13:30 - 15:00
Room: Physics – Lecture Theatre 117
Stream: The Political Economy of Development in Africa: Domesticating the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG's)
Chair/s:
Olumide Adisa
Towards a Relevant and Sustainable Juvenile Justice System in Ghana
Robert Ame
Wilfrid Laurier University, Brantford, Ontario

Ghana has had a formal juvenile justice system since the mid-1940s when a series of ordinances were passed leading to the creation of a separate juvenile justice system. Slightly modified by the Criminal Procedure Code in 1960 in the immediate post-independence era, it was not till 2003 that significant changes were made to the country’s juvenile justice system with the passage of the Juvenile Justice Act. This overhaul of the system was basically an attempt to domesticate the Convention on the Rights of the Child as it relates to children in conflict with the law. Since 2010, however, there have been series of discussions by stakeholders to revamp the juvenile justice system to make it more sustainable and relevant to the country’s socio-cultural system. Thus, the adoption of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals was a welcome development that spurred on the stakeholders in their attempts to domesticate the country’s child protection system including its juvenile justice system. These efforts led to the adoption of the Justice for Children Policy, among others, by the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection in 2015. Using a critical inquiry approach, this paper assesses the relevance and sustainability of Ghana’s Justice for Children Policy (J4C), 2015 vis a vis the findings of the existing literature on Juvenile Justice in Ghana. Is the J4C accessible and inclusive? How does it compare to the Juvenile Justice Act, 2003? Does it measure up to the Sustainable Development Goals #s 11 and 16 on sustainable communities, justice, and strong institutions?


Reference:
We-A48 SDGs-P-001
Presenter/s:
Robert Ame
Presentation type:
Panel
Room:
Physics – Lecture Theatre 117
Chair/s:
Olumide Adisa
Date:
Wednesday, 12 September
Time:
13:30 - 13:45
Session times:
13:30 - 15:00