Over the past three years, the Moldovan judiciary has benefited from assistance worth $7.5 million from the American people to implement several state-of-the-art IT solutions and strengthen institutional capacity in the justice sector. The generous support was provided through the United States Agency for International Development’s (USAID’s) Open Justice Project, and the progress made was presented today, November 19, 2020, during an online event dedicated to Project’s completion.
The event was attended by the Director of the USAID Mission to Moldova, Scott Hocklander, the State Secretary of the Ministry of Justice, Radu Foltea, the Interim Chair of the Superior Council of Magistracy, Luiza Gafton, the Director of the USAID’s Open Justice Project, Cristina Malai, development partners and partner institutions, and civil society representatives.
The USAID’s Open Justice Project was implemented in Moldova between May 2017 and November 2020. Its overall objective was to support the Government of the Republic of Moldova’s efforts to modernize and increase the transparency and accountability of the judiciary, by providing the necessary technical and methodological assistance.
Thus, the implementation of the new Integrated Case Management System, the development of the E-File application and Electronic Judicial Statistic Module, the implementation of a Media Server, equipping all court with videoconferencing equipment, the upgrade of the National Courts’ Web Portal and the modernization of the websites of the Superior Council of Magistracy and Agency for Court Administration are just some of the major achievements obtained with support from the USAID’s Open Justice Project.
At the same time, the Project provided methodological assistance to improve judicial selection, appointment, promotion and accountability practices, as well as support the implementation of the International Framework for Court Excellence in all four appellate courts.
During his opening remarks, the Director of the USAID Mission in Moldova, Scott Hocklander, listed the benefits that citizens will enjoy as a result of the provided assistance. “The United States continues to stand with the people of Moldova with support aimed at strengthening the rule of law and improving access to justice for all citizens,” the official said.
In turn, the State Secretary of the Ministry of Justice thanked the Project for supporting some of the most ambitious and important projects aimed at modernizing and streamlining the judiciary. “This assistance will help to implement rapidly many of the objectives set out in the draft of the new justice reform strategy.“, Radu Foltea stated.
During her intervention, the interim Chair of the SCM, Luiza Gafton highlighted the main progress made with the support of the USAID’s Open Justice Project: “We are very grateful for many strategic documents, trainings and legislative amendments that have become possible thanks to the Project.”
“The impact of the provided assistance will be felt over time. That is why, it is paramount to ensure the continuity and sustainability of all progress made,” the Project’s Director, Cristina Malai said.
The video recording of the event can be watched here. For more details about the implemented electronic systems and the methodological assistance offered, please see the video below:
