In Benin, the justice system faces a number of structural, institutional and operational challenges. Its main challenge lies in restoring the confidence of citizens and defendants.
The shortage of judicial personnel has led to operational difficulties in courts and under the Good Governance and Development Contract (GGDC) signed between the European Union and Republic of Benin, the Government has committed to provide courts with magistrates and clerks.
In recent years, several programs implemented by technical and financial partners have supported the justice sector, while international and regional organisations have provided targeted training.
The Project to Support the Operationalisation of the Training School for Legal Professions follows on from the activities implemented and reforms initiated. It echoes the Government Action Programme (GAP), a reference document for all Benin’s administrative structures, and is part of the national development policy and strategies for the justice sector for 2015-2025.
Objectives of the Project to Support the Operationalisation of the EFPJ
The Project to Support the Operationalisation of the Training School for Legal Professions (EFPJ) aims to build the capacities of the EFPJ to fulfil the functions attributed to it by its status.
The project’s action is based on three components:
1) Improving the institutional, governance and management framework of the EFPJ.
2) Strengthening the competencies of the staff of the EFPJ, its trainers, course tutors and judicial officers.
3) Developing and improving educational training tools for judicial personnel.
Improving the normative and management framework of the EFPJ
The Training School for Legal Professions was set up in 2018 to provide vocational training to judicial personnel: magistrates, judicial officers, clerks, student educators and certain liberal professions (notaries, bailiffs, auctioneers).
The project is helping the EFPJ become an organised structure with sufficient material and human resources in both number and quality. To this end, the mobilisation of short-term experts for the school’s staff will:
• Develop an organisation chart taking into account the new missions of the EFPJ;
• Propose new statutes taking into account the specific characteristics of the structure;
• Prepare a development strategy and, through it, the objectives that the EFPJ aims to achieve by 2025, while allowing it to establish its legitimacy and essential nature among the judiciary and executive bodies;
• Create innovative management and monitoring tools tailored to the needs of the management team;
• Design appropriate budgetary and accounting tools;
• Define a communication strategy in line with its future ambitions.
The school will be set up in Abomey Calavi in the 1,600 m² of refurbished premises. This project will assist with taking charge of these premises in order to increase the capacity to receive trainees and provide the EFPJ team with an appropriate working environment.
Building the capacities of actors in the justice sector
The members of the teaching staff will acquire new techniques in initial and in-service training. They will be transferred to them by their peers through:
• The training of trainers;
• The design of training catalogues and the corresponding models;
• Exchanges of experience with a reference judicial training centre in the subregion and/or Maghreb region, which will strengthen the school’s partnerships abroad and permanently establish it in the regional landscape of judicial training.
The increased capacity of training operators will be deployed among judicial professionals through 20 in-service training activities organised by the EFPJ.
Professionalising initial and in-service training tools
Training tools and materials for trainers and their learners will be prepared and adapted to the new subjects.
To ensure the sustainability of this work, a system to evaluate the training will empower the EFPJ for the regular and continuous monitoring of the quality of the teaching methods and content.
