The fresh graduates from the Institute of Legal Practice and Development (ILDP) could not have come at a better time, given the critical role they are going to play in the implementation of the judicial reforms the country has embarked on for the last decade.

In the aftermath of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, the judiciary had arguably the heaviest task of dispensing justice for the innocent people killed in the 100-day carnage.

With this heavy task at hand, there was a serious shortage of human resource. Like in other sectors, most jurists had either been killed while others participated in the Genocide, and had fled or ended up in prisons to answer the charges.

One of the major priorities that the reforms addressed was to build the capacity of legal practitioners to take on these challenges.

The reforms also focused on the rolling out of the requisite infrastructure, which has since been achieved, and what remains is a competent workforce to complete the puzzle
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With the ILPD now showing results, the government will no longer have to spend the resources training practitioners in foreign countries.

Legal professionals should also take advantage of this institute in their midst to develop their skills, because regional integration will require them to be competitive beyond the Rwandan market. 

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