Lack of training, resources, and personnel hampers the courts' effectiveness. Case backlogs are prodigious. Most of the 20,000 people held in the county's prison are pretrial detainees who suffer extremely harsh conditions. In many rural areas, customary dina courts that follow neither due process nor standardized judicial procedure often issue summary and severe punishments. Several daily and weekly newspapers publish material sharply critical of the government and other parties and politicians.
Television is state-controlled and relatively autonomous.
At least ten private radio stations are now broadcasting, and rebroadcasts of Radio France International are available throughout the country. Women account for more than 40 percent of the small formal labor force and hold significantly more government and managerial positions than their counterparts in continental African countries. At the same time, they still face societal discrimination and enjoy fewer opportunities than men for higher education and official employment. The right to free association is respected, and hundreds of nongovernmental organizations, including lawyers' and human rights groups, are active. The government does not interfere with religious rights.