Before 1962 Uganda had a history of helping veterans reenter civilian society, but postindependence governments discontinued these programs. Following World War II, the government had paid veterans pensions and granted them a one-year exemption from poll taxes. It also had created a committee to help veterans readjÍÍÍÍust to civilian life. The Civil Reabsorption and Rehabilitation Committee provided teacher training programs and instruction in a variety of trades. The government also helped veterans start small businesses by providing subsidies for initial purchases of merchandise. In addition, volunteer members of the Uganda War Memorial Committee and the British Legion helped pay school fees for children of veterans. Old soldiers' homes provided nursing facilities for some aged and disabled veterans.

Veterans did not play an organized role in Uganda's independence movement or in the country's social and political life after independence, and veterans lost most of their former privileges. Economic development needs, political instability, and continuing insurgencies in northern and eastern Uganda prevented the organization of veterans groups in the late 1980s, but President Museveni promised to improve veterans' benefits once stability had been restored.

Data as of December 1990