UNODC- Enhancing the RoL and Criminal Justice System in Eth - 2023 - 2026 UNODC- Enhancing the RoL and Criminal Justice System in Eth - 2023 - 2026 The cooperation partner is the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) that is an active member of the United Nations Country Team (UNCT) in Ethiopia. It is a known partner to Sweden and has been implementing a program funded by Sweden between 2014 2022. Sweden's deep-dive analysis on institutional building of some of its contributions have also revealed that UNODC's staff have built strong relationship with key interlocutors within the government that ensures the cooperation needed in the implementation of the project.

This intervention is somewhat a continuation of the previous phase of UNODC’s programme in reforming the Criminal Justice System of Ethiopia with the aim of making criminal justice systems more effective and accountable by strengthened access to justice for all with a focus on vulnerable groups.

Sweden is supporting this project with 36 MSEK over four years from 2023 to 2026, which will go under the umbrella country program of UNODC. Samarbetspartner är United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) som är en aktiv medlem i United Nations Country Team (UNCT) i Etiopien. Det är en känd partner till Sverige och har genomfört ett program finansierat av Sverige mellan 2014 2022. Sveriges djupgående analys av institutionell uppbyggnad av några av dess bidrag har också avslöjat att UNODC personal har byggt upp starka relationer med viktiga samtalspartner inom regeringen som säkerställer det samarbete som behövs vid genomförandet av projektet.

Detta ingripande är något en fortsättning på den tidigare fasen av UNODC program för att reformera Etiopiens straffrättssystem i syfte att göra straffrättssystemen mer effektiva och ansvarsfulla genom stärkt tillgång till rättvisa för alla med fokus på utsatta grupper.

Sverige stödjer detta projekt med 36 MSEK under fyra år från 2023 till 2026, vilket kommer att gå under UNODC paraplylandsprogram. The intervention aims to contribute to building peaceful, just and inclusive societies by attempting to address the problem of crime.

The overall objective of the intervention is to enhance rule of law and integrity in the administration of criminal justice system through strengthening capacity, accountability and coordination in Ethiopia.

UNODC understands integrity in the form of institutional integrity in the context of criminal justice institutions and other actors. In this sense, integrity is linked with concepts of accountability and oversight. For instance, the UNODC Handbook on police accountability, oversight and integrity (2011) defines police integrity as normative and other safeguards that keep police from misusing their powers and abusing their rights and privileges and accountability as a system of internal and external checks and balances aimed at ensuring that police carry out their duties properly and are held responsible if they fail to do so. Such a system is meant to uphold police integrity and deter misconduct and to restore or enhance public confidence in policing. Similarly, judicial integrity and prosecutorial integrity are concepts closely linked with accountability and professionalism.

Moreover, the specific objective of the planned intervention is to:

Support the criminal justice systems to be more effective and accountable by strengthened access to justice for all through more effective, fair and accountable criminal justice systems with a focus on vulnerable groups.

Planned outcomes to achieve the objective include: 

Outcome 1. Ethiopias law enforcement and intergovernmental/regional cooperation is improved

Outcome 2. The Ethiopian justice system is more accountable, effective and independent

Outcome 3. Rehabilitative approaches to prison management are adopted

Target Groups

The planned intervention will work closely with the core criminal justice institutions and government bodies with relevant mandates as well the respective regional counterparts. Targeted stakeholders include the Ethiopian Federal Police Commission, Ethiopian Police University, Ministry of Justice, Federal Supreme Court, Federal Prison Commission, Prison Commission Training Center, and Ministry of Women and Social Affairs. 

The intervention aims to support criminal justice institutions, systems and mechanisms to function more effectively to be able to prevent and tackle crime and ensuring accountability thereby contributing to access to justice for all. The short-term contribution of the various capacity building, harmonization of legislation and crime prevention activities implemented by this project is improved service delivery in terms of quality and access, and contribution to the achievement of the SDGs, which will themselves be conducive to supporting rule of law and integrity in the criminal justice system in Ethiopia as well as preventing and tackling crime.

Moreover, the cooperation partner will work with UN entities with related mandates, civil society networks, young women and men, grassroots women and the private sector to engage them in planning as well as monitoring services delivered by government.