FIC Report (Nasarawa State) – Stakeholders in Nigeria’s justice sector have called for reforms that leverage technology to protect Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and other businesses by enhancing the ease of doing business in the country.
The theme of the conference is ‘Interoperability between Access to Justice and the Ease of Doing Business.
The stakeholders made the call on Friday in Lafia, Nasarawa State, at the opening ceremony of a Three-day conference of the Network of Justice Sector Reform Teams (NJSRT).
The stakeholders included Federal and State Ministries of Justice, Judiciary, Law Enforcement agencies, Judges and legal practitioners, Civil Society Organizations, Academia Research Institutions, International Development Partners, among others.
The NJSRT is a forum that brings together stakeholders in the justice sector to collaborate, share knowledge, and coordinate efforts to improve the justice system towards promoting justice sector reforms in Nigeria.
Declaring the conference open, Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi emphasized that technology can enhance access to justice, reduce case backlog, and provide a conducive environment for businesses to thrive.
The minister explained that the theme of the conference has aligned with President Bola Tinubu’s “Renewed Hope” agenda, anchored on attracting investment, creating jobs, and fostering sustainable economic growth.
The Attorney General emphasized that there can be no meaningful economic progress in the country without a robust, predictable, and efficient justice system.
”The ‘Ease of Doing Business’ is not merely a matter of enhancing bureaucratic efficiency; it is fundamentally a critical factor in service delivery and justice administration.
“It includes institutional assurances which we give to a small business owner in Lafia, a tech entrepreneur in Lagos, and an international investor in London, that their rights will be protected, their contracts will be enforced, and their disputes will be resolved fairly and expeditiously.”
“For too long, our Justice System has been perceived as a labyrinth—slow, complex, and inaccessible to the average citizen and business.
“This perception, whether fully accurate or not, is a significant drag on our economy; and it increases the cost of business, stifles innovation, and deters the patient capital we desperately need,” he added.
Fagbemi further said that the government would ensure that justice is not a luxury reserved for the wealthy or the connected, but a public good and available to all, including the poor, the vulnerable, and SMEs who are the lifeblood of the economy.
The minister explained that the Federal Government cannot do it alone because the bulk of retail justice delivery happens at the state level.
He lauded the Nasarawa State Government for the implementation of the Criminal Justice Act and the digitisation of the justice system.
In his remarks, Gov. Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa State said that his primary mandate is to create a safe, secure, and prosperous environment for the citizens.
“We are aggressively seeking private sector investment to harness our vast mineral and agricultural potential, create jobs, and build sustainable infrastructure.
“However, we know that investors are not just looking for resources; they are looking for certainty, they are looking for a jurisdiction where the rule of law is not a mere slogan, but a lived reality.
“They want to know that commercial agreements will be respected, that regulatory frameworks are stable, and that in the event of a dispute, they will have access to a fair, impartial, and efficient Justice System,” Sule added.
He therefore promised that the state would continue to provide an enabling environment to promote businesses and investment into the state to harness the state’s resources and place it on the global map as one of the best investment destinations.
Oluwatoyin Badejogbin from the European Union said that as a development partner, they looked beyond the conversation to see how it would be implemented to strengthen the justice system.
Badejogbin emphasised that reforms of the justice system to protect businesses would go a long way to attract investment in the country.
Signed
ARI, LIMAN AMINU.
HEAD OF CENTRE,
FIC, LAFIA.
