Advocates Coalition for Development and Environment (ACODE) is an independent public policy research and advocacy think tank based in Uganda working in East and Southern Africa. ACODE was first registered in 1999 as a Non-governmental organization (NGO). In 2004, the organization was incorporated as a company limited by guarantee and without having a share capital. ACODE is one of the most dynamic and robust regional leaders in cutting-edge public policy research and analysis in a range of areas including governance, trade, environment, and science and technology. ACODE has, for the last four consecutive years, been ranked in the Global Go To Think Tank Index as one of the best think tanks in Uganda and one of the top think tanks in the world. Think Tanks in Africa continue to play a major role in policy development and implementation. The Advocates Coalition for Development and Environment (ACODE) has been ranked 23 out of 92 Top Think Tanks in Sub-Saharan Africa and 29 out of 90 globally with Best Advocacy Campaign in the 2015 Global Go To Think Tank Index Report (TTI), led by the University of Pennsylvania through its Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program (TTCSP).

ACODE is non-partisan and independent and therefore does not align with any political party or political organisation. However, given the direct relationship between development policy and politics, we believe that our work is political and it must stand for certain political causes of a bi-partisan nature. Such causes are legitimate issues of research interest so long as they are defined on the basis of constitutionalism, the rule of law as well as national and regional interests as expressed in the relevant treaties, strategy documents and declarations. ACODE's work is based on three broad programmes areas: Environmental Democracy, Peace and Democracy, and Innovation and Biotechnology Policy. Our core business is to undertake advocacy-driven public policy research and analysis on contemporary and emerging public policy and governance issues that have a significant impact on national development.