Zimbabwe Judicial Service Commission (JSC) said that it is going to incorporate the use of ICT to facilitate efficiency in the justice delivery system.

By Tracy Mazhura

Speaking at the Legal Year official opening Chief Justice Malaba yesterday said, COVID19 had disrupted the implementation of ICT in the judicial system.

“Covid 19  delayed the implementation of Electronic Case Management System which has to assist in terms of efficiency in the service delivery and is expected to be launched in May 2022,” said Malaba.

The Commission said ICT is going to assist in text creation,  recording of court proceedings,  communication,  improved access to the law retrieval, and storage of information among other areas.

“ICT has become the normal way of doing business and it’s also going to be included in the justice delivery system,” said  Malaba.

The Commission is also confident that the introduction of ICT in the Zimbabwe Justice system will promote access to justice, transparency,  and accountability.

“The use of ICTs by the Judicial Service Commission will reduce the cost of getting justice thereby promoting access to justice for all citizens. “

In  November 2021 president Emmerson Mnangagwa said that the use of digital technology has been  one of the key priorities in the implementation of the National Development Strategy (NDS)

The country’s justice delivery system has been slow and not transparent leading to many suffering at the hands of corrupt judicial officers.