CJ Maraga Expresses Concern Over World Bank Programme

Chief Justice David Maraga has expressed concern over World Bank's Ksh7 Billion Judicial Performance Improvement Programme (JPIP) that will end in December.

Speaking during the official opening of National Council on the Administration of Justice (NCAJ) offices in Nairobi, CJ Maraga noted that the judiciary reforms and development agenda would be most affected as the project came to a close at the end of the year.

He added that the funding from the national government was not sufficient for the judiciary to sustain all the projects launched under the program.

“While our recurrent budget is largely covered by the government, only 30 percent of development budget comes from the Treasury. The rest is derived from donor funding, particularly JPIP,” Maraga explained.

[caption caption="Chief Justice David Maraga"][/caption]

He lamented that the Judiciary funding from the government, which is below one percent of the national budget was too low to facilitate their functioning. 

“International best practice recommends that the Judiciary receives 2.5 percent of the national budget,” he added.

CJ Maraga advocated for alternative funding to be found so as to sustain the progress in the institution. He further called for harmonisation to create stability for the Judiciary.

“That way, the great collaboration that is underway in the sector, especially at the NCAJ through its various reform committees, will greatly improve the state of administration in Kenya.

"Each court station is required to develop its own service delivery charter that contains a comprehensive index including corruption and public complaints reduction strategies, case backlog reduction among other aspects,” Maraga conveyed.

The Chief Justice disclosed that the judiciary was in the process of establishing the Judiciary Fund as it was a constitutional requirement.

“The process of de-linking from the District Treasuries has begun in earnest and is expected to be completed soon. We hope that the Judiciary Fund Regulations that have been drafted shall be gazetted to fully operationalise the Fund,” he stated.

[caption caption="The Supreme Court of Kenya"][/caption]

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