President Yoweri Museveni has asked female judges to support free universal education in a bid to keep girls in school. He was addressing the 17th International Association of Women Judges (IAWJ)- Africa Region Conference at the Commonwealth Resort Hotel, Munyonyo on Wednesday.
The three-day conference has drawn female judges and magistrates from 13 countries under the theme; "Women Judges: Breaking Barriers to Equal Justice and Strengthening Institutions". The judges are from Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Ghana, Nigeria, Zambia, Ethiopia, and South Africa among other countries.
In his speech, Museveni urged the women's movement under the judiciary to support efforts by the Uganda government to provide free universal education, saying that this is one of the ways to keep girls in school and consolidate gains made in uplifting women in Africa.
He emphasized the need to banish charges in government schools to ensure that children do not drop out of school.
Museveni further explained his proposal, saying that most of the free education program beneficiaries will be girls and therefore protect them from several injustices
Alfonse Owiny-Dollo, the Chief Justice of Uganda said that although the country’s top office in the Judiciary is currently not vacant, they have a handful of women judges who can ably take on the mantle. Dollo made the statement in reference to Kenya’s female Chief Justice, Martha Koome.