KINGSTON, Jamaica – A major automation and human resources development drive is underway at the Justice Training Institute (JTI) as part of efforts to develop the JTI into a regional hub for justice training.
“The Commonwealth Secretariat has requested that the Justice Institute be the regional centre for training programs. The Institute will continue to fashion its programs and courses to respond to the specific needs of the various Government Ministries, departments and agencies and private sector organizations,” Senator Nicholson informed at Friday’s (Nov 24) sitting of the Upper House.
He said negotiations were advanced for “the Institute to become the regional training centre for the Justice Enforcement Management System (JEMS) software that has been installed at the Supreme Court and which is to be rolled out in other courts on a phased basis”.
Senator Nicholson said that “automation of the various processes within the Ministry is a major focus of the Ministry and to this end the Institute has undertaken a drive to ensure that all employees and especially those in the courts are properly trained to meet the challenges inherent in their becoming proficient in the relevant information technology skills.”
He said information had become more important in light of the region’s place in a globalized justice sector and informed that, staff at the Institute visited the British Virgin Islands in August this year to conduct training for bailiffs.
“For the first time this year, students from other Caribbean countries have enrolled in the paralegal and court reporting courses at the Institute. During March of this year, the Institute partnered with the Commonwealth Secretariat to host a regional workshop here in Jamaica,” he said, adding that a follow up workshop was convened at the Institute last month.
“The Justice Training Institute has adopted a strategic posture by aligning its programs to the objectives of the Ministry of Justice, and as part of the program to improve the operations of the Resident Magistrates Courts, there is the ongoing training of court reporters by the Institute for improved efficiency in how matters are recorded during court proceedings,” he said.
Since August this year, some 22 persons have been trained in collaboration with HEART Trust/NTA. These persons will shortly take up positions in the Resident Magistrates Courts, Senator Nicholson said.
