6 Interesting facts you didn’t know about Brig Flavia Byekwaso; the first female UPDF Spokesperson in the history of Uganda

Brig Gen Flavia Byekwaso on Tuesday handed over the Office of the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) Spokesperson to Lt Col Ronald Kakurungu as the Acting Defence Spokesperson. Lt Col Kakurungu has been the Deputy army Spokesperson since July 2021.

Brig Gen Byekwaso assumed the office in August 2020, as the first female Defence/UPDF Spokesperson in the history of Uganda.

Presiding over the Handover/Takeover ceremony at Ministry of Defence and Veteran Affairs Headquarters in Mbuya, the UPDF Joint Chief Of Staff Maj Gen Leopold Kyanda congratulated Brig Gen Byekwaso for a job well done. He said she has left a clean slate as the Spokesperson and challenged the incoming to pick up from where she left off and even improve the department and image of Ministry of Defence and UPDF to greater heights.

He observed that the Office of the Spokesperson is extremely key because they carry the mandate to speak for the Ministry of Defence and the mighty UPDF, a job that is not light for it requires, timeliness, creativity, proactivity, teamwork, Cooperation with other agencies and a good sense of public relations.

In her remarks, Gen Byekwaso thanked the Commander in Chief and the UPDF leadership for the confidence bestowed on her to put her at the helm of such a key office and for the support rendered to her during her tenure. She also thanked the MODVA/UPDF leadership for the opportunity accorded to her to attend the prestigious National Defence College as one of the pioneer participants in Uganda.

Interesting things you didn’t know about Brig Byekwaso:

1. Flavia Byekwaso was born on 29 December 1971, in the Central Region of Uganda. She attended St. Mathias Kalemba Senior Secondary School, in Nazigo, Kayunga District, for both her O-Level and A-Level studies

2. In 1996 she graduated with a bachelors degree in Business administration from Makerere University. Later, in 2012, she obtained a Master of Public Administration and Management degree, also from Makerere University.

3.Byekwaso was recruited by the Ugandan military in 2000, starting out as a protocol officer. Over time, she worked in different roles, including as a military assistant, as an administrative officer and as a logistics officer.

4.She spent the years from 2014 until 2016 serving as the Director of Logistics in the Uganda People’s Defence Forces

5.In 2016, at the rank of Lieutenant Colonel, she was elected to be one of the ten military men and women who represent the UPDF in the 10th Parliament (2016–2021).

6.In 2019, in a promotions exercise involving over 2,000 men and women in the UPDF, she was promoted from the rank of Colonel to the rank of Brigadier General. In her capacity, she is the second-highest ranking woman in the UPDF, behind Proscovia Nalweyiso, whose rank is Lieutenant General.