The Law Development Centre (LDC) will have a second intake of lawyers to pursue the Postgraduate Diploma in Legal Practice this academic year, the Attorney General, Kiryowa Kiwanuka has told Parliament.
The centre is the only mandated teaching entity that offers the Postgraduate Diploma in Legal Practice, without which a university law graduate cannot practise law in the country as an Advocate of the Courts of Judicature.
However, an increase in the number of universities offering the undergraduate law degree have led to a substantial increase in the number of law graduates wishing to acquire the Postgraduate Diploma in Legal Practice. This has mounted a lot of pressure for LDC to admit more students, beyond their capacity.
“I am happy to report that government has worked with the Ministry of Finance and other stakeholders and we are undertaking a second intake on January 06, 2025 to accommodate the 1,646 students who had not been taken,” he said.
Kiryowa Kiwanuka pointed out that admission letters have already been issued to the students for the January intake.
He promised to table before Parliament, the letter authorising LDC to ensure that all the applicants are admitted during the plenary sitting on Thursday, 26 September 2024.
The Attorney General explained that due to the increase in numbers of students released from universities, there were 2,600 applicants to join LDC, which can only accomodate about 1,300 of them.
He said that out of the 2,600 applicants, LDC admitted the first intake of 1,260 students for the September 2024 intake.
Kiryowa Kiwanuka’s revelation followed a concern raised by the Deputy Speaker, Thomas Tayebwa, in his communication during the plenary sitting on Wednesday, 25 September 2025.
“They are saying they need government intervention urgently so that they are allowed to complete their legal practice certificate and start working,” Tayebwa said.
The Leader of the Opposition, Joel Ssenyonyi, said that students are frustrated right from the stage of enrolment up to the point when they are leaving.
“The students need to know what is happening because even after studying for five years, they are stuck and they do not know what to do,” he said.
Kiryowa Kiwanuka acknowledged the challenge faced by the students, saying that LDC’s absorption capacity does no match with the sector needs.
“In the last academic year alone, 800 students were carried over to the current academic year,” he said.
LDC majorly offers contemporary Bar Course that is tailored to the needs of the legal profession.
