DGAL’s scope of work is both forensic and non-forensic in nature. Forensic work is normally submitted by the Uganda Police Force while the non-forensic comes from other government agencies, the private sector (companies and individuals), embassies, and the regional and international community for the purposes of carrying out scientific analytical services. This facilitates;

• Administration of justice and removal of criminal elements in society; 
• Ensure public health and safety
• Enhance private sector competitiveness in doing business and export promotion.

FUNCTIONS OF DGAL

• Document examination to detect forgeries, counterfeits, fraud, suicide, etc.
• Detect trafficking of persons and illicit drugs
• Human identification in cases of accidents, fires, and disasters like landslides, floods, bomb attacks, etc.
• Providing parenthood and other biological relationships for general knowledge and cases of, human trafficking, immigration, adoption, estate administration and compensation for government projects such as roads.
• Facilitating solving crimes like murders, rapes, defilements, burglary, motor vehicle hit and run, incest, etc.
• Detection of natural poisons in food products such as in ‘Odi’, flours, packaged honey, wines, juices, etc, to enhance development of products safe and fit for human consumption.
• Ensuring safety of herbal medicines for use locally and internationally.
• Ensuring the export materials are free from prohibited and illicit substances like marijuana.
• Detection of occupational poisoning among industrial workers such as paint industry workers, printeries and painters.
• Product quality and safety verification such as fish, chicken, meats and dairy products for local and export markets (pesticide residue)
• Consulatncy in a wide range of services such as products formulation and development (waters, juices, packed foods, body creams and vaselines).
• Screening for drugs of abuse amond students and employees to ensure timely intervention to enhance wellbeing.
• Training student scientists, law enforcement officers and other stakeholders.

CLIENTELE

Our clientele includes;

• Government ministries, departments, and agencies like the Uganda Police Force, the Judiciary, Commissions of Inquiry, Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Administrator General, National Identification and Registration Authority, etc.
• Statutory bodies such as the National Water and Sewerage Corporation (NWSC), Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS), National Environment Management Authority (NEMA), National Drug Authority (NDA), Directorate of Water Development (DWD), Agricultural Chemicals Board (ACB), Uganda Coffee Development Authority (UCDA).
• Foreign Mission and embassies.
• The private sector.
• The general public

Going forward:

DGAL is working to enhance its capacity to increase its institutional efficiency, capabilities and effectiveness through continuous improvement of management systems, funding base and staff development.