African Chief Justices in Uganda for global summit on commercial dispute resolution
Acting Chief Registrar, Pamela Lamunu addressing the media ahead of today's conference. Photo | Anthony Wesaka
What you need to know:
- The two-day conference is expected to bring together African Chief Justices, judges, legal professionals, and Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) experts from across the African continent and beyond.
The Ugandan Judiciary will, effective Friday, host the first-ever international summit on commercial dispute resolution to discuss commercial litigation, arbitration, and mediation with strong attention on best practices, experiences, and practical collaboration for better community justice delivery.
The two-day conference is expected to bring together African Chief Justices, judges, legal professionals, and Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) experts from across the African continent and beyond.
“The Summit, the first of its kind in Africa, will bring together Chief Justices, senior judges, legal professionals, and ADR experts from across the continent and around the world to discuss commercial litigation, arbitration, and mediation—with a strong focus on best practices and practical collaboration,” said Ms Pamella Lamunu, the Acting Chief Registrar on Wednesday ahead of the conference in Kampala.
She continued: “This Summit is a reflection of Africa’s growing leadership in modern dispute resolution. We recognize that Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) is not new to Africa. It reflects long-standing traditional practices of dialogue, mediation, and community justice that pre-date the colonial court systems. What we are doing now is integrating those values into our formal systems, guided by the principles of efficiency, accessibility, and fairness.”
Ms Lamunu further said the conference aims at integrating traditional African values of dialogue and mediation into modern justice systems.
Supreme Court Justice Catherine Bamugemereire, who is the Vice Chairperson of the Organizing Committee, emphasised that Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) is a "win-win" approach to resolving disputes, offering a more effective alternative to the adversarial system.
She noted that mediation introduces a neutral third party, facilitating a mutually beneficial conclusion between the two parties. Bamugemereire noted that commercial disputes often arise from former friendships that have soured due to disagreements.
Justice Bamugemereire believes that friendships can be restored while avoiding hefty legal costs. She also pointed out that the judiciary now has trained ADR experts, encouraging the public to leverage this resource to resolve cases amicably.
She revealed that so far, 11 Chief Justices from different countries such as Malawi, Benin, Zimbabwe, India, Doha, Zambia, among others, have already confirmed to attend the summit, and that more delegates are expected from 28 Countries.
The Africa Chief Justices' ADR Forum (ACJAF), established in March 2024, aims to promote ADR, advocate for its integration into national legal systems, and ensure governments invest in training, infrastructure, and reform.
During the Kampala March 2024 Chief Justice's Forum, it was agreed that the African judiciaries must hold regular summits to promote ADR, advocate for its integration into national legal systems, and ensure the respective governments invest in training, infrastructure, and reform.
The outcomes of the conference will be shared at the 6th full meeting in New Delhi in India, where the African Chief Justice will be expected to present lessons, insights, and innovations emerging from the Kampala conference, hence bringing the African voice on the international stage.
