Legal empowerment offers something rare and beautiful: a strategy for pursuing justice that is working.

This process of equipping people to understand, use, and shape the law is not easy. We encounter corruption and steep power imbalances every day. Many paralegals face threats of retaliation. But despite these challenges, we are seeing real progress against injustice in every country where we work. And the Grassroots Justice Network is the strongest it has been.

How We Create Impact

In the Countries Where We Work Directly

1. Paralegals work with communities to solve justice problems at the grassroots. Together, they protect community lands, enforce environmental law, and secure basic rights to healthcare and citizenship. These remedies improve the lives of hundreds of thousands of people every year.
2. The individuals who work closely with the paralegals learn about their rights and how to realize them using the law. They often go on to support others in their communities, creating ripples of empowerment.
3. We draw on grassroots experience to advocate for changes that make the system better for everyone. Paralegals rigorously collect data on every case they handle. We assess that information to identify where systems are failing and how they can improve. Together with the communities with which we work, we use that information to advocate for reforms to laws and policies. These changes can positively affect entire nations.
And the cycle continues… Once reforms are adopted, paralegals and communities bring the new laws or policies to life by using them to solve specific problems. It is through this cycle that we advance justice and democratize law.

 

Legal Empowerment Cycle: Case Work (know Law/Use Law) Advocate for structural changes based on grassroots experience; Systematic Change (Shape Law); Bring positive new laws and policies to life

Through the Grassroots Justice Network

4. We learn from each other to get better. We foster learning among network members, online and in-person. By sharing evidence, challenges, and lessons from practice, our community becomes more effective.
5. We strive to transform the policy environment for legal empowerment. Together with network members, we advocate for policies that will create the space and structures for our members to work effectively and independently.

2025 Impact Report

Namati is building a movement of everyday people who know, use, and shape the law. In 2025, we made substantial strides towards that mission.

Our Direct Country Impact

Throughout 2025, Namati and our partners in six countries supported affected communities to remedy injustices and bring about changes to entire systems.

Recognition

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Schwab Foundation's Social Entrepreneurs of the Year

Schwab Foundation's Social Entrepreneurs of the Year

The Schwab Foundation named Vivek Maru, Namati’s co-founder and CEO, and Sonkita Conteh, Namati’s Sierra Leone director, two of its Social Entrepreneurs of the Year for 2017.


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Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship

Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship

The Skoll Foundation honored Namati and the Legal Empowerment Network with their award for social entrepreneurship in 2016.


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American Bar Association's Legal Rebel

American Bar Association's Legal Rebel

The American Bar Association named Namati's founder and CEO, Vivek Maru, as one its 'Legal Rebels' in 2015.


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Ashoka Fellowship

Ashoka Fellowship

Ashoka selected Vivek Maru, Namati's founder and CEO, as one of its fellows in 2014, stating "This is the best law-for-all program we’ve seen. It is brilliant. Very likely to spread broadly."


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UKAid / DFID

UKAid / DFID

The UK's Department for International Development gave Namati a rare A+ rating in their review of our work.

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