Three members of the Armed Forces of Malta's 1st Regiment landed in Uganda early on Saturday to take part in the EU's training mission for Somali military personnel in Uganda.

The purpose of the mission is to contribute to strengthening the Transitional Federal Government and associated institutions in the war-torn African nation.

Malta has a direct interest in contributing towards a peaceful and stable Somalia, given the large number of Somali nationals who land here or who are rescued following difficulties they encounter while making their way across the Mediterranean towards Europe.

The EU mission, headed by Spain, will see military training delivered to 2,000 Somali trainees over a period of 12 months.

The training is being provided to support existing military training programmes being run by Uganda.

The mission headquarters is located in Kampala, the capital of Uganda, while the training facility where the Maltese infantry instructors will be based is Bihanga camp, over 200 kilometres west of Kampala.

The EU is deploying nine instructor training teams to train Somali security forces, with different teams given different areas of responsibility.

The three AFM personnel sent to the mission are on a six-month tour of duty.

There are national plans to sustain the commitment towards the mission for a further six months with another three AFM personnel earmarked for a second tour of duty.