NJPMC supports evidence-based justice reforms to strengthen transparency, access to justice and accountability
Chief Justice of Pakistan Yayha Afridi presiding over the 61st meeting of the National Judicial (Policy Making) Committee in Islamabad. PHOTO: EXPRESS
ISLAMABAD:
The National Judicial Policy Making Committee (NJPMC) approved in principle the National Judicial Reform Framework, aligned with the World Justice Project Rule of Law Index, describing it as a major step towards evidence-based reforms aimed at improving Pakistan’s judicial system, according to a Supreme Court (SC) press release issued on Tuesday.
The decision was taken at the committee’s 61st meeting, chaired by Chief Justice of Pakistan Yahya Afridi of the Supreme Court. The press release said the framework seeks to “strengthen accessibility, transparency and predictability” in the justice system through “measurable performance standards, internationally recognized benchmarks and a robust institutional mechanism for continuous performance evaluation.”
The NJPMC said judicial reforms should increasingly be driven by “objective data, measurable outcomes and internationally accepted standards” to “promote institutional excellence, strengthen public trust and ensure continuous improvement of justice.”
According to the Supreme Court, the chief judges of the high courts participated in the meeting, while the Minister of Justice Azam Nazeer Tarar and the secretary of the Ministry of Law and Justice participated as special invitees. Representatives of the Pakistan Bar Council and the Supreme Court Bar Association were also present.
The Committee decided that the High Courts may adopt the National Judicial Reform Framework together with the International Framework for Court Excellence (IFCE) Self-Assessment Checklist, with modifications where necessary.
It said the high courts would establish mechanisms for periodic assessments and quarterly reporting on reform progress to ensure sustained implementation.
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The committee also directed the Law and Justice Commission of Pakistan (LJCP) Secretariat in coordination with the Ministry of Law and Justice to establish a dedicated implementation cell. Progress on the framework will be reviewed at the next NJPMC meeting on 8 October.
The press release stated that the LJCP Secretariat had been tasked with identifying and validating rule of law indicators for gradual integration into the National Judicial Analytics Dashboard (NJAD), in consultation with the High Courts and other institutions in the justice sector.
The Secretariat will also develop, with the support of the National Information Technology Board (NITB), a technology platform to generate periodic progress reports, coordinate capacity building initiatives and conduct annual assessments of Pakistan’s performance under the World Justice Project Rule of Law Index.
The Committee also reviewed the progress of the proposed Commission on Enforced Disappearances. The Law Minister informed the meeting that former Supreme Court judges were being considered to head the commission and said its composition and terms of reference would be finalized soon.
The NJPMC welcomed the government’s measures and stressed “strict compliance with the legal requirement to produce detained persons before the competent court within the prescribed time frame.”
Concluding the meeting, the committee reaffirmed its commitment to “sustained judicial reforms, strengthened institutional coordination, and improved access to justice through innovation, evidence-based governance, and technology-enabled service delivery.”
