The Judiciaries in Africa (JiA) project aims to further our understanding of judiciaries in Africa by collecting systematic comparative information with a focus on judicial independence, legitimacy and access to justice. The research aims to answer questions that are important to academics, policy makers and practitioners. Broadly speaking, the project seeks to answer three questions:

1. To  what extent are judiciaries independent from other branches of government, able to enforce the rule of law, and provide access to justice?

2. Why  some judiciaries do better or worse in fulfilling their mandates?

3. Which factors are facilitating or impeding institutional development of judiciaries, and thus the quality and health of multiparty democracy in Africa?