Designing an automated records indexing system for active records at Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs

Abstract

Proper records management will always promote efficient and effective organizational performance in ways such as regulatory compliance, minimizing litigation risks, making informed decisions, promoting accountability among others. The major aim of the project was to investigate the indexing method used for records at the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs in order to address the gap in the existing system and design an automated index as a way to solve the challenges faced during management of records at the ministry. The objectives of this case study were to find out the different types of records generated and stored at Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, to examine how records are handled and indexed at Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, to analyze the challenges associated with indexing active records at Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, to assess the requirements for designing an automated records indexing system for active records at Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs and to design an automated records indexing system for active records at Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs. The project used a case study approach and it was quantitative in nature and it used observation and interviews as methods of collecting data, interviews were the key data collection tools and were supplemented by observations. Some of the key findings of the project included; MoJCA uses accession registers to access records and it is sometimes time costing. It is out of these findings that the project proposed an automated index for records at the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs in Uganda. The study recommended some solutions to limit challenges experienced and these include; constant updating of the software systems to assist in the fast and easy retrieval practices of records, procurement of enough and effective equipment like shelves to accommodate all the records in the ministry to ensure an organized classification system and avoid misplacement of records on the floor, training records personnel on how to index records so as to as facilitate easy retrieval of records.