Harnessing Alternative Dispute Resolution Mechanisms to Enhance Access to Justice in Wajir North Constituency

Abstract

Article 48 of the Constitution guarantees the right of access to justice to every person in Kenya. This includes the residents of the Wajir North Constituency in Wajir County in the North Eastern Region. In Kenya access to justice is perceptively limited to formal institutions that are Courts of Law. However, in this constituency, access to justice is restricted due to geographical factors, institutional limitations, demographic biases, cultural differences and economic factors.1 Other factors that may hinder access to justice are mode of delivery of legal services and the nature of Court proceedings, including procedural requirements and language used in Court. The constitution of Kenya, as a progressive instrument, came to remedy these injustices. However, Wajir County has not caught up to its counterparts located in areas that were categorized as highly productive areas by the colonial government. The literacy levels are still low across the county with constituencies averaging less than 20 per cent. The community in Wajir North lead a nomadic lifestyle. This therefore means that building infrastructure to access ADR mechanism may still be rendered inaccessible. To fully harness ADR, traditional dispute resolution mechanisms must be integrated to formal channels and mainstreamed.