Doreen Namyalo-Kyazze is the Director for Sub-Saharan Africa at Penal Reform International and has over 17 years of experience in human rights advocacy in the region. She specialises in criminal justice issues, particularly relating to judicial and penitentiary reform. Doreen has served as a Project Manager and legal expert on several justice projects in Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, and Rwanda. Doreen is a champion for an intersectional approach to advancing women’s rights in the criminal justice system in Sub-Saharan Africa. She has represented several indigent defendants and advocated for humane laws and alternatives to imprisonment. Doreen has also been the legal expert for the African Union in the development of a model law on crime prevention in Africa. As a legal expert in the human rights sector, Doreen has quickly established herself as a distinguished profile in legal expertise, research and advisory. She is an avid negotiator and provides legal advice to government, local and regional bodies, and CSOs. Doreen has drafted several laws and policies in Uganda and contributed to the drafting of regional instruments in Africa. Doreen has international experience acquired through the provision of technical assistance in the development of strategies and policies, the evaluation of projects for various justice agencies. She has chaired consultative meetings, providing legal guidance on policy and legal instruments. She has trained students, private sector players, and justice actors on human rights-related subjects. Doreen is a distinguished member of the Bar Association in Uganda, Board member of the Center for Legal Aid and Inmate Rehabilitation (Nigeria); a member of the Steering Committee of the World Coalition against the Death Penalty (WCADP) and a member of Gender Working group of the WCADP. Doreen is a nominee of the 2024 Human Rights Defenders award.
Kampala Geopolitics Conference