Putting Citizens First: UHRC Moves to Embed Human Rights in Uganda’s Public Service Delivery

KAMPALA, UGANDA — The Uganda Human Rights Commission (UHRC), through its Directorate of Monitoring and Inspections, has convened a high-level capacity-building workshop for senior government officials from various Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs).

Held at the Skyz Hotel in Naguru, Kampala, the training aimed to equip public sector leaders with practical skills and strategies to integrate a Human Rights-Based Approach (HRBA) directly into national development planning and everyday public service delivery.

Delivering the welcome remarks, Ms. Pauline Nansamba Mutumba, Director of Complaints, Investigations, and Legal Services at UHRC, emphasized that the core objective of the workshop is to collaborate on building a standardized HRBA evaluation and assessment tool to be rolled out across all MDAs nationwide.

Opening the workshop on behalf of Acting Secretary Mr. Kamadi Byonabye, Ms. Rosemary Kemigisha, Caretaker Director of Research, Education, and Documentation, underscored the transformative nature of the approach:

"The Human Rights-Based Approach places people at the center of development by empowering individuals and communities as rights holders to understand and claim their rights. At the same time, it strengthens the capacity and accountability of duty bearers, particularly the State and its institutions, to respect, protect, and fulfill those human rights."

The intensive training session featured presentations on critical pillars of human rights governance, including:

• Analysis of State Obligations: Presented by Ms. Pauline Nansamba Mutumba.

• Integrating HRBA into Public Service Delivery: Presented by Ms. Rosemary Kemigisha.

• Institutionalization of HRBA: Presented by Mr. Musa Modoi, Advisor on Human Rights and Accountability at the Governance and Security Program.

The proceedings across the various sessions were chaired by Ms. Sarah Nakhumitsa, Director of Regional Services at UHRC.

The well-attended workshop brought together senior representatives and leadership from a wide spectrum of government bodies, including the Ministry of Education and Sports, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development, Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development, Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development, Ministry of Internal Affairs, Office of the Prime Minister (OPM), Parliament of Uganda, Office of the Attorney General, Inspectorate of Government, National Planning Authority (NPA), Uganda Police Force (UPF), Uganda Registration Services Bureau (URSB), National Environment Management Authority (NEMA), Uganda Communications Commission (UCC), Uganda Law Reform Commission (ULRC), National Information Technology Authority – Uganda (NITA-U), and the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS), among others.

Through these concerted efforts, the UHRC continues to reinforce accountability mechanisms across government institutions, ensuring that public resources and development policies translate into measurable, rights-respecting outcomes for all citizens.