The Minister of Gender and Family Promotion (MIGEPROF), Dr. Jeanne d’ Arc Mujawamariya, Thursday commended the Legal Aid Week initiative, a seven-day programme where 618 juveniles in prisons throughout the country will be accorded legal assistance.

The minister said that such a programme is a major effort towards realization of the children’s rights and a strategic plan that aims at family promotion.

"We appreciate this development as it will solve problems for our children who live in conflict with the law and at the same time it gives an opportunity to other vulnerable people who initially could not afford lawyers for legal assistance.”

"In case any data is needed to make this week’s programmes a success, our ministry will be ready to provide it,” Mujawamariya pledged.

According to the Minister of Justice, Tharcisse Karugarama, the process of the hearings is steadily progressing in various districts of Huye, Gatsibo and other parts in the Western Province.

"There are no available statistics of how many hearings have been done, however activities are in the take off stage in some districts as we continue to move to other districts as well.”

The legal aid week was officially launched Monday in a bid to increase access to legal services for the most vulnerable people in society.

Officials say that some of the activities that will be carried out during this period include dissemination of legal aid on issues faced on a day-to-day basis and sensitization of people on the availability of legal aid and services among others.

The seven-day programme is supported by the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) among international organizations.

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