Rwanda Defense Force (RDF): Rwanda Army (Rwanda Land Force), Rwanda Air Force (Force Aerienne Rwandaise, FAR), Rwanda Reserve Force (2021)
Tanzania People's Defense Forces (TPDF or Jeshi la Wananchi la Tanzania, JWTZ): Land Forces, Naval Forces, Air Force, National Building Army (Jeshi la Kujenga Taifa, JKT), People's Militia (Reserves); Ministry of Home Affairs paramilitary forces: Police Field Force (2021)
note: the National Building Army is a paramilitary organization under the Defense Forces that provides six months of military and vocational training to individuals as part of their two years of public service; after completion of training, some graduates join the regular Defense Forces while the remainder become part of the People's (or Citizen's) Militia
Military service age and obligation
18 years of age for voluntary military service; no conscription; Rwandan citizenship is required; enlistment is either as contract (5-years, renewable twice) or career (2019)
18-25 years of age for voluntary military service; 6-year commitment (2-year contracts afterwards); selective conscription for 2 years of public service (2021)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP
1.2% of GDP (2019)
1.2% of GDP (2018)
1.2% of GDP (2017)
1.2% of GDP (2016)
1.2% of GDP (2015)
1.3% of GDP (2019)
1.3% of GDP (2018)
1.1% of GDP (2017)
1.1% of GDP (2016)
1.1% of GDP (2015)
Military and security service personnel strengths
the Rwanda Defense Force (RDF) has approximately 33,000 active personnel (32,000 Army; 1,000 Air Force) (2021)
the Tanzania People's Defense Forces (TPDF) have an estimated 26,000 active personnel (22,000 Land Forces; 1,000 Naval Forces; 3,000 Air Force) (2020)
Military equipment inventories and acquisitions
the RDF's inventory includes mostly Soviet-era and older Western - mostly French and South African - equipment; Rwanda has received a limited supply of imports since 2010 from a variety of countries, including China, Israel, Russia, and Turkey (2020)
the TPDF inventory includes mostly Soviet-era and Chinese equipment; since 2010, China is the leading supplier of arms to the TPDF (2020)
Military deployments
1,370 Central African Republic (MINUSCA); 1,125 Sudan (UNAMID); 2,750 South Sudan (UNMISS) (2021)
note - in mid-2021, Rwanda sent about 1,000 combat troops to Mozambique to assist the Mozambique Government in combating an insurgency
450 Central African Republic (MINUSCA); 775 Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO); 120 Lebanon (UNIFIL); 330 Sudan (UNAMID) (Jan 2021)
