Welcome to Ikoku
Ikoku means “child” in Ateso. It carries the weight of children who are misunderstood, seen as stubborn or rebellious just like many children in conflict with the law.
We chose this name to remind the world that every child deserves to be heard, protected, and given hope. At Ikoku, we believe no child should be defined by their mistakes but by their potential to change and heal.
Our Story
Ikoku was born from a place of deep remorse and a desire to make things right. In 2018, our founder visited Bufulubi Prison, Mayuge District and encountered two boys just 15 and 16 years old wrongfully imprisoned for months with adults. They were without proper legal support, unable to understand the charges against them, and held in conditions no child should ever endure.
At the time, she felt powerless to intervene. But that experience became a turning point a quiet but firm reminder of the responsibility to act, not just observe. Ikoku emerged from that moment. It is a response to injustice, and a commitment to ensure that no child is left behind in the legal system.
Today, we work to bridge the gap between juvenile offenders and access to justice because every child deserves protection, understanding, and a chance to rebuild.
The problem we seek to solve.
In 2023, 10,741 child-related offenses were reported to the police, with 70% of cases still pending in court. Unfortunately, the trend continued in 2024, with 9,408 child-related offenses reported to police and more than half of these cases once again still pending in court.
Uganda’s remand homes, which are designed to hold 40 to 45 juveniles, currently house over 100 inmates (excluding street children), with as few as 14 staff members managing them. These figures highlight a significant gap in the juvenile justice system, where children are often left without legal representation, face long delays in their cases, and are wrongfully classified as adults due to lack of proper age documentation.
Our Approach.
We work at the intersection of legal aid, advocacy and rehabilitation. Through our flagship initiatives like Iko Divert, we equip police officers and local council leaders with child-sensitive approaches to justice. In detention centers, we raise awareness among young offenders about their rights, while also providing free legal representation.
Ikoku is also pioneering innovative rehabilitation with a planned center that combines trauma-informed care, family involvement, art therapy, mindfulness, and peer support to truly restore and reintegrate children. We train the very stakeholders who influence these children’s futures from probation officers to judges through our residential capacity building programs.
We’re not just working for change. We are working with the children, families, and justice actors to transform Uganda’s juvenile justice system from within.
