KAMPALA — The National Information Technology Authority – Uganda (NITA–U) and the Office of the Director Public Prosecutions (ODPP) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding aimed at promoting technical support, capacity building, training and awareness in cyber laws and enhancement of cybercrime investigations and prosecutions.
With the deployment of ICT infrastructure across continents, the number of electronic services, information available online and the number of individuals using the internet has increased tremendously. Today, ICT represents great value for the socio–economic development of Uganda with many sectors relying fully or partly on ICTs and the internet.
However, this technological advancement has not only had positive attributes but negative ones as well. It has in fact fostered the growth of criminal activities, with several crimes now being committed through the use of the internet and ICT infrastructure, including but not limited to money laundering crimes, cyber harassment, among others.
In order to create a safe and resilient cyberspace and enable citizens to safely benefit from all the opportunities that exist online, it is important to put in place effective and efficient mechanisms for the fight against cyber offences or cybercrime.
“I decided to create and establish the Cybercrimes Unit of the ODPP as a specialized unit, in order to, as a priority solicit and build relationships with willing entities (both Government and private), to fast track the investigation and prosecution of cybercrimes. I hope that this collaboration will improve the capacity and competence of Prosecutors in dealing with crimes of technology; to apply and implement the provisions of the cyber laws to make Uganda a crime free society,” said the DPP Jane Frances Abodo.
“The success of any nation depends on its capacity to effectively handle such criminal cases and requires specialized skills and knowledge of the technology related laws by law enforcement.
Litigation will require a fair understanding of technology and its terminologies,” said Dr. Hatwib Mugasa, Executive Director at NITA–U.
The collaboration between NITA–U and the ODPP will boost the investigation and prosecution of cybercrimes, crimes relating to data protection and privacy; provision of IT services; consumer protection and other related crimes.