Strengthening forensic expertise and management of crime scenes in the Justice, Law and Order Sector (JLOS) in Uganda
NICHE-UGA-028
Sector
Justice Law and Order Sector (JLOS)
Project budget
The maximum budget for this project is € 1.2 million.
Organisations
This project has been developed by the Government Analytical Laboratories (GAL), in collaboration with the Forensic Service Department of the Uganda Police Force and the Regional Centre for Quality of Healthcare.
The tender for this project expired on 8 October 2010. Nuffic has awarded this tender to the Center for International Legal Cooperation (CILC), which has formed a consortium with 
MUNDO.
In addition, input will be provided by:
- the Netherlands Forensic Institute,
- the Maastricht Forensic Institute,
- the Forensic Science Department (FSD) in Uganda,
- the Regional Centre for Quality Health Care Mulago (RCQHC) in Uganda.
Project description
The Justice, Law and Order Sector (JLOS) in Uganda faces major challenges, among which an increasing crime rate and poor access to justice. One of the main obstacles of access to justice has been identified as the limited forensic expertise available in the country. The low capacity of forensic officers is exacerbated by inadequate integration of forensic science in curricula of training institutions.
In addition, there is a lack of training institutions in Uganda (and the region) that offer initial and post-graduate training in specialised forensic science fields. Preservation and management of crime scenes also remains hampered due to poor awareness among the public and limited capacity of officers in terms of numbers and skills. This often results in botched and tampered evidence.
There is a shortage of forensic skills and there are no forensics policies and enabling laws, which would, ideally, provide a framework to build forensic capacities. This has prevented a comprehensive, coordinated and effective delivery of forensic services.
The three organisations in Uganda currently responsible for the provision of forensic services and products include the Government Analytical Laboratories, the Forensic Service Department of the Uganda Police Force and the Regional Center for Quality of Healthcare, which has initiated clinical forensic services in Mulago Hospital, with support from Makerere University’s Department of Pathology.
The project, in collaboration with these three partner organisations, intends to contribute to addressing the aforementioned gaps. The overall objective of the project is to improve forensic expertise and management of scenes of crimes in JLOS in Uganda.
Objectives
The project has four specific objectives:
- To strengthen the policy, legal and institutional framework for forensic science management in Uganda.
- To enhance skills and organisational capacity in forensic expertise and scenes of crimes management in Uganda.
- To develop core curriculum and course materials for theoretical and practical training programmes in forensic science.
- To sensitise and educate stakeholders for a better understanding and appreciation of forensic science and its role in the administration of justice.
At the same time, the project intends to improve the gender ratio of forensic officers and integrate gender issues into curricula while improving quality and labour market relevance.