What is JLOS?

The Justice, Law and Order Sector (JLOS) is a reform process ongoing across the entire sector of administration of justice and maintenance of law and order in Uganda.

It is an innovative approach, the first of its kind in the justice sector in Africa, which increases communication, coordination and cooperation among several stakeholders in implementing a sector wide, prioritised and costed strategic investment plan.

It enhances coherence in policy discussion and formulation as well as resource allocation.

The JLOS has strategic partnerships with the private sector, civil society organisations and other sectors of Government towards achieving justice for all.

2. What is JLOS Policy and Planning Framework?

The JLOS was established in November 1999 following Government commitment to undertake reforms in the justice st sy em. i t An initial Strateg c Inves ment Plan (SIP I ) was adopted in 2001 focussing on criminal and commercial justice reforms.

In 2006 a second Strategic Investment Plan (SIP II) for the period 2006 – 2011 was adopted to continue with the reform programme. In view of the public expectation of the sector, the priority focus of SIP II was widened beyond criminal and commercial justice to include land and family

justice in order to address the concerns of the poor and marginalised, for example women and children.

Mission: To ensure all people in Uganda live in a safe and just society.

Goal: To enhance quality of life and ensure that poverty in Uganda is eliminated.

Purpose: To improve the safety of the person security of property and access to justice in order to encourage economic development and to benefit the poor and vulnerable people.

3. What are the JLOS Objectives?

- To promote rule of law and due process

- To foster a human rights culture across JLOS institutions

- To enhance access to justice for all particularly for the poor and marginalised

- To reduce the incidence of crime and promote safety of the person and security of

   property

- To enhance JLOS contribution to economic development

4. Which are the Institutions in JLOS?

The Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs

The Ministry of Internal Affairs

The Judiciary

The Uganda Prisons Service

The Uganda Police Force

The Directorate of Public Prosecutions

The Judicial Services Commission

The Uganda Law Reform Commission

The Uganda Human Rights Commission

The Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development – Probation Services

The Ministry of Local Government – Local Council Courts

5. What are the Priority Actions of the Sector?

- Legislative reform

- Reduction of case backlog

- Faster disposal of cases and matters

- Improved processes so as to minimize the cost of doing business

- Reduction of crime prevalence

- Reduction in the remand period

- Reduction of specific human rights violations

- Improved service delivery in conflict affected areas

- Rehabilitation of offenders and diversion of juveniles from the justice system

- Enhancing legal and civic awareness

- Integration of cross-cutting issues such as Gender, HIV/AIDS

- Strengthening of JLOS institutions, intra sectoral and inter sectoral linkages

6. What are the JLOS Priority Interventions?

In order to achieve its overall goal, purpose and objectives, JLOS will undertake key activities highlighted below, under five Key Result Areas:

7. What are the Sector Strategies for Implementing Reforms?

- Strengthening advocacy to promote and enlist political support for JLOS reforms

- Integrating cross-cutting issues in JLOS operations

- Enhancing strategic inter-sectoral linkages

- Ensuring effective participation of private sector and Civil Society Organisation

- Enhancing community policing and partipation in Local Council Courts

- Improving service delivery in conflict affected areas

- Re-organising and strengthening JLOS institutions

- Developing innovative and achievable strategies and plans e.g. alternative dispute resolution   methods, diversion from the justice system

- Adopting change management strategies

8. Who Manages the JLOS Reform Programme?

The JLOS management structure is reflected at two integrated levels - the national and the district.

It is based on committee and working group arrangements to ensure participation and co-ordination of all JLOS institutions with representation from each institution, external stakeholders

and partners.

The Government of Germany

The Government of Ireland

The Government of Netherlands

The Government of Norway

The Government of Sweden

The Government of United Kingdom

The European Union

The World Bank

14. What Key Achievements has JLOS registered?

Key achievements in the JLOS development program since 2000 have included:

- Increased communication, collaboration and coordination among JLOS institutions

- Increased rationalisation of the planning and budgeting process

- De-concentration of service delivery countrywide

- Reduction in the average length of stay on remand

- Reduction in the number of persons held on remand beyond the constitutional period

- Improved human rights observance in places of detention

- Increased efficiency in the Commercial Court

- Reform of critical criminal and commercial laws

- Integration of regulatory best practices in policy formulation and practice

- Enhanced capacity of the legal profession in commercial disputes

- Enhanced capacity to investigate and prosecute in criminal cases

15. What are the Challenges facing JLOS in implementing SIP II?

In the course of implementing SIP I, the sector identified the challenges that would affect the enhancement of quality of justice; the impact to the beneficiaries; as well as building the confidence of the users. Through SIP II, the JLOS aims at enhancing its capacity to directly address the impact of its reforms to the human rights of the citizens by addressing itself to the following challenges:

15.1 Justice-specific

- Limited access to justice

- Slow law reform process

- Low human rights observance and respect

- Case backlog and delays in dispensation of justice

- Weak enforcement of judicial decisions

- Congestion and poor living conditions in places of detention

- Limited public awareness on how and where to access justice

- Weak link between justice and its contribution to economic development

15.2 Law and order-specific

- Rising levels of reported crime

- Low levels of public confidence in JLOS institutions

- Low levels of public involvement in crime prevention

- Weak immigration and border controls