Reported by Kerry Howard Mwesigwa
The judiciary in Uganda is set to expand its Electronic Court Case Management Information System (ECCMIS) to other parts of the country in an effort to simplify judicial work and reduce case backlogs.
The Chief Justice of Uganda, Justice Alfonse Owiny Dollo, noted that the ECCMIS system has already been implemented in Kampala, and expanding it to other areas will revolutionize the way the judiciary handles cases. With the system in place, it is expected that cases will be disposed of more efficiently.
The Chief Justice made the remarks while flagging off a training retreat of 28 judges from the Court of Appeal, Supreme Court and the Industrial Court focusing on team building, effective services, inherent powers of the court of the industrial court, and judgment writing for panel benches. The International Development Law Organization (IDLO) and the Judicial Training Institute (JTI) have organized this retreat to help enhance the accessibility, quality, and sustainability of justice services for rural, vulnerable, and marginalized communities in Uganda. The program will empower grassroots communities to claim and uphold their rights and strengthen capacities of both formal and informal justice actors/systems to support effective redress mechanisms for justice seekers.
With a total case backlog exceeding 50,000 as reported in the 2022 annual judiciary report, the expansion of the ECCMIS system is expected to save time and ensure that cases, such as those revolving around land, can be heard within 12 months.
