The Honourable Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice (HAGF), Lateef Fagbemi SAN, has called on Heads of Agencies under the supervision of the Federal Ministry of Justice and Directors in the Ministry to recalibrate the machinery of justice for maximum impact and service excellence.
The HAGF made the call in his Remarks at the opening ceremony of the ongoing Justice Sector Retreat with the theme: Streamlining the Ministry’s 2026 Performance Management Cycle in Alignment with the Presidential Priorities and Sector Specific Deliverables today 11th February 2026, at the Olusegun Obasanjo Auditorium in the Ministry’s Headquarters, Abuja.
The Chief Law Officer of Nigeria also assured the gathering that the justice sector was strategically positioned to address the sector’s aspirations under the 8th Presidential Priority which was to improve governance for effective service delivery. He stated that the 2026 Performance Management Cycle must focus on delivering tangible outcomes and in particular must facilitate investment by reducing case backlogs and ensuring the legal frameworks that support the ease of doing business.
In his words, “I welcome you all to this Justice Sector Retreat. I dare say that this retreat is a strategic convergence of minds united by a singular purpose – to recalibrate our machinery of justice for maximum impact and service excellence”.
“We are at a critical point in our nation’s transformation agenda where premium is being placed on accountable, responsive, and transformative governance, which ensures effective and efficient service delivery. As we are all aware, the leadership of each organization within the justice sector, holds a sacred trust with attendant responsibilities. Our citizens expect and deserve a justice system that works efficiently, delivers fairly, and operates with unwavering integrity”. Fagbemi added.
To meet these expectations, Fagbemi challenged the Heads of Agencies and Directors in the Ministry to confront uncomfortable truths such as issues of weak systems and structures, bureaucratic inefficiencies, and gaps in internal coordination and inter-agency collaboration, which have too often undermined confidence in public institutions. He further charged them to ensure the achievement of the priorities of the administration of His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR which included good governance, economic transformation and the strengthening of the rule of law among others.
He opined that “if we desire to collectively advance the administration of justice and improve service delivery, it is critical that we take into consideration the following five essential pillars in defining our 2026 Performance Management Cycle: First, we must commit to the delivery of quantifiable results, by moving beyond generalized aims towards Strategic Objectives defined by SMART targets; Secondly, there is a need for us to work towards deploying a unified performance dashboard designed to provide real-time data on agency mandates, case flows, and prosecutorial outcomes – this is to facilitate data-driven decision-making”.
“The third pillar involves improving inter-agency synergy and cooperation, recognizing that operating in isolation often compromises our collective effectiveness and efficiency; Fourthly, the need to prioritize investments in continuous professional development, the adoption of modern technology, and the enhancement of staff welfare to sustain a motivated and highly productive workforce; and Finally, we must maintain citizen-centric service delivery – where every policy and reform is focused on improving the lives of citizens”. Fagbemi further said.
Regarding specific objectives, he acknowledged the significant achievements made by stakeholders in the areas of improved access to justice and service delivery but also cautioned that there was still room for improvement. Beyond this, he charged them to cultivate a culture of integrity, urgency, innovation, accountability and proactive adherence to the highest standards of financial responsibility.
In her welcome remark, the Solicitor General of the Federation and Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Justice, Mrs. Beatrice Jedy-Agba OON mni, stated the overriding goal of the retreat was to “devise a roadmap with fine-tuned mechanisms for practical, measurable steps toward a more efficient system of justice administration, while remaining fully aligned with executive priorities”.
She maintained that the retreat would engage in frank conversations about how far they have come in delivering their respective mandates, and that the aspirations for 2026 would include outlining performance targets, identifying challenges, and exploring viable opportunities for improvement. She also informed that retreat would conclude with the renewal of the performance contracts.
She hoped that the ideas raised during the retreat would translate smoothly into clear, actionable steps, yielding fully implementable strategies and effective accountability frameworks. She added that decisions and commitments made in the justice sector would define the experience of millions in Nigeria and beyond.
Mrs. Madona Olatunji who represented the Permanent Secretary, Career Management Office, Office of the Head of Civil Service of the Federation in her presentation, revealed that Performance Management System (PMS) had been institutionalized in all the core Ministries out of which twenty-eight have fully automated their Performance Management System. She further revealed that the PMS was part of the pillars supporting the ongoing reforms of the Federal Civil Service as encapsulated in the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan 2021–2025 (FCSSIP25).
Concluding the opening session, the Director of Planning Research and Statistics in the Ministry, Mrs. Victoria Ojogbane explained that the Heads of Agencies were expected to brief the retreat on their 2026 Strategic Plan and also make presentations on other areas of their mandate that needed discussion with the Special Adviser to the President on Policy Coordination, Mrs. Hadiza Bala Usman, for possible inclusion in the Presidential Priorities.
Heads of Agencies under the supervision of the Federal Ministry of Justice, Directors at the Ministry’s Headquarters, Directors of Planning Research and Statistics of the Agencies, Deputy directors, other staff of the Ministry and journalists were in attendance.
Signed
Hauwa Bala
Head (Information and Public Relations)
11th February, 2026
