Chief Justice Peter Shivute said there is a need for knowledge-sharing and collaboration between the judiciaries of Namibia and Uganda.

Shivute was speaking during a courtesy visit by Ugandan Chief Justice Alfonso Owiny-Dollo to the Supreme Court.

Justice Shivute expressed Namibia's eagerness to learn from Uganda's successes in implementing plea bargaining as part of judicial reforms.

He noted the strides Uganda has made in expediting the resolution of criminal cases through plea bargaining, an approach that allows courts to efficiently address backlogs while ensuring justice is served. 

Plea bargaining is an idea whose time is long overdue. Far from being perceived as letting accused persons off the hook, it greatly assists courts to expeditiously dispose of criminal cases, said Shivute.

"One area of particular interest to me is Uganda's experience with plea bargaining in criminal matters. The introduction of plea bargaining in Namibia is an idea whose time is long overdue. Far from being perceived as letting an accused person off the hook, plea bargaining greatly assists courts to expeditiously dispose of criminal cases. I am advised that Uganda has made greater strides in this approach. Namibia is keen to learn from Uganda's successes in this regard, and I believe Uganda's experiences could offer valuable insights for our judiciary."

Chief Justice Alfonso Owiny-Dollo said Africa must reclaim its traditional dispute resolutions, calling for a shift back to Africa's original dispute resolution mechanisms.

"And then what we came up with, the need to act as one, for Africa to act as one, is that to an alternative dispute resolution mechanism, which I've already said, to Africa it is no alternative. It's a very original dispute resolution mechanism, the one which colonialism brought, which we are now implementing, where you and I are presiding over courts, implementing colonial laws of dispute resolution; we need to go back to do this; we need to go back and reclaim that which kept our society together."

The Chief Justice said it is important to integrate traditional practices to strengthen Africa's judicial systems for societal cohesion.

Justice Shivute also commended Chief Justice Owiny-Dollo for his leadership in the Africa Chief Justices' Alternative Dispute Resolution Forum, a platform aimed at promoting judicial reforms and enhancing the administration.