Sharon Van Pelt is the former lead for Chemonics’ Democracy and Governance Practice.
Ukraine’s judicial system has long suffered from corruption, political interference, lack of transparency, and ineffectiveness in the administration of justice. To provide Ukrainian citizens with clearer, more effective access to judicial services, the USAID Nove Pravosuddya Justice Sector Reform Program (New Justice Program) created conditions for an independent, accountable, transparent, and effective justice system. This…
Over the last decade, multiple government institutions have implemented reforms to increase transparency and accountability. The USAID Changes for Justice (C4J) project worked with Indonesia’s Supreme Court and Attorney General’s Office to sustain and deepen reforms within the justice sector. CJ4 focused on reforms that improve management, transparency, and accountability processes. Additionally, CJ4 dedicated resources…
In 2012, the government of Colombia and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) embarked on a peace process, which concluded successfully in 2016 and helped end fifty years of violent conflict. Since signing the peace agreement, the government has had to address the key challenge of ensuring that citizens in conflict-affected regions have access…
Nataliya Petrova, deputy chief of party with the USAID Justice for All Activity, is a lawyer, advocate, and media expert with 30 years of experience in legal representation, judicial training, legislative drafting and analysis, public policy, advocacy, and rule of law promotion in Ukraine. She has more than 20 years of experience in an international…
Executive Vice President Christopher Scott has more than 20 years of experience managing international development projects. Christopher currently oversees Chemonics’ global health and supply chain portfolio. In that capacity, he leads efforts to implement sustainable supply chains, improve health service delivery, and scale up innovative approaches in developing country environments. Previously, he served as senior vice president…
David Vaughn is an attorney with more than 20 years of experience in designing, implementing, and evaluating legal and judicial reform projects throughout Europe and Eurasia, Africa, and Latin America. He acted as rule of law advisor for the American Bar Association Central Europe and Eurasian Law Initiative (ABA/CEELI) in Kazakhstan, helping to establish a…
Why is inclusion important for development in the Dominican Republic? Inclusion means broader participation and deeper protections for subgroups and cultures represented in Dominican society, which strengthens their individual and collective participation in democratic processes. When diverse and intercultural perspectives are taken into account, public policies better reflect the protections of modern democratic values. The…
The Dominican Republic has one of the highest crime rates in the Caribbean. In your view, what is the most pressing challenge facing the country’s criminal justice system? The essence of the problem is our low prosecution rate. As you say, the Dominican Republic is the fourth most crime-prone country in the Caribbean. Over the…
USAID’s Changes for Justice Project (C4J) consisted of three components within Indonesia: 1) sustaining and broadening reforms in the Supreme Court; 2) sustaining and broadening reforms in the Attorney General’s Office; and 3) special initiatives, which entail the installation of public information desks, creation of Version 1 of a new case tracking system (CTS) in…
I once commented to a caseflow management trainer that caseflow management is “as much art as science.” He replied that it is actually “much more art” than science. My work on rule of law projects has led me to the same conclusion. Democracy and governance (D&G) programs are dynamic. Each program begins with a clear…