Tech company Google to assist Kenya digitise judicial services
Technology company Google will facilitate digitisation of judicial services within 67 courts in Kenya in the next 120 days. This will pave the way for provision of virtual sessions, activation of paperless filing of civil proceedings, as well as transcribing of court sessions.
The National Optic Fibre Backbone Infrastructure Connectivity Support Project, sponsored by Google PLC, will see 84 public institutions connected to the fibre platform, including 67 law courts, six hospitals and 11 technical training institutes.
Google country director Agnes Gathaiya said they would extend the partnership with the Judiciary to include training of judicial staff on ICT to enhance efficiency and productivity.
Launching the project at Milimani Commercial Courts in Nairobi, Chief Justice Martha Koome said: “We extend our sincere appreciation to Google for thinking about access to justice and performance of the Judiciary.
The project will see courts conduct sessions virtually, with expert witnesses and others living abroad giving evidence via video link. Lawyers will also be allowed to represent clients virtually.
without the need to travel to far-flung stations.
as a key outcome area that the grant to the Kenyan Government should target to become a reality within 120 days across 67 court stations”.
She described the project as a game-changer that will power the Judiciary’s strategic objective of leveraging on technology for efficiency in delivery of services.
ICT Cabinet Secretary Joe Mucheru said digitisation of the Judiciary was part of a larger scheme by the government to digitise all its operations, thereby enhancing access to public services.
“The Judiciary can also be a consumer of digital services. This Google-ICT Ministry-Judiciary project is a case in point on what public-private sector partnerships can achieve. We are on course to digitise public operations as part of the government’s national strategy to create a knowledge-based economy that is key to generation of wealth and jobs,” he said.
The project will see courts conduct sessions virtually, with expert witnesses and others living abroad giving evidence via video link. Lawyers will also be allowed to represent clients virtually without the need to travel to far-flung stations.
Chief Justice Koome said they were on course to automate administrative services, notably human resource, workflow, customer (litigant) relations and case management.
“Google’s mission is to empower everyone to harness the power of the Internet to improve service delivery for public good. This will benefit the economy. We are ready to partner with the Judiciary to train staff for faster adoption of ICT services,” she said.
