The Judiciary of Uganda has officially introduced the Performance Enhancement Tool (PET), a digital platform aimed at improving staff performance management and evaluation across the institution.

Speaking at the launch, Chief Justice Alfonse Chigamoy Owiny Dollo described PET as a major milestone marking the transition from outdated analogue assessment methods to a more transparent, participatory, and data-driven digital system.

Developed in line with Section 18 of the Administration of the Judiciary Act, 2020 which mandates the Chief Justice to establish a comprehensive performance management system, the PET tool is designed to boost institutional accountability, improve judicial efficiency, and enhance the overall delivery of justice.

According to Chief Justice Owiny–Dollo, the introduction of this digital appraisal system is the culmination of years of progressive reform efforts aimed at enhancing access to justice and internal operational effectiveness. He linked this digital shift to broader post-2020 institutional reforms focused on improved case management, backlog reduction, and more efficient service delivery.

A central feature of the PET is its integrated 360-degree appraisal model, which collects feedback from multiple sources, including supervisors, peers, subordinates, lawyers, and litigants. “This model is intended to provide a holistic view of performance while ensuring objectivity in staff evaluations,” said the Chief Justice. To ensure fairness in performance measurement, the tool also includes a judicial case weighting scheme that considers differences in case complexity and workload.

Emphasizing the need for nuance in performance assessments, Chief Justice Owiny–Dollo stated, “Not all cases are equal, and a one-size-fits-all approach to performance measurement is inadequate.” He pointed out that complex matters in specialized divisions such as Anti-Corruption or International Crimes can demand significantly more time and resources than routine cases in other departments. “PET is therefore structured to combine both quantitative and qualitative indicators in its assessment model,” he added.

Recent data supports the urgency of enhanced performance tracking. The Judiciary’s Annual Performance Report for FY 2024/2025, released in September, indicates some headway in backlog reduction, with the case backlog rate falling from 26.32% to 24.2%. However, of the 190,973 cases pending, 46,181 remain unresolved. This reality has underscored the Judiciary’s need for more robust tools to monitor performance and deploy resources efficiently.

Supreme Court Justice Mike Chibita, who chairs the Judiciary’s Performance Management and Awards Committee, highlighted the PET’s ability to generate measurable outcomes while ensuring confidentiality of all submitted data. He urged judicial officers, lawyers, and court users to fully embrace the system, citing its potential to improve justice delivery across the board.

Justice Chibita also outlined anticipated long-term benefits of the PET system, which include “increased transparency in staff evaluation, the ability to recognize and reward high performers, and improved planning through access to real-time performance data.” He added that the tool will help leadership better identify systemic bottlenecks and guide effective allocation of resources.

Alongside digital reform, the Judiciary is also promoting wider use of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) mechanisms. Judicial leadership continues to encourage court users and legal practitioners to adopt ADR approaches, which are seen as complementary to litigation and helpful in easing court congestion while fostering community-level resolution of conflicts.

The PET’s development was made possible through support from several partners, including DANIDA, the Eastern and Southern African Management Institute (ESAMI), and the Government of Uganda.

The launch event drew participants from across the justice sector—development partners, Judiciary staff, court users, and other stakeholders, all of whom were urged to support the system’s effective implementation. The Judiciary reiterated its commitment to public trust, innovation, and operational efficiency as part of its ongoing modernization agenda.

The rollout of PET comes at a time when tensions have been high between the Judiciary and the Uganda Law Society. Lawyers under the association have raised concerns over case management and delays, particularly in the Commercial Court, where unresolved matters are reportedly worth trillions of shillings.

URN