By Sheminah Nkhoma

Lilongwe, April 8, Mana: Minister of Justice Titus Mvalo says the nation needs a well drafted reformed laws that will address challenges such as corruption, accelerating service delivery and empowering communities.

The minister made the remarks on Tuesday in Lilongwe during the opening ceremony of Legislative Drafting Training which is being facilitated by the Chandler Institute of Justice (CIJ).

Mvalo said, the training will help address challenges that the ministry faces in addressing government bills and other law related issues.

“The training by ClJ is very timely, noting that we have been unable to send lawyers for refresher skills on law drafting due to understaffing; so this opportunity will keep the lawyers with enough information  on how they can draft laws to avoid controversies,” he said.

The Minister further said, laws are the foundation of the society as in every public or private sector they need laws to protect their policies.

“Poor drafted laws make it difficult for the courts to interpret: that is why we need to improve on governance and have proper legal frameworks,” said Mvalo.

Executive Director of CIJ, Ron Chari, said well drafted laws make it easy for government to function and easily translate policy issues.

He said, 30 government lawyers will be equipped with skills on how they can draft laws.

“Laws should not only be considered as a legal text but also be seen as a document that a common person must understand when translated to them,” he said.

Chari highlighted that most of the laws in the world are outdated and do not address the current challenges, and that, as lawyers, they are trying to interpret the laws into the present days.

CIJ is specialised in Model laws, advisory law reforms, legal training and legal knowledge products.