Chief Justice Dr. Flavian Zeija has unveiled three major judicial reform instruments aimed at strengthening accountability, improving service delivery and reducing case backlog,
The launch came hours after he presided over his first session of a presidential election petition.
He also launched the Judiciary Client Charter, the Judicial Service Delivery Standards and the Judiciary Strategic Plan Six for 2025/2026–2029/2030. He described the documents as a contract between the judiciary and the public.
Zeija stressed that the Client Charter clearly spells out service timelines, including how long court users should wait for services and the expected duration for concluding cases.
“The public we serve are our bosses,” Zeija said, noting that the charter is intended to manage expectations while holding judicial officers accountable for timely justice delivery.
The Judicial Service Delivery Standards outline the quality and consistency of services the judiciary commits to providing across all courts.
The five-year strategic plan replaces an expired one and is aligned with Uganda’s National Development Plan, Vision 2040, the Sustainable Development Goals and other national policy frameworks. Zeija said it assesses the judiciary’s past performance, sets future priorities, outlines financing requirements, identifies risks and provides a monitoring and evaluation framework. He confirmed the plan was approved by the relevant oversight committee last week.
The documents were launched at a wellness venue to promote focused decision-making. The event took place in the judiciary compound immediately after routine Wednesday evening wellness exercises for judicial officers. Zeija and other officers remained in sportswear during the launch, with some cheering him on with vuvuzelas.
The judiciary intends to print and distribute enough copies of the documents to ensure wide public access.
Speaking at the same venue, Judiciary Permanent Secretary Dr. Pius Bigirimana congratulated Zeija on formally assuming office and presiding over the election petition session. Bigirimana raised concern over the low turnout of judicial officers at the wellness exercise, noting that only about seven or eight officers attended out of hundreds present.
He said the chief justice had directed that participation in judicial wellness activities, including aerobics, should be treated as mandatory. Bigirimana added that a registration system had been introduced to track attendance and warned that officers who do not participate should not expect administrative recommendations or facilitative letters from his office.
According to a copy of the strategic plan, it will be financed through statutory funding and support from development partners while safeguarding judicial independence. The plan is estimated to cost 3.723 trillion Ugandan shillings over five years.
Of this, 1.270 trillion shillings is allocated to improving case management processes to reduce backlog and delays, 976 billion shillings to enhancing equitable access to justice services and 1.477 trillion shillings to strengthening policy, legal and institutional capacity.
However, Medium Term Expenditure Framework projections provide 2.586 trillion shillings, leaving a financing gap of 1.137 trillion shillings.
The plan highlights achievements under the previous strategy, including an increase in the case disposal rate from 45 percent in the 2019/2020 financial year to 57.61 percent in 2024/2025. Case backlog was reduced from 48 percent to 24.2 percent.
Court coverage increased from 51 percent to 78.4 percent nationwide, while the number of judicial officers rose from 378 to 705. The Judiciary also completed the construction of the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal buildings and rolled out the Electronic Court Case Management Information System (ECCMIS) to 31 courts. Gender and equity mainstreaming improved through the implementation of the gender policy, establishment of child-friendly court facilities, the appointment of members to the Human Capital Development, Gender and Equity Mainstreaming Committee, and the conduct of juvenile and gender-based violence special sessions.
Public trust in the Judiciary increased from 64 percent to 71 percent in 2024. Despite these gains, the plan acknowledges persistent challenges. By the end of the 2024/2025 financial year, courts had a pending caseload of 190,793 cases, including 46,181 backlog cases. Only 37 percent of approved staff positions are filled, affecting timely adjudication. About 40 percent of operational courts are housed in rented premises that lack proper court halls, holding cells, archives, and ICT infrastructure, compromising operational effectiveness.
The plan also flags interference with judicial independence, citing instances where courts failed to enforce orders due to resistance from some stakeholders, including Resident District Commissioners, members of the armed forces, and politicians.