President William Ruto has defended his administration’s engagement with the Judiciary, saying planned reforms and support for judges have strengthened the performance of Kenya’s justice system.
During Friday’s National Productivity and Performance Conference at the Kenya School of Government in Lower Kabete, Nairobi, Ruto said his government has upheld an independent Judiciary while improving its capacity through appointments and budgetary support.
Ruto said the Executive and the Kenyan Judiciary have been working together, stressing that his commitment was to cooperate with an independent judiciary.
He said one of his first moves after assuming office was to resolve long-delayed gaps in judicial appointments. “My first act as president was to appoint and swear in judges who had waited for some time,” he said.
Ruto said his administration also pledged to finance the Judiciary, even amid competing national demands. “I also undertook that I was going to, to the extent possible with competing interests, support the judiciary with budget,” he said.
Although he recognised calls for more resources, Ruto said the government has continued to provide consistent support. “I know I haven’t measured up to their full expectation, but we have kept pace,” he said.
He pointed to judicial recruitment over the past three years as a major step in strengthening the justice system. “In fact, in the last three years, the judiciary has hired, and I have appointed, 92 judges, the highest in Kenya’s history by one president,” he said.
According to Ruto, those reforms are already beginning to show results within the Judiciary. “And we have done so because we believe that it is the right thing to do,” he said.
He said better staffing has improved case management and shortened delays in court processes. “And as a result, we are beginning to see results,” he said.
Ruto highlighted gains in efficiency, noting a historic drop in the number of pending cases. “As I just said, for the first time, the judiciary reduced their caseload by almost a third,” he said.
The President said the Judiciary has also reached a key point in resolving matters, adding that it has disposed of more cases than were filed. “And have actually resolved more cases than were filed,” he said.
Ruto described the development as proof of steady improvement in judicial performance. “So I think we are making progress,” he said.
His comments come amid wider justice reforms, including the expansion of alternative dispute resolution. He has previously said court-annexed mediation has returned more than Sh52 billion to the economy and restored over 8,000 family relationships since 2016.
Ruto also said the Judiciary recorded a case clearance rate of 104 per cent last year, helping cut the backlog by nearly a third. He has called for continued investment in court systems, saying stronger judiciaries are central to stability and development.
The President has also argued that financing the Judiciary should be treated as a strategic national investment. “Funding our judiciaries is not an act of generosity. It is a strategic investment in stability and growth,” he said.
He has pledged to mobilise African leaders to back stronger, independent courts across the continent, alongside investment in judicial infrastructure, technology and training.