Submitted by crinadmin on
Summary: The ministry of justice and constitutional affairs is working on setting up child-friendly courts.
The ministry has secured funding for the courts. The ministry’s first quarter performance report states that the handling of child witnesses has been held with the assistance of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). The organisation has committed to assist with setting up the child friendly courts. “Some funding has been secured to set up and at present we are engaged in securing a competent service provider to engage in setting up the courts, first at the High Court, then Nhlangano and Pigg’s Peak with the available finances.” This is one of the achievements of the Judiciary for the first quarter beginning from April to June. The Judiciary is responsible for the administration of justice, the upholding of the rule of law and the administration of estates. It carries out its responsibilities through the Supreme Court, High Court, Master of the High Court, Industrial Court, Magistrate’s Courts and the office of the Judicial Commissioner, which is responsible for the Swazi National Courts. The report of the first quarter states that the Judiciary has been able to carry out its mandate despite staff and courtroom shortages, which have resulted in it not performing to its full capacity. “The lack of adequate funding still has proven to be counter productive in some areas,” reads part of the report.