The United States Government, through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), is continuing efforts to help governments in the region elevate their juvenile justice sectors to international standards.

As part of the USD $5.8 million USAID-funded OECS Juvenile Justice Reform Project (JJRP), four juvenile justice officials from the Commonwealth of Dominica recently participated in a study tour in Missouri, USA. This follows a similar tour by juvenile justice officials from Grenada.

The study tours are aimed at sensitizing key personnel to juvenile justice-related operations and practices in select jurisdictions in the United States. Expected to benefit the OECS as a whole, they provide practitioners with opportunities to interface with counterparts while learning strategies and best practices.

Headed by Magistrate Gloria Septra Augustus, the Dominican officials visited USAID’s Bridgetown offices where they met with Acting Mission Director, Ted Lawrence. The group also includes: Coordinator of Dominica’s Child Abuse Prevention Unit, Jemma Azille-Lewis; Welfare Officer, Delia Giddings-Stedman; and Director of the Operation Youth Quake Juvenile facility, Lennox Abraham.

“Study tours like this provide a great opportunity for exchange of experience between professionals in the United States and those in the Caribbean. We are really excited about the possibilities. I think that the persons that are selected are extremely committed to advancing the reforms in the juvenile justice sector and in Dominica. We are optimistic that this exchange will yield great things for Dominica and for the rest of the region,” Mr. Lawrence stated.

Making the point that juvenile justice goes beyond the courts of law, Magistrate Augustus stated: “There are several players who interact with juveniles on a daily basis including the police, social welfare, the courts, schools, and homes. So that’s why the group that is going is a team rather than one person.”

The practitioners cited various challenges that plague Dominica’s Juvenile Justice sector, including: archaic legislation; the absence of a dedicated and well-structured probation service; the lack of a separate juvenile penal facility; limited human and technical capacity; inadequate role models for youth; limited opportunities; broken families; and the lack of political will.

Commending USAID for its commitment to juvenile justice reform, Magistrate Augustus maintained: “USAID has been doing quite a lot. They have been assisting us and they have opened our eyes to a lot of things. We need to continue, but one person alone cannot do it.”

While on tour, the team is expected to visit Missouri’s Thirteenth Circuit Court as well as select Juvenile and Family Services facilities in the Columbia, Missouri area, including the Robert L. Perry Juvenile Justice Centre and the Rainbow House Children’s Emergency Shelter.