Judiciary of Sierra Leone Makes Impressive Inroads in the World Justice Index 2020 Ahead of Nigeria, Others

Judiciary of Sierra Leone Communications Unit, Law Courts Building Freetown, Tuesday 10th November, 2020: Sierra Leone’s Judiciary under the distinctive leadership of His Lordship, Justice Desmond Babatunde Edwards has made inroads in the World Justice Rule of Law 2020 Index Report as well as the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Scorecard ahead of Nigeria, Uganda, Niger, Turkey, Pakistan, Mexico and few other countries within and without Africa Continent. 

The World Justice Project (WJP) Rule of Law 2020 Index is the latest report in an annual series measuring the rule of law based on the experiences and perceptions of the general public and in-country legal practitioners and experts worldwide. The WJP Rule of Law 2020 Index Report presents a portrait of the rule of law in 128 countries and jurisdictions by providing scores and rankings based on eight factors: Constraints on Government Powers, Absence of Corruption, Open Government, Fundamental Rights, Order and Security, Regulatory Enforcement, Civil Justice, and Criminal Justice.

“This is a welcome news for us as a nation in making gains in our justice system and to also perform impressively in the Millennium Challenge Corporation scorecard indicators to pass thirteen (13) out of the twenty (20) MCC indicators for 2020,” said Justice Edwards, noting that, “Sierra Leone scored 28 in the area of political rights, scored 37 in civil rights and 63 percentage in the Rule of Law which falls under our purview.”  This impressive successes has made the country to be ‘Compact Eligible.’

He said the WJP Rule of Law Index measures adherence to the rule of law by looking at policy outcomes, such as whether people have access to courts or whether crime is effectively controlled and whether the platform is enabling for political right and civil liberty.

He thanked the President, His Excellency President Dr. Julius Maada Bio, the Hon. Vice President Dr. Mohamed Juldeh Jalloh and the Government for their commitment to have a new Judiciary that will administer justice without fear or favour, ensures sustainable reforms that are critical to advancing the Rule of Law and guaranteeing human rights.

The WJP Rule of Law Index is the world’s leading source for original, independent data on the Rule of Law.

For more enquiries contact the Head of Communications on the aforesaid email or +23234617548.