On the morning of Wednesday 4th December 2024, The Chief Justice, Alfonse Chigamoy Owiny - Dollo, chaired the Administration of Justice Programme(AJP) Leadership Committee meeting, to discuss the integration of identifed interventions under the Governance and Security Programme to the Administration of Justice Programme.
He was flanked by Justice Musa Ssekaana, representing the Principal Judge, Dr Flavian Zeija and the Permanent Secretary/Secretary to the Judiciary, Dr Pius Bigirimana.
The meeting, which is also intended to harmonise NDP IV Programme Implementation Action Plan (PIAP) for Governance Security and Administration of Justice is being held at the Supreme Court Building Conference Hall, Kampala.
The Chief Justice, while addressing the meeting, noted that during the launch of the Annual Performance Report for FY 2023/24, some of the key challenges highlighted was the inadequacies among the key justice actors.
He noted that the misalignment of justice chain interventions under NDP III has greatly affected the performance of the Programme and to a larger extent impaired the gains made under the Sector Wide Approach to Planning" (SWAP) where all institutions in the justice chain belonged to the Justice Law and Order Sector (JLOS) under the leadership of the Chief Justice.
He added that in order to achieve the goal of "Justice for all", there is need to recognise the importance of working closely with each other in the justice chain, to ensure effective administration of justice because Coordination, Cooperation and Collaboration are essential for promoting access to justice for all Ugandans.
The Chief Justice further noted that every year, he is required to report on the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly Goal 16, which aims to promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all, and build effective, accountable, and inclusive institutions at all levels. Hence, in order to report on this effectively, the operations of the Administration of Justice Programme must be strengthened by bringing related institutions together to achieve a common goal.
The meeting is was attended by representatives from institutions including political Heads and Senior Administrators in the justice chain. It was moderated by HW Mulalira Faisal, Deputy Registrar, Judicial Training Institute.
Background
On 22nd October, 2024, the Chief Justice convened a meeting of Heads of institutions in the justice chain at the Supreme Court Building, Kampala to discuss the challenges posed by the misalignment of justice chain interventions under the Third National Development Plan (NDP III), and how the same had affected the performance of the Administration of Justice Programme.
The meeting agreed that technical officers' meeting is convened by the Chairperson of the Programme Work Group, the Permanent Secretary/Secretary to the Judiciary, to identify interventions and actions under the Governance and Security Programme that contribute to the administration of justice. Thereafter, another meeting of political heads of institutions whose interventions have been identified would be invited to a meeting to form consensus on the integration of those interventions into the Administration of Justice Programme under NDP IV.
Subsequently, on 28th October 2024, the Permanent Secretary/Secretary to the Judiciary convened a meeting of technical officers who reviewed and agreed on interventions under Governance and Security Programme that contribute to Administration of Justice. The meeting was attended by: Secretary to the Office of the President (also the Chairperson for Governance and Security Programmne Working Group); Director of Law Development Centre; representatives from the National Planning Authority; Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions; Judicial Service Commission; Ministry of Internal Affairs; Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development among others.