-$50M to complement ongoing work to reduce backlog of cases
This year the administration will be placing major emphasis on reforming the justice sector as part of a comprehensive approach to fighting crime and has allocated $1.5B to the sector to achieve this objective.

Three hundred and three million dollars will be spent under the US$10.2M Programme for the Modernisation of the Justice Administration System aimed at improving the efficiency of service delivery in justice sector institutions, enhancing linkages and improving access to justice.

The administration, cognisant of the backlog of civil and criminal cases over the years, has allocated $50M to address this. The US$10.2 M programme will also complement the ongoing work to reduce the backlog of cases at all levels of courts and the delays in the management and adjudication of cases through the design and implementation of new case flow management procedures.

In the justice sector, an average of 7,000 civil cases and another 300 criminal cases are filed each year in the legal system.

The 2007 budget allocated $1B for the justice sector of which $130M was earmarked to begin the modernization of the Justice Administration Programme.

Meanwhile, to complement the latter improvements, $20M has been budgeted for the construction of a new Magistrate’s Court at Charity, Essequibo. This will allow for extended hours of service through a permanent location, thereby enhancing access.

The Legal Aid Clinic will also be expanding its services to improve access to justice particularly for the more vulnerable. This will be done with the support of the Government.

Government will continue to work towards implementing its Justice Sector Reform Strategy (JSRS) which sets out the government’s approach for systematically dealing with the challenges currently facing the sector; a policy framework for strategic coordination and reform, accountability and monitoring mechanism to take the reform forward.

The strategy is also geared towards ensuring that safety, security and access to justice is available to all, as the administration seeks to enhance public confidence in the justice system.

The JSRS was prepared on the basis of an extensive consultation exercise involving all the institutions in the justice sector, as well as other stakeholders including civil society and the private sector.

On June 22, 2006 the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) announced the approval of a US$25M loan for the modernization of the Justice Administration System in Guyana.
(GINA)