Nigeria’s justice reform drive will take a technological turn today as stakeholders gather in Abuja for the JusticeTechNG Demo Day, a programme aimed at deploying digital innovation to address longstanding challenges in the justice system.
The event, organised by the Office of the Special Assistant to the President on Justice Sector Reform and ICT/Digital and Innovative Technology in collaboration with Arravo, will mark the culmination of the JusticeTechNG Hackathon and Accelerator initiative.
Addressing journalists on Friday in Lagos, the group Chief Executive Officer of Arravo, Dr Ayo Adegboye, said the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice is expected to chair the occasion.
He explained that JusticeTechNG was conceived as a reform-oriented platform designed to bridge policy leadership and technological expertise.
“The initiative brings together technologists, legal practitioners, judicial officers and justice sector institutions to develop solutions targeted at practical bottlenecks within the system,” he said.
According to him, participating teams will present working prototypes developed to tackle issues such as case management inefficiencies, procedural delays, gaps in record administration and barriers to access to justice.
The presentations, he said, will be made before a panel comprising senior judicial officers, regulators, senior lawyers, investors and other justice sector stakeholders, followed by a structured review session.
He explained: “Cash prizes will be awarded to the top three teams, with the winner receiving N10 million, the first runner-up N7 million and the second runner-up N5 million.
“The awards are intended to support further development and possible deployment of the solutions within justice institutions.
“Arravo, a technology solutions company, is providing funding and technical coordination for the programme.”
Dr Adegboye stated that the initiative operates through partnerships across the justice and innovation ecosystem, including law firms, technology companies and legal technology organisations, to ensure that proposed solutions are legally compliant, technically viable and adaptable to institutional frameworks.
The Special Assistant to the President on Justice Sector Reform and ICT/Digital and Innovative Technology, Mr Marcus-Obiene Fernandez, explained that the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) and the judiciary are involved in the project.
According to him, the NBA will incorporate the digital innovations into its continuous professional development programmes.
This, he said, would be made available for members of the Bar to learn.
He added that some members of the judiciary are already involved in the scheme, saying that the best way to tackle the many challenges of the judiciary is through digital innovation.
Partner, emerging technology, Perchstone and Graeys, Ugochukwu Obi explained that Artificial intelligence and other digital innovations being developed to reform the justice sector won’t take away the job of lawyers.
He stated that although the Legal Practitioners Act (LPA) stipulates that only those called to the Nigerian Bar can practice law, technological tools could be applied through policy documents.
“There is no law approving fintech tools, but the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), through policies make rules for the adoption of fintech in the banking sector. The judiciary can also apply the same,” he said, pending the amendment of the applicable laws to accommodate the new tools.
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