Ukraine - Project and Programs

Canada-Ukraine Judicial Cooperation Project (CUJCP)

Duration: 4 years, approved in July 2006

The four-year $4 million CUJCP links high-level Ukrainian and Canadian counterparts in the judicial system, furthering cooperation between the two countries while providing analysis, technical support and modeling of judicial reforms through exposure to Canadian and international concepts and best practices.

The overall goal of the CUJCP is to promote the Rule of Law, democratic development and good governance in Ukraine through a competent and independent judiciary and effective and transparent courts. To achieve this goal, the CUJCP will aim to improve the quality of justice in Ukraine through such core values as impartiality in adjudication, judicial creativity and thoroughness, accessibility of the courts to the public and the efficiency of court administration.

The project aims to achieve better and more sustainable results by working at several senior levels within the Ukrainian judicial system, including the Supreme and Superior courts, the State Court Administration, the Academy of Judges and the Council of Judges.

The CUJCP will focus on three judicial assistance areas:

  • Accessibility to Justice - Improved access to justice and enhanced efficiency, fairness and transparency of court operations and predictability of the judicial process at three Model Courts;
  • Judicial Training - Enhanced capacity of the Academy of Judges of Ukraine and its regional branches to plan, design and deliver relevant judicial educational programs;
  • Transparency of Justice - Enhanced public awareness of the role of the judiciary and improved communication between the courts and the public
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Canada-Ukraine Judicial Reform Project (completed in 2002)

Duration: 6 years, completed in 2002

In October 1996, the Office of the Commissioner for Federal Judicial Affairs Canada (FJA) was designated by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) as the Canadian Executing Agency (CEA) for a 4-year $1.8 million judicial reform project with Ukraine. The main goal of this Project was to assist Ukraine with strengthening the notion of ‘judicial independence.' In June 2000, CIDA agreed to provide additional funding in the amount of $300,000 to extend the original project for a period of two years. This follow-up project sought to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the administrative capacity of Ukrainian courts and to further contribute to greater judicial independence.

The Project involved the participation of a number of Canadian organizations including the Canadian Judges Conference, the National Judicial Institute (NJI), the Association of Canadian Court Administrators (ACCA) and courts in Ontario, Alberta, Manitoba and Saskatchewan.

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Canada-Ukraine Policy Advice (sub-) Project: Institutional Development of the State Court Administration Agency of Ukraine

Duration: 14 months, completed in 2004

This 14-month project with a budget of $200,000 was funded by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) through the Policy Advice for Reform in Ukraine Project executed by the Canadian Bureau for International Education (CBIE).

The goal of the Project was to provide institution-building assistance to the newly created State Court Administration Agency of Ukraine (SCAAU) and the Academy of Judges of Ukraine, which operates under the aegis of SCAAU. Through this initiative the project provided policy advice to SCAAU on key organizational issues and assisted with the development of the personnel database of judges of Ukraine. The Project also assisted the Academy of Judges of Ukraine in the area of curricula development.