Grace Nayiga is the executive director of Uganda Network on Law Ethics and HIV/Aids (Uganet). She is a lawyer and is passionate about helping vulnerable communities. She talks to Esther Tusiime Byoona about her journey.

Who is Grace Nayiga?

I am a mother, wife, and practicing advocate of the High Court of Uganda, a team leader at Uganda Network on Law Ethics and HIV/Aids (Uganet), and a board secretary and member of the Executive Committee at Palliative Care Association of Uganda (PCAU). I am a board member, and general secretary to Legal Aid Service Provider’s Network (Laspnet) and a graduate of the CIV Source Africa GROW! Leaders Mentorship programme for CEOs.

I have been a health and human rights advocate for 10 years. I am passionate about social justice for women. I am passionate about trial advocacy for lawyers in Legal Aid Practice. I am a trained facilitator with Justice Advocacy Africa.

Has a career in law been a field you always envisioned yourself in?

Yes it has. In my Ordinary Level I wanted to be an accountant but along the way I changed to wanting to become a lawyer. Growing up I admired Justice Julia Sebutinde. I got a picture of her from the newspaper and put it in my bedroom.

 At the time, she was doing investigations with the Uganda Revenue Authority. Since then I became excited about being a lawyer. I joined law school at Uganda Christian University in 2005 and graduated in 2009. During that time I was privileged to meet senior lawyers that were working with Fida. I met a lawyer called Asiimwe Jackie. I admired her so much. She became a role model to me in relation to legal practice. 

Immediately after I finished LDC [Law Development Centre] I went straight to Legal Aid Practice. I had a passion for serving vulnerable communities, having been exposed to the Legal Aid service providers that I was interacting with.

How have you managed to lead people?

Leadership is a natural gift for some people. Being a second born I surpassed my older sibling and I became a leader from childhood. Leadership is about service, if you are a person who wants to serve others it will be very easy for you to manage leadership because you will want to pave the way for others. Leaders are born and made.

but I know those two have to be combined. There are traits that are born in a person, however a person has to keep on growing in those traits. It is a continuous journey that is filled with learning so one has to be an open minded person that is willing to learn.

It involves looking up to leaders that are ahead of you, reading a lot and seeking wisdom in different ways, including from junior employees

What do you attribute to climbing the ladder in leadership?

I have three career mothers that have influenced me. My first career mother Theodore Webale Bitature noticed me at my first job as a legal assistant. She started nurturing me into leadership, gave me leadership roles and became my friend and mentor.

When I joined Uganet as a legal officer, I was identified by my second career mother Kiconco Dora Musinguzi who was the executive director. She started.

mentoring me into leadership before I saw myself as someone who could take leadership at another level. She groomed me into the leader I am today. The third career mother Babirye Sarah Lubega is a senior law counsel that has practiced law for more than 40 years. She is the current board chairperson of Uganet. She carried and mentored me into the role I hold.

I was identified by others, I had the talent because I believe there is something they saw in me. They helped me see what they saw in me and helped me nurture it. I am glad I went through that journey.

What lessons have you learnt as a leader?

Leadership is a learning journey that never stops. One attribute of strong people is that they learn something new every day. There are some things I have learnt to appreciate deeply. Leadership is about sacrifice. I have learnt it is important to have resilience and patience. It gets lonely at the top and there are many things that come to try and test a person. 

 If a leader does not have the patience then he or she cannot manage and lead people. Without resilience storms can come and they will take you off your feet; it is important to be resilient as an individual and a leader.

Integrity is important because a person can easily be swept off his or her feet. Leadership gives you power, and so values like integrity are important for you not to misuse that power. A leader needs to be open to as many people as possible. Have the capacity to understand and appreciate people. I have learnt that people are different and it is important to have a big space that will accommodate everyone with their differences and influence them.

What challenges have you experienced as a leader

Being a career woman, it is easy to dream big like our male counterparts but by our gender and the social contrasts we are born into, we have to take so much.

There is a struggle in balancing between our work and personal life. There are other roles that are assigned to us that sometimes we are not able to let go of. We end up struggling to have all needs met. I keep learning how to be in different places at the same time, getting as much help as possible and being able not to suffocate one life at the expense of the other. It’s a challenge if one is in an executive office, being a wife and mother. I have a special needs child so balancing between all that almost derailed me.

What are you still struggling with?

I have realised that people are pretentious and are not true to their words. Not being a pretentious person I have found it difficult to thrive in such environments. Having to live in a dynamic environment with pretentious people is a struggle but I am learning based on other people’s experiences on how to deal with that. I have learnt to focus on the big picture.

Is there anything you would do better if the clock was turned?

I would learn more to equip myself for where I am today. The worst thing is when you find yourself in a place where you are supposed to do something and you do not know what to do. I recognise that there are certain things I could have paid attention to but I did not and I ended up learning on the job.

What is your advice to women in leadership positions?

Do not walk alone in a journey that has been walked by so many sisters who are willing to nurture and support. Find a sister that is willing to hold your hand and to support you.

What advice would you give to those interested in pursuing law?

Law is a noble profession; while pursuing it make sure you never forget your values.