The Minister of Justice defended the FCFA 33,119 billion envelop at the National Assembly on Wednesday.

The Ministry of Justice will in the 2013 fiscal year target four programmes (three operational and one support) to render justice faster and equitable to all in the country. The Minister of State, Minister of Justice and Keeper of the Seals, Laurent Esso, told members of the Finance and Budget Committee of the National Assembly yesterday November 28 as he presented his action plan for the programme budget which goes operational from January 1, 2013.

In the presentation, the Minister of State said with the FCFA 33,119 billion budget in 2013 of which FCFA 2.5 billion will serve for investment, his ministry will target programmes like, “The Consolidation of the Rule of Law” which seeks to enhance access and the quality of service rendered by the judiciary. There will equally be a programme to improve the criminal and penitentiary policy with goal to improve detention conditions and prepare the social reintegration of detainees and another to fight against corruption and misappropriation of public funds. Also, Laurent Esso announced the “Sub-sector governance and management programme which seeks to ensure a proper execution of the Ministry’s programmes”. He told Members of Parliament that, “the judicial organisation provides a court of First Instance for each Sub-division and a High Court for each Division. In the current situation, we still need to construct 258 Courts of First Instance and 46 High Courts. Given the rising population density, the construction of 3-5 courts should be envisaged yearly,” he presented.

Before Minister Laurent Esso, the Minister of Finance, Alamine Ousmane Mey defended the budgets of sovereign institutions, that of his Ministry as well as defended a report on the economic, social and financial situation and perspectives of the nation.