The Judiciary has called on members of Uganda’s business community to embrace Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR), as a faster and more affordable way of settling commercial disputes.
Speaking during a roundtable discussion on commercial justice, Judicial Training Institute Director, Justice Dr. Andrew Khaukha, said trade contributes significantly to Uganda’s economy, noting that about 35 percent of the Uganda Revenue Authority’s 31.6 trillion shilling collections in the 2024/2025 financial year came from trade.
He pledged the commitment of the Judicial Training Institute and the ADR Registry to support judicial leadership in promoting ADR initiatives.
The call comes amid growing concerns from the trading community over delays in commercial cases, which they say lead to increased loan interest, loss of customers and, in some cases, collapse of businesses.
The Minister of Trade, Industry and Cooperatives, Sanjay Tanna, and other stakeholders are attending the discussions aimed at strengthening commercial justice and promoting a business friendly dispute resolution system.
A businessman never envisages that he’s going to be caught by URA over something or disturbed by floods. For him, he calculates the goods are loaded from Dubai today, 21 days Mombasa, seven days Kampala, seven days cash in hand. A dispute arises because it was not accounted for, it is not foreseen,” Mr Sanjay said.
