The Government of Canada announced an additional $3.6 million in funding to the ongoing Juvenile Justice Reform project. This project, which originally started in 2007, aims to establish a more effective and responsive juvenile justice system in Ukraine that is in line with international standards. It works with Ukrainian legislators, law enforcement agencies, and the court system to facilitate a shift away from incarcerating adolescents for relatively minor crimes and toward the greater application of Canadian approaches for crime prevention, probation, and rehabilitation within Ukraine’s framework for youth justice.
The project has three main components:
- A judicial training program to strengthen the capacity of Ukrainian judges and court officials to apply approaches for rehabilitation, crime prevention and other best practices in their handling of cases where youth are in conflict with the law;
- A legislative policy effort to facilitate ongoing reforms by incorporating international standards for children’s rights and restorative justice into the Ukrainian judicial system; and
- Regional pilot initiatives based on juvenile justice models used in Alberta and Ontario to demonstrate the advantages of new approaches and to establish a critical mass of compelling evidence that supports progressive policy change and institutional reform within Ukraine’s youth justice system.
In 2014, Ukraine was confirmed as a country of focus for the Government of Canada's international development efforts.
The goal of Canada's international development program in Ukraine is to improve economic opportunities for Ukrainians in a strengthened democracy. Canada worked with Ukraine to establish a central voter registry to improve election laws and to improve the capacity of the Central Electoral Commission of Ukraine to administer the electoral process. An independent judiciary and active opposition are vital components of an effective democracy, and Canada will continue to support Ukrainian efforts toward a free, democratic and prosperous society.
Canada is working with the Government of Ukraine to assist with the reforms needed to realize the country's full economic potential and build a sound public institutional and legal environment for closer integration with Europe.
Canada has increased its support for democracy and rule of law in Ukraine since 2013, in response to recommendations by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development, while continuing to support sustainable economic growth in Ukraine.
For more information on Canada’s programming in Ukraine, visit Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada’s website.
