- There is need to rethink funding of the justice sector.
- There is need to pursue strategic partnerships and resource mobilisation
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Justice sector agencies which include the judiciary, office of the Attorney General, Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions and the National Police Service face a funding deficit of over 100 billion.
This is according to acting Chief Registrar of the Judiciary Paul Ndemo who was addressing a meeting of the National Council on the Administration of Justice.
Ndemo who spoke peaking at the NCAJ meeting in Mombasa on Thursday said there is a need to rethink the funding of the justice sector.
''100 billion in our view in the larger scheme of things for an entire sector is a crucial amount of money to support the justice sector,'' Ndemo said.
''The justice sector plays a pivotal role in ensuring that the rule of law in the society is upheld giving local and external investors confidence that matters are predictable and justice is prompt,'' he said.
Other under-funded agencies according to Ndemo include the National Council on the Administration of Justice (NCAJ), the Ethics and Anti Corruption Commission (EACC), Kenya Prisons Service, the Probation and Aftercare Department, The Independent Police Oversight Authority, Witness Protection Agency and the National Council for Law Reporting among others.
He further stated that there is a need for a supplementary budget to fund NCAJ and the Anti-corruption agenda in the current financial year totalling Sh83 million and the NCAJ bill at Sh18 million.
The NCAJ is facing a funding gap that stands at Sh285 million aside from the financing shortfall to the individual justice sector agencies, Ndemo says.
''The funding is to support deepened reforms, bolstering justice sector monitoring and evaluation, justice sector research and innovation, statutory council annual reporting and engagements and grassroots administration of justice through Court User Committees,'' said Ndemo who serves as the acting NCAJ Secretary.
He added that there is a need to pursue strategic partnerships and resource mobilisation apart from NCAJ agencies contributing to NCAJ programmes.
Albert Mwenda, The Director General of Budget Fiscal and Economic Affairs said the government was keen to support the justice sector given its critical role in economic development and the fight against corruption.
He said that if a strong justice system is in place, they will be able to support the implementation of strategic government objectives and deliver on the socio-economic needs of the country.
He also added that the delivery of justice is critical to unlock economic development, especially in the commercial justice sector and the funding of the sector is dependent on the ability of the government to meet its expenditure needs based on available revenues.
He further explained to the council that as of the end of January, the treasury had experienced a shortfall of sh232 billion.
''We are working with the Kenya Revenue Authority to ensure that our revenues remain high and how we can allocate to NCAJ and other critical sectors,'' he said.
According to Mwenda, the National Treasury has formulated a national Tax Policy and a Medium-Term Revenue Strategy to unlock additional resources.
He also emphasised the need to prioritise support for anti-corruption measures, especially after the greylisting of Kenya following concerns over incidents of money laundering.
''We need to give priority to anti-corruption matters and the relevant institutions are critical to addressing the non-compliance issues which are important to the treasury,'' Mwenda said.