The Vice Chancellor, Prof. Barnabas Nawangwe, has commended the leadership and faculty of Makerere University School of Law for their outstanding contribution to graduate training, research, and academic excellence, describing the School as one of the key drivers of Makerere University’s growing international reputation.

The commendation was made during the Vice Chancellor’s ongoing engagements with Colleges, Stand-alone Schools, and Institutes, aimed at strengthening the management and administration of graduate training and research across the University. The visits form part of a broader initiative to assess progress in graduate education, identify emerging opportunities, and address challenges affecting research and postgraduate studies.

Prof. Nawangwe applauded the School of Law for achieving the University’s Strategic Plan target of 40% graduate student enrolment, describing the milestone as a testament to the School’s commitment to producing highly skilled professionals and researchers.

He emphasized that graduate education, particularly doctoral training, is fundamental to national development. Drawing lessons from countries such as the United States and China, the Vice Chancellor observed that a nation’s number of PhD holders per capita is closely linked to its capacity for innovation, research, and socio-economic transformation.

“The countries that lead in research, innovation and industrial development have invested heavily in doctoral education. The number of PhDs per capita is a strong indicator of a country’s ability to generate knowledge and solve societal challenges,” he noted, urging the School to continue expanding graduate enrolment while maintaining high academic standards.

Prof. Nawangwe further praised the School’s vibrant Staff Colloquia Series, describing it as an important platform for promoting scholarly engagement, mentorship, and interdisciplinary collaboration among academic staff and graduate students.

He also commended the School’s growing research focus on Environmental Law, particularly water governance and sustainability, noting that these priorities align well with Makerere University’s strategic commitment to addressing pressing environmental and climate-related challenges through research and innovation.

The Vice Chancellor highlighted the proposed collaborative Master’s Programme in Environmental Diplomacy between Makerere University and University of Padua as an example of the University’s efforts to develop specialized graduate programmes that respond to emerging global priorities while strengthening international academic partnerships.

To further support the School’s ambitions, Prof. Nawangwe reaffirmed the University’s commitment to facilitating the establishment of new Centres of Excellence, revitalizing the Environmental Law Centre (ELC), and implementing measures to strengthen staff recruitment and promotion.

He observed that investing in strong academic staff and research infrastructure remains central to Makerere University’s vision of becoming a research-led institution that contributes solutions to national, regional, and global development challenges.

The Vice Chancellor encouraged the School’s leadership and faculty to sustain the momentum in graduate training, research productivity, and international collaboration, noting that their achievements continue to enhance Makerere University’s standing as a leading centre of academic excellence in Africa.

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The Vice Chancellor Prof. Barnabas Nawangwe on 23^rd June 2026 during his visitation to Colleges, Stand-alone Schools and Institutes to discuss management and administration of graduate training and research commended the School of Law (SoL) Leadership and Faculty on attaining the 40% Graduate Student enrolment target as per the University Strategic Plan. Citing examples of the U.S. and China, he noted that a country’s PhD per capita correlates with capacity to develop, and therefore encouraged SoL to keep improving graduate training and research output.

Prof. Nawangwe commended the School’s Staff Colloquia Series and research priorities on Environmental Law, especially Water, noting that this compliments institutional efforts to establish specialized Graduate programmes like the proposed collaborative Masters in Environmental Diplomacy with the University of Padova. He therefore reassured the School of support in establishment of new Centres of Excellence and revitalization of the Environment Law Centre (ELC) as well as measures to address staff promotion and recruitment.

Commending the School’s longstanding collaboration with the University of Pretoria particularly through the Master’s in Human Rights and Democratisation in Africa (HRDA), the Vice Chancellor urged faculty to forge more partnerships especially those that incorporate joint degree supervision. “We were able to graduate hundreds of PhDs with Sida support due to joint supervision arrangements with Swedish institutions” he elaborated.

The Vice Chancellor was accompanied by the Academic Registrar-Prof. Buyinza Mukadasi, Director Graduate Training-Prof. Julius Kikooma, Head Makerere Writing Centre-Prof. Fredrick Muyodi, Managing Editor of Makerere University Press (MakPress)-Prof. William Tayeebwa and Mr. Andrew Mwesigwa from the Makerere University Library. They were received at SoL by the Dean-Prof. Ronald Naluwairo, Deputy Dean-Dr. Zahara Nampewo, and the School’s leadership and faculty.

Addressing the meeting, Prof. Naluwairo thanked the University Council and Management under the leadership of Prof. Nawangwe for prioritizing infrastructure development that paved way for the construction and furnishing of the new School of Law Building. “Every member of staff now has an office”, he added. This development, he noted, that has made the School environment more conducive for work, student supervision and personal study.

The Dean reported that SoL currently has 414 graduate students, with 41 enrolled for the Doctor of Laws (LLD). He nevertheless added that only twenty three (23) faculty are eligible to teach and supervise graduate students, which impacts their workload. It was on this note that the requested the Management team to prioritise recruitment and promotions for the School.

In terms of research output, Prof. Naluwairo highlighted the East African Journal of Peace and Human Rights (EAJPHR) produced by the Human Rights and Peace Centre (HURIPEC), the Makerere Law Journal produced by Students, as well as the HURIPEC and Public Interest Law Clinic (PILAC) Working Paper Series as the School’s main publication avenues. He nevertheless called for the approval of specialized Master of Laws (LLM) programmes, additional support for graduate students’ support services and increased Graduate Fellows’ appointments to further boost the School’s output.

Prof. Buyinza Mukadasi in his submission commended the SoL on its world renowned and well respected status, as observed from a recent working visit to the European University Institute (EUI) in Italy. He therefore urged the School to take advantage of this rich legacy by further expanding their frontier of collaboration internationally and attracting more Honorary and Adjunct Professors to help supervise and mentor graduate students.

Contributing to the discussion, Prof. Julius Kikooma congratulated SoL on attaining the Graduate Student Enrolment target and added that this would be further boosted with the roll-out of the Research Information Management System (RIMS) to track graduate students’ milestones. He equally informed the meeting that a curriculum on graduate supervision is being development in partnership with the College of Education and External Studies (CEES) Centre for Teaching and Learning Support (CTLS), to help standardize and guide the process.

Additionally, Prof. Fredrick Muyodi reassured the School of Law of the his Centre’s readiness to provide training that can help improve the writing of grants, reports and dissertations so as to further boost research output. The Centre has, in keeping with current trends, organized training on the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in writing and research output. Also in the pipeline are trainings on writing policy briefs, and a writing retreat in collaboration with MakPress to help finalists complete of theses and dissertations on time.

The Managing Editor, Prof. Tayeebwa congratulated SoL upon the East African Journal of Peace and Human Rights (EAJPHR)’s consistent production since 1993. He equally expressed MakPress’ readiness to digitize and assign International Standard Serial Number (ISSN) and Digital Object Identifier (DOI) identifiers to further boost the publication’s visibility. “We are ready to work with you to establish any other journals you have ideas for” he added.

The discussions concluded with the Vice Chancellor’s reassurance of the continued protection of academic freedom, whereupon he urged the SoL faculty to feature more prominently in the Kampala Geopolitics Conference, where the African perspective is integrated into discussions of current geopolitical issues. The visit was concluded with a tour of the SoL Moot Court.

Makerere University School of Law has hosted the Chief Justice of the Republic of Zambia, Hon. Justice Dr. Mumba Malila, who paid a courtesy call on 15^th June 2026 during his official visit to Uganda to assume leadership of the African Chief Justices’ Forum on Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR).

Justice Malila was accompanied by the Chief Justice of Uganda, Hon. Justice Dr. Flavian Zeija, and a delegation from Zambian Judiciary. During the visit, the Zambian Chief Justice engaged with faculty members and students at School of Law and later paid a courtesy call on the Vice Chancellor, represented by the Deputy Vice Chancellor in charge of Finance and Administration, Prof. Henry Alinaitwe.

Justice Malila’s visit to Uganda followed his succession of retired Chief Justice Alfonse Owiny-Dollo of Uganda, who was founding Chairperson of the African Chief Justices’ ADR Forum. The Forum’s Secretariat is based in Kampala, making Uganda the venue for the formal handover of leadership and instruments of authority.

Welcoming the delegation to Makerere, the Dean of the School of Law, Prof. Ronald Naluwairo, congratulated Justice Malila on assuming the continental leadership role and pledged the School’s support towards advancing Alternative Dispute Resolution across Africa.

“As the premier Law School in Uganda, we appreciate the importance of ADR in promoting access to justice, expediting the resolution of disputes and enhancing social harmony,” Prof. Naluwairo said. He noted that ADR is now taught as a standalone course in the Bachelor of Laws programme and remains an important area of research within the School.

The Dean also emphasized the need for stronger collaboration between legal academia and the judiciary, proposing formal partnerships between Makerere University School of Law, the Judiciary of Uganda and institutions in Zambia.

In his remarks, Chief Justice Zeija described the visit as a homecoming, recalling his days as a student at Makerere University‘s School of Law. He praised the School for introducing ADR as a standalone course, observing that during his legal training, dispute resolution was largely taught through the lens of litigation.

“Academia plays a critical role in enriching jurisprudence within the judiciary,” Justice Zeija said, citing the contribution of legal scholars to landmark cases and judicial training programmes. He revealed that the Judiciary had already initiated discussions on formalizing collaboration with the School of Law through a Memorandum of Understanding.

Justice Malila, who spent many years teaching at the University of Zambia before joining the judiciary, reflected on the enduring influence of academic life and the pride lecturers feel when they see former students excel in their professions.

“I spent a long time teaching in a law school, and once you have lived the academic life, you always feel a strong connection to universities,” he said.

The Zambian Chief Justice spoke warmly about Makerere University‘s longstanding reputation as one of Africa’s leading institutions of higher learning. Recalling debates from his student days about the “Oxford of Africa,” he said Makerere‘s reputation had been built on decades of academic excellence and the outstanding achievements of its graduates across the continent.

“Makerere possesses the history, reputation, goodwill and intellectual heritage that command respect throughout Africa,” he remarked, urging the University community to continue safeguarding and strengthening its standards.

Justice Malila welcomed Makerere‘s decision to teach ADR as a standalone discipline, describing it as a significant contribution to the Forum’s efforts to promote alternative dispute resolution across Africa.

“One of the objectives of the African Chief Justices’ ADR Forum is to engage universities and colleges in disseminating knowledge and appreciation of ADR. We hope to reach a point where students can enroll specifically to study ADR and graduate as professional ADR practitioners,” he said.

He noted that many legal systems continue to focus heavily on adversarial litigation and stressed the need to prepare future legal professionals for alternative approaches to resolving disputes.

The visit also highlighted the deep historical ties between Makerere University and the legal profession across Africa. During the interaction, Justice Malila revealed that his first academic journal article was published in the East African Journal of Peace and Human Rights following encouragement from a Makerere academic, giving him a personal connection to the University.

At the conclusion of the visit, both Chief Justices emphasized the importance of strengthening partnerships between universities and judiciaries in advancing legal scholarship, judicial training and access to justice.

The delegation later paid a courtesy call on Makerere University‘s Vice Chancellor, Prof. Barnabas Nawangwe, represented by the Deputy Vice Chancellor in charge of Finance and Administration, where discussions focused on strengthening academic and professional collaboration between institutions in Uganda and Zambia. The visit reinforced Makerere University School of Law’s position as a leading centre for legal education and research in Africa and underscored the growing role of universities in promoting Alternative Dispute Resolution as an important pillar of access to justice on the continent.