Judiciary Takes Juvenile Hearings to Mbale Remand Home in Case Backlog Drive

What the report says

Uganda’s Judiciary has begun a special two-day case-disposal exercise in Mbale aimed at reducing backlogs and improving access to justice, with a focus on children in conflict with the law. According to Nile Post, the initiative runs from October 26 to 27, 2026, and combines juvenile hearings at Namakwekwe Remand Home with plea bargaining sessions for adult inmates at Maluku Prison.

The exercise follows a directive from Chief Justice Flavian Zeija, relayed through Deputy Chief Justice Moses Kazibwe Kawumi, to prioritize juvenile matters in eastern Uganda. Justice Professor Andrew Khaukha, who serves as the Judiciary’s focal judge for alternative dispute resolution and executive director of the Judicial Training Institute, said the goal is to clear cases involving juveniles held at the remand home.

Nile Post reported that 37 adult inmates facing capital offences are included in the plea bargaining process, with victims consulted as part of the proceedings. The Mbale exercise also includes nine juvenile cases. Khaukha said plea bargaining has been part of the Judiciary’s wider effort to speed up criminal case disposal for more than a decade.

The Judiciary is taking court proceedings closer to inmates rather than using conventional court settings, with judges stationed at the prison and remand home. The development reflects a broader push to ease congestion in the justice system and address delays, especially in cases involving vulnerable children and serious criminal charges.