About Makerere University School of Law
The Faculty of Law at Makerere University was established in 1968. Over the following three decades, the Faculty has grown into one of the most reputable Law Schools in the world. During this period, there have been significant developments in the global, regional and national policy environment within which research and the teaching of law has to be viewed. In addition to these numerous changes, the internal operations and the external operating environment for the Faculty of Law at Makerere have changed dramatically. Increased student enrollments, the changing demands of the Faculty clientele, the growing need for improved efficiency in the delivery of services and dwindling public financing for higher education, call for more in-depth reflection and strategic planning in order to maintain the Faculty of Law‟s position at the cutting-edge of legal research and teaching. Consenquently,
the development of a strategic operational framework and investment plan for the Faculty of Law ought to be seen at least against four broad challenges:
First, there is a need to move away from an
“Ivory Tower” mentality where research is done for research‟s sake towards a situation where legal research and the teaching of law deal with day-to-day problems facing local communities, vulnerable groups, the country, the region and the international community as a whole.
Second, the last three decades have witnessed a concerted reduction in public spending on higher education. This raises the need for the development of new and innovative strategies in research and training in order to augment available resources.
Third, the scene of tertiary and higher education has changed dramatically over the last decade. A number of universities have emerged and several of these offer law training. This phenomenon could present both advantages as well as disadvantages, depending on the nature of the partnership that could be designed with them. Whatever happens, these institutions could emerge as potential competitors for students, lecturers and public financing. Consequently, the Faculty of Law must consolidate its strategic and comparative advantage of having been there earlier and venture into new trajectories of legal research and training ahead of the budding law faculties.
Uganda and many of the countries of the Great Lakes Region are experiencing phenomenal transformation in major public policy areas of economic management, investment, governance, human rights and cross border financial transactions. At the local level, the continuing transformation of the economic, social and political superstructure will bring about new challenges for legal practitioners especially in the areas of social justice, human rights and poverty eradication. In the economic arena, the emergence of corporate clients with sophisticated
financial and other cross-border activities will require a new blend of lawyers who must be aware of international norms and the expectations of a variety of cultures. Internationalization will become a fundamental component of legal practice in many areas of legal expertise, especially in emerging sectors such as energy, mining and infrastructure development. The Faculty of Law at Makerere must remain forward looking, vibrant and capable of a transformation that matches the transformations taking place within the Great Lakes Region.
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Fourth, the Faculty of Law must be enlarged, in order to secure its future as a centre of excellence in legal research and training in the country, in the region and globally. Such a strategy is essential if the Faculty is to take advantage of the increasing student mobility within the Great Lakes sub-region. Indeed, these issues call for a robust and competitive approach to legal training and research.
I I . T H E L E G A L P R O F E S S I O N A N D T H E L A W Y E R I N A C H A N G I N G O P E R A T I O N A L E N V I R O N M E N T
The continuing relevance of a strategic plan for any institution is only assured if it is set against a clear understanding of its operational environment. In that way, the institution is able to identify the potential threats and challenges but more importantly, to identify the opportunities that are available to foster growth, expansion and consolidation. This section of the strategic plan therefore analyses the local, regional and international policy environment and maps out the trajectories in these policy arenas that could have an impact on the future growth and development of the Faculty of Law at Makerere University.
2.1The Local Level
At the local level or within Makerere University, the Faculty of Law occupies an enviable position as one of the most sought-after faculties. Law courses are considered among the prestigious courses offered by the University which offers a strategic advantage that can be harnessed for the growth of the Faculty. Secondly, the current policy direction to reorganize the University into constituent colleges may provide an opportunity for the Faculty to secure more autonomy and operational efficiency, factors that are essential to enable the faculty administration respond to emerging and future challenges that legal education, training and research have to respond to. However, there are also a number of challenges that have to be addressed over the duration of the strategic plan. The most critical challenge emerging from the current institutional set up of the University is the overcentralization of the decision making authority on issues such as admissions, staff recruitment and establishment, and the University fees structure. Addressing these challenges will require the Faculty to establish a dialogue with the central University establishment so as to create the space that allows strategic visioning and dynamic responses to emerging challenges and opportunities.
2.2Lawyering in the National Context
At the national level, three important factors will affect or shape the future direction of legal training, teaching and research:
(a)The growing dominance of neoliberal economic thinking as epitomized in the Poverty Eradication Action Plan (PEAP) and the associated Sector Wide Approaches (SWAP) to planning and policy implementation is likely to have far reaching implications for the Faculty of Law. In that regard, the Faculty must become an active player in shaping and influencing these ongoing policy processes especially by engaging in cutting-edge research on the implications of such approaches to access to legal services;
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(b)The emergence of new law facultities at the newly established universities could present both a challenge and an opportunity for the future growth and consolidation of the Faculty of Law as a national centre of excellence for legal training, teaching and research. In particular, the Faculty of Law at Makerere University could take the lead in mobilizing and engaging emerging law schools in developing minimum legal educational standards, undertaking joint or collaborative legal research, and other areas that would encourage mutual recognition and avoid unhealthy competition; and
(c)In order to remain at the cutting-edge of legal education, training and research, the Faculty of Law must position itself to offer intellectual leadership in new and emerging disciplines such as Information and Communications Technology (ICT), Science and Technology, the legal aspects of Investment, Gender & Sexuality, etc. The Faculty must invest in mapping out medium and long-term directions in the national and global economy as a way of developing new legal products that respond to contemporary challenges.
2.3Regional Considerations
At the regional level, there is need to develop more strategic partnerships with Universities within the Eastern Africa sub-region. Such partnerships could be modeled along the already existing partnerships with several universities in Southern Africa (University of Pretoria and University of Zimbabwe). In terms of implications for future course content and new research areas, the deepening political, economic and social integration within the East African Community and the broader Eastern and Southern Africa sub-region offers new areas of research and legal training. Indeed, the Faculty of Law must review its teaching and training curricula as well as the research agenda within the context of the increased mobility of legal professionals within the sub-region and beyond.
2.4Global Influences
Finally, at the international level, the Faculty of Law teaching, training and research programmes must be designed to be responsive to global developments and institutions which have a serious impact on both international and national law such as the International Criminal Court, the Genocide Tribunals, trade dispute settlement bodies, etc. At another level, the teaching curriculum and research agenda must be designed to take into account emerging disciplines such as ICT, biotechnology, Corporate Law and the operations of transnational corporations (TNCs).
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