Aid to Judicial Reform: Norwegian and International Experiences

Abstract

Creating a viable judiciary and strengthening its democratic functions has been a main concern of both national governments and donors over the last two decades. This report attempts to chart and systematise the efforts that have gone into the area of judicial reform. That includes various efforts at improving the functioning of a country’s legal system, both in terms of fairness and efficiency. The report places Norwegian development assistance to judicial reform (which is of relatively new date, but of increasing magnitude and importance) in a broader context by systematically looking at how various donors – multinational, governmental, and non-governmental - have operated in this field. The analysis covers which sectors of the judiciary have been targeted for reform and why; what channels have been used; and what the lessons learned so far are. Experiences from Latin America and Africa are highlighted. The case studies of Norwegian assistance to Guatemala and Ethiopia open up for more in-depth reflections on what works and what does not work when external donors set out to help governments reform their judiciaries.