By Shadrack Nyakoe
The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) recently held a strategic engagement meeting with a delegation from the State Department of Refugee Affairs, led by Commissioner John Burugu.
The meeting aimed to enhance interagency collaboration, with a focus on improving cooperation between the ODPP and the Department of Refugee Services (DRS).
Discussions centered on the growing challenges posed by the rising number of refugees in Kenya, particularly in the Kakuma and Dadaab camps.
One significant outcome of the meeting was the decision to establish a liaison between the ODPP and DRS to strengthen accountability and operational efficiency in managing refugee-related matters.
Jacinta Nyamosi, Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions for the Conventional and Related Crimes Department, discussed the interventions the ODPP has implemented in refugee-related court cases.
She noted that language barriers significantly hinder the progress of these cases and urged the DRS to address this issue, emphasizing the ODPP’s commitment to collaboration.
Commissioner Burugu highlighted that the majority of refugees entering Kenya come from the Horn of Africa and the Great Lakes Region.
To address this influx, he stressed the importance of a multi-stakeholder approach, involving local and regional security agencies.
The meeting concluded with an agreement to conduct joint training sessions for the ODPP, DRS, and other justice sector stakeholders.
These sessions will focus on the Refugee Act, clarify departmental roles, and outline procedures for handling refugee cases.
Additionally, the participants agreed to develop guidelines and initiate a sensitization program to assist prosecutors and judicial officers in managing such cases.
The ODPP was also tasked with identifying focal persons for specialized training, who will then train other stakeholders within the justice sector.