developing countries. At the national level, Uganda, after the restoration of peace in the country, has now embarked on a process of scaling down its army to a level which the economy can sustain and which at the same time meets our legitimate defence needs. This is a bold decision by the Government, which, in the long run, should release resources for development purposes. I wish here to express our appreciation to those countries and organizations which have agreed to assist us in the resettlement and integration of demobilized soldiers within the civilian community.