Criminal Justice Reform in Sub-Saharan Africa Best Practice from Selected Jurisdictions

Introduction: Re-Shaping Criminal Justice Systems: Going beyond Legislation

Adedeji Adekunle, Suzzie Onyeka Oyakhire and Osatohanmwen Eruaga

Part 1: Effective Mechanisms for The Management of Pre-Trial Detention

1. Effective Mechanisms for the Management of Pre-Trial Detention: A Comparative Analysis of Nigeria, Kenya, The Democratic Republic of Congo and South Africa

Francis Enobore Osagiede

2. Assessment of Pre-Trial Detention and the Protection of the Fundamental Human Rights of Suspects/Defendants in Burundi

Germain Ntawuyamara

3. Pretrial Detention: Challenges, Opportunities, and The Role of Technology in Sub-Sahara Africa

Oluwafunke Adeoye

4. Effective Mechanisms for The Management of Pre-Trial Detention in Sub-Saharan Africa: The Case of Rwanda

Denis Bikesha

Part 2: Mechanisms for Speedy Trials in The Criminal Justice Systems Across Sub-Saharan Africa

5. Practical Steps and Best Practices in Achieving Speedy Trials in Criminal Justice Systems: An Experience from Uganda

Justice Eva K. Luswata

6. Trial Within Trial as A Clog to Fostering Speedy Trials in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Review of the Nigerian Practice

Asmau Sulaiman Muhammad

7. The Role of Prosecutors and Defence Attorneys in Enhancing Speedy Trials in Rwanda

Jean Bosco Mutangana

8. Justice Delayed is Justice Denied: Delay in Trials as a Clog on the Wheels of Justice

Rita Ititim

Part 3: Decriminalisation, Restorative Justice, and Implementation of Non-Custodial Measures

9. An Appraisal of The Rights of Victims of Violent Crimes in Nigeria, Kenya and Ghana

Awele Lauretta Ikobi-Anyali and Habila Ardzard

10. Victim-Centric Reforms in Nigeria: Examining Restorative Justice, Victim Participation and Victim Protection Under the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) 2015

Suzzie Onyeka Oyakhire

11. Bridging The Gender Gap: Interrogating the Exclusion of Female Offenders in Borstal Institutions in Nigeria

Mariam Abdulraheem-Mustapha

12. Non-Custodial Sentencing Alternatives: A South African Experience

Robert Nanima

13. An Overview of Non-Custodial Penal Measures and Implementation Strategies in the Nigerian Criminal Justice Administration

Reuben Oghenenyerowo Imarha

14. From Rhetoric to Reality: Transforming the Africa Court’s Decriminalisation of Petty Offences Advisory Opinion into Tangible Benefits for Africa’s Poor

Stanley Ibe

Biography

Adedeji Adekunle is a Professor of Law and the Research Lead of Juritrust Centre for Socio Legal Research and Documentation and a former Director General of the Nigerian Institute of Advanced legal Studies. He was Visiting Human Rights Fellow at the Human Rights Institute, Nigerian Human Rights Commission (2019-2020). He has edited several books such as Law of International Investments: Essays in honour of late Professor Ayo Ajomo (NIALS, Lagos, 2019, co-edited with Emmanuel Okon) and Freedom of Information and Democratic Governance in Nigeria, (NIALS Lagos, 2019). He is a Senior Advocate of Nigeria and Honorary Fellow of the Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies.

Suzzie Onyeka Oyakhire is a Senior Lecturer at the Leeds Law School, Leeds Beckett University. She holds a PhD in Law from the University of Cape Town, South Africa, where she specialised in criminal law and justice. Her primary research explores reforms in criminal law, with a specific focus on the interests and rights of victims and witnesses of crime, particularly in the context of victim and witness protection in Nigeria. This work is highlighted in her book, Witness Protection and Criminal Justice in Africa: Nigeria in International Perspectives (Routledge 2023). She is a Fellow of Higher Education Academy (FHEA).

Osatohanmwen (Osato) Eruaga is an Associate Professor at the Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies. She holds a Doctorate in Maritime Affairs from the World Maritime University, Sweden, an LL.M in Maritime Law from the University of Nottingham, and a law degree from the University of Benin. Her expertise spans public international law, marine environmental law, sustainability, criminal justice administration, and human rights law. She is a Fellow of the Yeosu Maritime Institute and a member of the United Nations Regular Process for Global Reporting and Assessment of the State of the Marine Environment. She has contributed as a speaker, lecturer, and researcher at various local and international forums and has consulted for organisations such as the MacArthur Foundation, Danish Embassy, UNESCO, UNICEF, and UNODC. She also serves as an international consultant for the UNODC Global Maritime Crime Programme (Atlantic Ocean and Bay of Bengal).