Justice and home affairs
Norwegian organisations and the Council of Europe play a vital role as donor
programme partners, they advise and assist beneficiaries on how to meet international standards, bring expertise and provide exchange programmes.
The Directorate of Norwegian Correctional Service (KDI) is a donor programme
partner in Romania, Lithuania, Latvia and Poland. In addition, the Directorate cooperates with the Czech Republic and Bulgaria, where the Council of Europe acts as the lead programme partner. We asked the Director of KDI, Kim Ekhaugen, about the exchange of best practice.
In your experience, how easy is it to transfer the Norwegian practice to beneficiary countries?
The transfer of best practice from Norway has been welcomed in the beneficiary countries and 14 partnership projects are being implemented. I would like to emphasise that I see a lot of enthusiasm for change. People are really interested in creating a better future for inmates and staff.
What are the specific challenges that the beneficiary countries face?
Many face serious problems in particular with regard to overcrowding.
Is there a particular project where your involvement has made a real difference?
In Latvia, they are building their first prison unit for addicted inmates. As in most countries, a high percentage of inmates in Latvia are addicted to drugs or alcohol and this is a big problem in prisons. In Lithuania, they are in the process of opening four halfway houses, which will give some of the inmates a completely new way of serving their sentence.
By living in a halfway house, they will have to learn basic life-skills and hopefully leave prison for crime-free futures.
The Council of Europe (CoE) is a donor programme partner in five programmes in the fields of judicial capacity building and correctional services. We spoke to Head of the Council’s Justice Capacity Building Unit, Natalia Voutova, about their cooperation.
How does the Council of Europe’s involvement contribute to this area?
The CoE brings over 25 years of experience in managing joint projects; we know how to make sure projects are viable, efficient and results-oriented. Norway Grants are vitally important in helping countries meet international standards and tackle weaknesses in their judicial systems.
What are the specific challenges that the beneficiary countries face?
This depends on the country as there is an ongoing process of reform in many of the countries. The challenge is to capture and understand what the issues are. Through working with these countries over the last 20 years, we know how to tailor projects to the countries’ needs.
Do you think the funding will make a lasting difference?
From the very outset, we have thought about the sustainability of our work, this is one of the ‘golden rules’
for us, we don’t want a short term win, we want to make a long term difference. Norway’s funding in this area is starting to make a real difference. Our most advanced projects, in terms of implementation, are in Bulgaria. We have definitely achieved results; the Roma minority has much better access to justice.
The Norwegian National Police Directorate (POD) is involved as a donor programme partner in four programmes in Bulgaria, Lithuania and Romania. Two of these are under the programme area concerning Schengen and Cross-Border Crime. We asked Assistant Chief of Police in the International Section, Eva Lynghjem, about her involvement.
How has POD benefitted from its involvement in this programme area?
It is of great value to be able to learn from each other’s experience in order to fight organised and cross-border crime. The programmes allow us to focus on the wider picture and not just those that emerge on a case-by-case basis through regular criminal investigations, or through organisations such as Interpol and Europol. Bilateral cooperation is necessary to fight cross-border and organised crime.
Have you learned anything from the experience that you’ve found useful in Norway?
Different units in our Police Service have had the chance to cooperate with similar units in the beneficiary countries in order to learn more about their police system. This gives us a better understanding of crime that is committed in Norway.
Is there a particular project where your involvement has made a real difference?
Norwegian and Bulgarian police have a joint project, sharing best practice in the use of different Schengen information cooperation tools, such as SIRENE. Norway has been using these tools since 2001 and has a great deal of experience in their use. We are sharing this expertise with our Bulgarian counterparts.
The Norwegian Courts Administration (NCA) is a donor programme partner in programmes for judicial capacity building and cooperation in Lithuania, Poland and Romania. We asked Head of International Secretariat, Audun Hognes Berg, about the NCA’s cooperation.
In your experience, how easy is it to transfer the Norwegian practice to beneficiary countries?
We have to be cautious when assessing which solutions or practices to propose. Factors like societal and judicial culture must be considered when selecting best practice.
What are the specific challenges that the beneficiary countries face?
Most countries are struggling to combat backlogs and excessive case-processing times, especially with reduced budgets. This is a challenging environment for reforms.
What do you think is the main strength of Norwegian practice?
The Norwegian judicial system is one of the best-functioning in Europe. This relates, among other things, to the timeliness of our decisions. We are also one of the
‘cheapest’ judiciaries in terms of costs.
Do you think the funding will make a lasting difference to improving the judicial system?
It is hard to predict the long term effects but I am confident that the funding and exchange of experience will improve the judicial systems of beneficiary countries.
By way of example, in Romania we have been involved in a project concerning access to justice. A study was carried out to identify barriers faced by the Roma and other vulnerable groups. Romania will now create a number of centres to help the Roma population and other vulnerable groups in seeking legal advice. These could make a real difference.