Kiryowa Kiwanuka Nsumikambi Mugambe commonly known as Kiryowa Kiwanuka is a Ugandan lawyer, businessman and politician who serves as the Attorney General of Uganda in the Ugandan Cabinet. He was appointed to that position on 8 June 2021, replacing William Byaruhanga, who was dropped from cabinet.

Background and education
Kiwanuka was born in Uganda circa 1972. His father, the late Jimmy Mugambe Kiwanuka was a Ugandan lawyer. His late paternal grandfather, Jolly Joe Kiwanuka, was a Ugandan politician who was murdered by dictator Idi Amin in the early 1970s.

Kiryowa spent his early childhood in Nairobi, Kenya, where the family lived in political exile, before returning to Uganda in 1980. He attended Budo Junior School for his elementary school. He then transferred to Kings College Budo for his O-Level studies. For his A-Level education, he studied at Makerere College School. In 1993, he was admitted to Makerere University, Uganda’s oldest and largest public university, to study law.

Kiryowa Kiwanuka graduated from Makerere University, with a Bachelor of Laws degree. He then attended the Law Development Centre, graduating with a Diploma in Legal Practice. He was admitted to the Uganda Bar in 1997. Later, he was awarded the degree of Master of Laws in Petroleum Law and Policy by the University of Dundee in Scotland.

Ruth Sebatindira is a Senior Counsel and served as President Uganda Law Society (2013 – 2016).

Ruth has built her expertise out of twenty three years’ commercial litigation and transactions advisory assignments mainly in; corporate insolvency, company/shareholder disputes and lender enforcement actions. Other areas of expertise include: tax and corporate advisory, intellectual property and commercial projects contracts and negotiations.

Current assignments comprise of tax and corporate advisory majorly in financing agreements, oil agreements, energy transactions and Infrastructure. Also working on reorganizations, joint ventures and due diligence’s relating to various acquisition deals.

Ruth Sebatindira is a Commissioner at the Judicial Service Commission which advises the President of Uganda on the appointment of Judges, exercises disciplinary control over Judicial officers and advises on the administration of Justice in Uganda. In this role, Ruth focuses on improving access to justice and restoring judicial integrity.

Ruth helped to set up the Women Lawyers Committee at the Uganda Law Society in 2011, and served as its first Chair. Ruth is a regular speaker at women’s and leadership conferences. She mentors young professionals in their careers and leadership journey. Ruth also speaks to children in schools about responsible leadership.

As Board Chair, Special Olympics Uganda, Ruth works to end discrimination against people with intellectual disabilities through Olympic-type sports.

Ruth has an LLM from The University of Manchester, UK. She is a member of Uganda Law Society, East Africa Law Society, International Bar Association, International Fiscal Association and Association of International Petroleum Negotiators (AIPN).

Busingye Kabumba is a Ugandan lawyer and poet. He is a Lecturer-in-Law, Human Rights and Peace Centre (HURIPEC), at the Faculty of Law, Makerere University and a Consulting Partner with M/S Development Law Associates. His poetry collection, “Whispers of My Soul”,won first prize in the published works category at the National Book Trust of Uganda (NABOTU) awards of 2002.The publication of this book in 2001 when he was 19 years old made him the youngest Ugandan poet ever to publish a whole collection of poetry.

ROBERT MUTEBI is a Commissioner for Information Technology and Innovation at Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) . He is an accomplished business transformation and technology expert that recently joined URA at a time when the institution is restructuring the Information Technology (IT) function to include research, innovation and enterprise architecture. He formerly worked at Dfcu Bank as the Head of Business Technology ,MTN-Uganda in several tech related senior management roles. He also previously worked as systems administrator with Nation Media Group and as a tech, leadership and management consultant with Solutions Africa Ltd among other roles.

CRYSTAL KABAJWARA is the Chairperson of the Tax Appeals Tribunal Uganda. She has over 17 years of experience as a tax practioner, specializing in international tax and transfer pricing. Prior to working at the Tribunal she worked with Price Waterhouse Coopers Uganda as Director, Tax Services. She is keen on tax education and sensitization and has written several articles and publications on matters concerning taxation. She also volunteers as a professional and career mentor with several organizations including Mastercard’s Global Give Back Circle.

Dorothy Amuron is a lawyer and Technical Adviser at Center for Health, Human Right and Development (CEHURD) .CEHURD provides legal support to persons in Uganda and conducts strategic litigation to redress systematic problems in Uganda’s health system. Dorothy is currently serving as the Vice Chair Health and Law Cluster Uganda Law Society.

Hon. Justice Richard Buteera is the Deputy Chief Justice/Head of Court

President-Uganda Law Society. President Emeritus -East Africa Law Society. Senior Partner and PPP Specialist at Citadel Advocates.

Bernard is a Senior Partner at the firm and the current President of the East Africa Law Society. He is a certified PPP specialist with over 10 years experience in project finance gained from various advisory roles on government privatisation and PPP projects. He is experienced in evaluating of project proposals, structuring of project financing, negotiating concession agreements as well as carrying out due diligences. Some of the projects he worked on include but are not limited to the Standard Gauge Railway line, crude oil pipeline, transmission lines and oil refinery spanning four countries Uganda, Kenya, South Sudan and Rwanda under the Northern Corridor Initiative.

Prior to joining legal private practice, he had worked for close to 9 years with the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, first as a Legal Counsel with the Privatisation Unit and thereafter with the Department of Project Analysis and PPPs.

Bernard was also a member of the Board of the Uganda Railways Corporation, a position he held for three years. He was responsible for providing guidance and oversight support to the management of the Corporation in the execution of its core mandate of monitoring the Rift Valley Railway Concession and ensuring that the Concessionaire meets its obligations under the Concession Agreement.

Education:

• Masters of Laws in Petroleum Law and Policy with distinction, University of Dundee – United Kingdom
• Professional Certification of Certified Public Private Specialists, Institute of Private Public Partnerships – Loughborough University
• Master of Laws, Makerere University
• Post Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice, Law Development Center
• Bachelor of Laws Degree (Summa cum Laude), Uganda Christian University

Norbert Mao is a Ugandan political activist and lawyer. He has been president of the Democratic Party since 2010, three time presidential candidate and he served as the Local Council 5 chairman for Gulu District. Between 1994 and 1996, he worked as a legal counsel for the Legal Aid Project of the Uganda Law Society in their Gulu office. Also, he helped found the Great Lakes Parliamentary Forum on Peace (AMANI Forum). He was instrumental in trying to bridge the gap between the Lord’s Resistance Army rebels and the Ugandan government by lobbying for the passage of a general amnesty law aimed at bringing a peaceful resolution to armed conflict in northern Uganda. On 21 July 2022, he was appointed minister for Justice and Constitutional Affairs in the Ugandan government by Yoweri Museveni, the president of the Republican of Uganda.

Stella Keshubi is an accomplished legal and corporate governance leader currently serving as the Head of Legal and Company Secretary at Standard Chartered Bank. She oversees the legal and board affairs of the organisation, ensuring that they adhere to the highest standards of ethics, transparency, and accountability.

With over 10 years of experience in the banking industry, Stella has established herself as a trusted expert in her field, with excellent legal acumen and strategic thinking.

Stella’s career spans across renowned financial institutions, including Housing Finance Bank and Dfcu Bank, where she honed her skills and developed a deep understanding of the banking sector. Her extensive experience in navigating complex legal landscapes and mitigating legal risk has contributed to her increasing recognition as a respected legal and governance professional. Her expertise encompasses corporate governance, legal risk management, contract negotiation, due diligence, securitisation, and various aspects of commercial law advisory.

Stella is an Advocate of the High Court of Uganda and holds a Master’s in Business Administration with a Specialism in Strategic Planning, from Heriot-Watt University. She is also a member of the Uganda Law Society, East African Law Society and the League of East African Directors.

ROBERT KIRUNDA, MCIARB is a founding Partner at Kirunda & Co. Advocates. He practices Corporate and Commercial Law in Uganda and has consulted on a number of projects involving various legal issues in different countries. He has published in the areas of Human Rights, Constitutional Law, Intellectual Property, Land Law, International Environmental Law, and International Trade Law. His present research interests include Oil and gas law, WTO Law and Human Rights and Good Governance. Robert is currently teaching Land Law, Land Transactions, and Bankruptcy Law to undergraduate students and WTO Law.

GODFREY AKENA is a Managing Partner at Godena Advocates which is devoted to providing expertise and representation in all matters related to the law and taxation.He has extensive experience in domestic and international tax consultancy, corporate and commercial law services for diverse organizations and large scale transactions in the oil and gas sector, commerce and trade, banking and insurance sectors.

SEBABI KENNETH is an Executive Director, Springs Public Interest Hub.

Professor Githu Muigai is a Senior Partner at Mohammed Muigai LLP. He specializes in public procurement law, corporate finance, civil and commercial litigation. In addition to the practice of Law, he is the immediate former Attorney General of the Republic of Kenya from 2011 to 2018.
Prof. Githu Muigai holds an LLB from the University of Nairobi (1984), Diploma in law from the Kenya School of Law (1985), an LLM from the Colombia University Law School (1986) and a PhD from the University of Nairobi (2001). He is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (FCIArb). He has taught undergraduate and postgraduate courses in constitutional law, jurisprudence and public international law.
He currently sits as the chairperson of a variety of institutions comprising the Council of Legal Education, Public-Private Partnership Petition Committee, Longonot Place Limited, Board of Trustees of the Nairobi Hospital, Kakuzi PLC’s Independent Human Rights Advisory Committee, Ecobank Kenya and is the founder of the Githu Muigai Foundation.

Conference engagements:

1. Key note Speaker :- “Legal Practice in Changing Society: Addressing Emerging Challenges and Opportunities“

Dr. Kakooza is an Intellectual Property and Cyber Law expert. He is a Lecturer at School of Law and Ag. Head, Depart of Commercial Law. He was formerly the Dean of Law at Uganda Christian University. Currently, he is an adjunct visiting professor at the University of Illinois (U.S.A).

In addition, he has Visiting Professorship positions at Masaryk University (Czech Republic) and Cornell Law School (USA), where he teaches Intellectual Property in Traditional Knowledge and Folklore. He is also a Visiting Professor at the University of Rwanda where he teaches Cyber Crime.

Dr. Kakooza is an Advocate of the High Court of Uganda and an accredited Arbitrator and Mediator of Intellectual Property Disputes with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). He has worked with WIPO on projects related to the regulation of Traditional Knowledge and Folklore in Uganda, Malawi and Ghana.

Mr. Kalinaki is the Senior Manager- Legal and Regulatory Affairs at National Social Security Fund.
He is a distinguished Corporate Legal Advisor, Academician and Litigator. He is currently the Legal
Advisory Manager, Uganda National Social Security Fund (NSSF).
He served in the Attorney General’s Chambers for a period of nine (9) years before joining National
Social Security Fund as Legal Counsel-Advisory Services. He has also taught law at the Uganda
Christian University where he specialized in teaching Civil Procedure and Practice, Evidence and
International Law.
His primary areas of expertise and interest lie in the areas of Investment Law, Information
Technology law, Corporate Finance, Social Security Law and International Dispute Settlement.
He is an Advocate, High Court of Uganda, Member, Uganda Law Society, East African Law Society
and a fellow of the Cambridge Commonwealth Trust.
Mr. Kalinaki received his LL.B. with honours from Makerere University and a Post Graduate
Diploma in Legal Practice from the Law Development Centre. He went on to obtain a Master of
Law in International Law from the prestigious University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom. He
has also undertaken leadership course at Strathmore University and the Gordon Business
Institute, University of Pretoria.

LASTONE GULUME is the Practice Director and Head, Dispute Resolution Department (ADR & Litigation Practice) at ALP Advocates. He has a demonstrable record of efficient and effective client advisory in the areas of Arbitration, Litigation, Tax, Trade and Investment law, Corporate and Commercial Law Practice, Regional Integration, Intellectual Property, Public Interest Litigation and Immigration law.

Lastone Gulume is a registered Insolvency Practitioner and a Commissioner for Oaths.

JOHN JET TUSABE is the Director in charge of taxation services in BDO Uganda’s tax practice. His roles include providing tax advice to clients covering all tax heads. He also oversees the execution of several tax assignments in the firm including tax health checks, tax audits, transfer pricing, and tax planning.

Jet has over 14 years of professional exposure in the tax regimes of the East African region, he  holds an Advanced Diploma in International Taxation from the Chartered Institute of Taxation (UK), a Certificate in Taxation and Revenue Administration from URA, a Bachelors of Statistics from Makerere University and is currently a student of Chartered Financial Analyst(CFA).

He has precise understanding of the various tax laws and regulations applicable in East Africa and also an authority in international taxation, over the years he has established a successful track record in supporting various entities in tax planning and evolution of tax efficient models of operation.

Jet is also a key resource for the Certified Tax Advisor professional qualification administered by the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Uganda (ICPAU). In addition, Jet was also selected by the Capital Markets Authority as an Issuer Resource Person supporting businesses in raising patient capital.

Prior to that, he was a Tax Auditor with the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) where he obtained his initial taxation training and developed keen interest in the tax profession. While at URA, his role included advising taxpayers on technical tax matters, training staff in tax audits and tax assessments.

Sadock Magai is the Managing Partner and Head of the Banking and Finance department at IMMMA Advocates. Sadock has been consistently recommended by the IFLR1000 and Chambers and Partners as a leading lawyer in Tanzania.

His practice includes debt capital markets, transactional banking, corporate finance, restructuring, receiverships, banking regulatory and compliance. He regularly represents banking institutions, both domestic and international, in secured and unsecured lending transactions including syndicated lending, project finance, personal property security, derivatives and equity finance.

Sadock is also highly experienced in drafting all phases of commercial loan documentation including loan facility agreements, mortgages, debentures, assignments, guarantees and indemnities and security sharing agreements.

Speaker Engagement:

Dr. Pamela previously served as the Director of Quality Assurance and Accreditation at the National Council for Higher Education (NCHE) from April 2014 to June 2020. Dr. Pamela has a wealth of experience in legal education. She taught at Uganda Christian University from January 2005 and was appointed to serve as Dean, Faculty of Law, Uganda Christian University from September 2009 to March 2014. During her tenure as Dean Faculty of Law, she served on various University Boards including those of Senate and Council. She was a Member of the Appointments, Staff & Welfare Board and Chairperson of the Students’ Disciplinary Committee. She left the University in 2014 at the rank of Senior Lecturer. Dr. Pamela has also served as a member of the Governing Council of the Law Development Centre from April 2010 to April 2016. In July 2015, she was appointed Chairperson of an Investigation into allegations of Examination Malpractices at the Law Development Centre in the period 2004 to 2011. In addition, she served as an External Examiner on the Bachelors of Laws and Master of Laws Programmes at the School of Law, Makerere University and as a Master of Laws Programme Reviewer for the Higher Education Council for Rwanda. She also worked as individual consultant for Programme Validation at the Institute of Legal Practice and Development (ILPD), Nyanza, Rwanda. Dr. Pamela has written and published two leading texts that are widely used in East Africa Law Schools Liberalization of Legal Education in Uganda, Policy Considerations, Law Africa, 2010 and D. Brian Dennison / Pamela Tibihikirra-Kalyegira (eds.); Legal Ethics and Professionalism. A Handbook for Uganda, Globethics.net, 2014. Dr. Pamela has been an Advocate of the High Court of Uganda since 1999. She graduated with a Bachelor of Laws (Hons) degree from Makerere University in 1995 and a Diploma in Legal Practice

Prof. Dr. Ben Kiromba Twinomugisha is a full Professor of Law and former Dean, School of Law, Makerere University. He is also a visiting Professor at Islamic University in Uganda (IUIU) and Centre for Human Rights, University of Pretoria. He has taught commercial laws, at both college and university levels for 35 years. 

He has also taught and researched in the areas of public law, including health and the law, international law, environmental law and human rights. 

Prof. Twinomugisha is also an advocate of the Courts of Judicature in Uganda and has practiced law for over 25 years. He has taught and examined in a number of universities in the region.

He is the Chairperson, Board of Trustees, Centre for Health, Human Rights and Development (CEHURD) and Afya na Haki (Ahaki). He is also Vice Chairperson, Action Group for Heath, Human Rights and HIV/AIDS (AGHA). He has done consultancy work in the areas of gender, health and human rights

DIEGO JAVIER NUNEZ is a lawyer from Argentina working with Estudio Nunes & Associates.

DR MIGADDE DEOGRATIOUS

Is a senior medical practitioner currently working with Ministry of Health.

SILVER KAYONDO is a Partner at Ortus Advocates. He is a Ugandan and South African dual-trained Foreign Direct Investment/FDI lawyer specializing in facilitating inward-bound investments and commercial relationships across East Africa.
He advises governments/sovereigns, corporates, high net-worth individuals, regulators, lenders, digital/virtual entities, funds (both debt and equity), family offices and philanthropists on projects,
M&A, JVs, and partnerships. Silver also assists international firms and in-house teams as local counsel on cross-border matters in Uganda and across the East African region through issuing legal opinions, regulatory
memos, political risk assessments, dispute resolution, due diligence, securities perfection, restructuring, market entry & expansion opportunities, sustainability strategies, policies and contract reviews.

Silver has travel and representative experience in Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi,DRC, South Sudan, Ghana, South Africa, USA, Germany, and both onshore and offshore UAE.