Latest update June 6th, 2026 12:34 AM
$ 1.7B earmarked for justice system
2010 Budget…
Some $1.7B has been budgeted in 2010 for improving the quality, efficiency and effectiveness of service delivery in the justice sector in Guyana.
This disclosure was made by the Finance Minister Ashni Singh during his address to Parliament in his budget speech on Monday.
Of that sum some $322.5M has been allocated for the implementation of several reform measures.
The minister noted that a strategic plan for mediation as well as mediation referral guidelines is being developed and is expected to be completed soon. This plan, the minister says, is intended to reduce the excessive amounts of cases that are filed in the High Court. It is also intended to reduce the amount of cases requiring adjudication by a judge.
It is anticipated that approximately 5,500 cases of the backlog will be disposed in 2010. In addition, the Time Limit for Judicial Decisions Act which was passed in 2009 is expected to contribute further to a timely conclusion of matters before the courts.
The minister explained that the application of the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Strategy would serve to advance the sector with the piloting of a digital speech recording system in the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal later this year.
The pilot would be evaluated six months after implementation to determine the feasibility of the implementation countrywide.
With this application it is expected that it would significantly reduce the time taken to record evidence in the courtroom.
CONSTRUCTION OF COURTS COUNTRYWIDE
A total of $121.8M has been budgeted for the construction and maintenance of courts countywide, with some $45.9M being allocated for the completion of the first ever family court. The family court is expected to deal with matters such as divorce, division of property, domestic matters, adoption, guardianship and custody.
In addition, $26M will go towards the construction of a Magistrate’s court and office at Lethem, while $19.3M has been allocated for the completion of the Charity and Leonora Magistrate Courts. A further $27.2M is expected to be spent on maintenance of the High Court and Georgetown Magistrates’ Court.
Last year government had allocated $1.4B to the justice system. Minister Singh noted that $248M was spent on enhancing the efficiency of the process of dealing with the criminal and civil cases within the system. He pointed out that an action plan for the strengthening of the functional and operational was established between the Chambers of the Director of Public Prosecutions and the Police.
The minister further noted that over 45 state and police prosecutors were trained in detecting evidentiary weakness in cases.
He added that drafted guidelines for the Civil Procedure Rules were completed and they were circulated to the judges for further advice. The new rules he says would place stronger emphasis on time management of the cases, case conferences and mediation.
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