Africa-Press – Uganda. Government has launched the National Aeronautical and Maritime Search and Rescue Committee and Maritime Call Centre in Entebbe with a call to stakeholders “to promptly respond when called to support in the event of a marine or air accident.”
Speaking at the event held at Imperial Resort Beach Hotel, Works and Transport minister Gen Katumba Wamala said “approximately 3,000 passengers involved in incidents on water have been rescued over the last 5-10 years by mostly fishing communities, marine police, Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCAA) and volunteers.”
“Therefore, my ministry has prepared a National Aeronautical and Maritime Search and Rescue Plan which will be used as a practical tool for Search and Rescue operations in Uganda,” he said.
Such efforts, especially in relation to maritime operations have been majorly ad hoc yet Uganda is a member State of the International Civil Aviation Organisation(ICAO) and International Maritime Organisation(IMO).
Furthermore, Uganda has an obligation to formulate a National Search and Rescue Plan.
“The obligations are derived from the Convention on International Civil Aviation (Chicago Convention of 1944), the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS, 1974), and the International Convention on Maritime Search and Rescue (1979),” Gen Katumba said.
On November 24, 2018, at least 33 people died and 26 others were rescued in an ad hoc manner when the MV Templar vessel capsized on Lake Victoria in central Uganda.
“Such anomalies were being corrected with the establishment of a SAR Plan and launch of the SAR Committee,” Gen Katumba said on June 16 as he urged inter-governmental coordination.
The UCAA Deputy Director-General, Ms Olive Birungi Lumonya told stakeholders that the airport had a dedicated Aeronautical Search and Rescue Coordination Centre located at the Control Tower.
She said Uganda had signed search and rescue coordination agreements with neighbouring states of Kenya, Tanzania and Rwanda, and was in the process of finalizing agreements with DRC and South Sudan.
About rescue committee
The formed committee is chaired by the Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Works and Transport comprises 16 agencies, including UCAA, Ministry of Defence and Veteran Affairs, Ministry of Internal Affairs, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Local Government, UPDF, UPDAF, Uganda Police, URA, UWA and the Directorate of Citizenship and Immigration Control, among others.
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