The Chief Justice, Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie, has called for critical infrastructure and resources to implement transformative reforms in the legal education system in the country.
“It will allow students sit for the unified bar examination at computerised testing centres, similar to international models in New York and Singapore.
“The General Legal Council Bill currently before Parliament will establish new accreditation standards, an inspectorate system, and an appeal tribunal to ensure equality in legal education,” he said.
Justice Baffoe-Bonnie added that judicial sector reforms would fundamentally restructure legal education delivery in the country, with accredited law faculties providing professional practice training following completion of LLB.
The Chief Justice, who was speaking during a courtesy call on the Administrator of the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund), Paul Adjei, in Accra, further said that the reforms were crucial in modernising the legal education system, which currently operated in old facilities designed over the years to accommodate just about 80 students, but currently serving hundreds of students.
The Chief Justice, whose visit was described as “historic,” was accompanied by the Director of the Ghana School of Law, Prof. Raymond Atuguba, and the Judicial Secretary, Musah Ahmed.
Initiatives
In response, Mr Adjei outlined series of strategic initiatives aimed at supporting the development of judicial sector infrastructure and enhancement of student opportunities by GETFund.
It includes a soon to be introduced dedicated budget lines to support the provision of infrastructure for the judiciary.
It would also capitalise on its established partnerships with prestigious institutions such as the Temple University, John Hopkins and other universities in the UK to offer scholarships and tuition discounts for Ghanaian law students pursuing advanced studies abroad.
Mr Adjei added that the GETFund had launched a dedicated fundraising department to mobilise resources from corporate entities and individual philanthropists to augment the government’s support in line with President John Dramani Mahama’s reset agenda.
Commendation
The administrator commended the Chief Justice for his proactive leadership in engaging development partners to secure vital support for judicial reforms, adding “the Chief Justice’s commitment to transforming the judicial sector aligns perfectly with GETFund’s mandate to support tertiary education and professional development in the country.”
He said that the partnership between GETFund and the judicial service would help give a facelift to legal education in the country.
Source:
www.graphic.com.gh
