Chief Justice Martha Koome has pledged to promote environmental sustainability within the justice sector. During the launch of the Strategic Guiding Framework for Greening Kenya’s Justice System on Wednesday, Koome emphasized her commitment to uphold the rule of law, protect rights, and ensure sustainable development while fostering ecological sustainability.
She highlighted that the pursuit of justice is closely linked to environmental sustainability and stressed that the justice sector should set an example for others to follow.
“With this Strategic Guiding Framework, we are reaffirming our commitment to integrating environmental sustainability into the operations of our justice institutions,” Koome said.
Acknowledging that the justice system has not always been fully aware of its environmental impact, CJ Koome emphasized the need for a renewed commitment to embed sustainability in the system and to improve the efficient and effective administration of justice.
“The push for a greener justice system requires relentless efforts as it is about reorienting our practices to ensure we have a livable planet for the future generations,” she said.
“Going forward, we as agencies and stakeholders in the Kenyan justice sector are committed to ensuring that we promote the goal of environmental sustainability.”
Koome also noted that Strategic Guiding Framework calls for agencies within the justice system to integrate green practices into their core and operational functions.
“The Strategy provides specific recommendations for National Council on Administration of Justice (NCAJ) agencies, covering upscaling green investigations and arrests, enhancing green prosecution, institutionalising environmental safeguards to resolve cases within our courts, greening our sentencing practices, greening correctional services, promoting green legal empowerment and embedding a human rights approach in each greening element,” she said.
The CJ further undertook to conduct civil and criminal justice reforms that support green justice, to ensure laws and legal practices actively promote environmental sustainability.
“At the grassroots level, we will upscale greening interventions through Court Users Committees (CUCs), bringing environmentally conscious practices closer to the communities we serve,” she said.
The Strategic Framework also calls for justice actors to implement reforms and interventions aimed at improving the administration and access to justice for vulnerable and marginalized groups. These groups include those disproportionately impacted by climate change, such as children, women, survivors of gender-based violence, and youth.
Environment CS Aden Duale, Director of Public Prosecutions Renson Mulele Ingonga, and PS Correctional Services Salome Beacco also addressed the forum.
