HiiL and the Open Government Partnership (OGP) explore the role of Justice as a foundation for a more open government, transforming how the government serves its citizens and leading to more stable, reliable governance.
Trust in the government is falling globally. The 2025 UN World Social Report shows that more than half of the world’s population has little or no trust in their governments. That’s not just a headline; it’s a daily reality. When trust collapses, societies fracture. People disengage from politics, communities lose cohesion, and governments struggle to deliver on their promises. The signs are everywhere. In 2025 alone, more than 160 protests erupted across 75 countries. People feel ignored as they battle rising insecurity, financial pressures, and polarisation. Many struggle to find affordable housing, keep jobs, and feel safe in their neighbourhoods. Families want support to resolve conflicts and preserve key relationships. Communities are demanding fair access to land and resources. When these needs go unmet, frustration boils over and the cycle of mistrust deepens.
A functioning justice system is a strong antidote to this crisis of trust. When it resolves problems quickly, affordably, and fairly, it gives people the confidence that institutions can deliver. Yet too often, justice systems are seen as the domain of lawyers, regulations, and rigid procedures, detached from the daily realities of people’s lives. Instead of providing fairness, they serve the interests of a few. HiiL’s Justice Needs and Satisfaction (JNS) surveys, spanning 23 countries (including 12 OGP member countries), show that only 4 in 10 people who face a legal problem receive a solution they find fair or satisfactory.
People-centred justice offers a way forward. It starts with people’s everyday problems—disputes with neighbours, access to land, family conflicts, crime—and designs solutions that are accessible, fair, and effective. Justice becomes not just a service, but a foundation for a more open government, transforming how the government serves its citizens and leading to more stable, reliable governance. This is why the Open Gov Challenge has prioritized people-centred justice for members of the OGP that are considering more ambitious reforms in their justice sector.
The connection between justice and open government is vital. Open government is built on transparency, participation, and accountability. These principles are empty if people do not know where to go to protect their rights, if they cannot rely on getting their disputes resolved in a satisfactory way, or if they have no way to hold institutions accountable for any wrongdoing. People-centred justice brings these principles to life. It allows individuals and communities to help shape the rules and processes that govern them. It makes institutions more responsive to their citizens by designing legal processes around the outcomes people most value, whether that is preserving important relationships, securing housing, protecting livelihoods, or ensuring safety. And when institutions do not live up to their promises or responsibilities, people-centred justice means people can access processes or mechanisms to address these failures.
Moving from vision to practice requires clear frameworks. We now have these in place. The 2019 Hague Declaration on Equal Access to Justice for All by 2030 laid the foundation by calling for systems that are designed around people and their needs. Building on this, the 2023 OECD Recommendation on People-Centred Justice sets out a comprehensive framework of five pillars that can help governments transform justice from a bureaucratic service into a practical, evidence-based roadmap.
The foundation for a people-centred justice system is data. This involves listening to people’s legal experiences, identifying needs for fair resolution, and using this knowledge for reform. Legal Needs Surveys are vital for gathering this data. HiiL’s JNS surveys are a key example, having collected data from over 150,000 people in countries like Colombia, Tunisia, and Bangladesh. JNS surveys provides deep insights into the legal problems people face, the resolution steps they take, and their effectiveness. These detailed insights help governments prioritize problems, set measurable goals, monitor progress, and establish accountability by tracking improved problem resolution over time.
In Uganda, for example, these surveys played a big role in reshaping national justice reform. When the 2016 survey revealed that fewer than 5% of disputes reached courts—and that lawyers were involved in less than 1% of cases—it became clear that most people relied on informal systems. In response, Uganda’s Alternative Justice Systems (AJS) Strategy was developed, to develop an overarching legal framework recognising and integrating traditional and community-based resolution into the formal justice system. In Honduras, findings from a JNS survey focused on the justice needs of internally displaced persons are used in judicial training programmes, helping judges better understand the links between displacement and access to justice.
Designing services around people is another crucial step. Traditionally, justice reform has focused heavily on reforming laws, rules, and procedures. Yet research—like the OECD Drivers of Trust in Public Institutions Survey—consistently shows that citizens’ trust in government is shaped in a large part by their everyday interactions with institutions. To restore trust, justice services must be built around people’s needs, capabilities, and preferences. HiiL’s Justice Innovation Labs embodies this principle.They bring together diverse participants—including judges, lawyers, government officials, community organizers and leaders, business owners, and citizens—to co-create solutions to everyday justice problems.
In Ogun State, Nigeria, a Lab tackled domestic violence, an underreported issue affecting roughly 15,000 people annually, by creating Ibi Isadi (meaning “a place of refuge” in Yoruba). This integrated service connects survivors to legal information, advice, and referrals at primary health centers or online and equips frontline workers with the tools and training necessary for coordinated, compassionate responses. When people and communities are involved in designing solutions, they are more likely to use and trust them. In Tunisia, the 2025 Justice Needs and Satisfaction Survey on Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) revealed that while over 60% of small businesses faced legal problems, very few accessed courts or legal services. In response, the People-Centred Justice for MSMEs programme was launched to co-design accessible dispute resolution mechanisms and integrate simplified formalization support into the justice journey.
A people-centred justice system requires continuous monitoring and evaluation to ensure that it remains responsive to citizens’ needs, thereby embedding accountability into its design. Niger provides a compelling example. In July 2025, the government convened the first meeting of the Monitoring Committee to implement the National Strategy for People-Centred Justice. Bringing together ministries, traditional leaders, civil society, and development partners, the committee adopted a roadmap with clear timelines, coordination mechanisms, and public reporting. This kind of inclusive oversight strengthens transparency, making citizens active participants rather than passive recipients.
When governments listen to citizens, design services around their needs, and measure outcomes, trust can be rebuilt. Communities thrive, democracy is strengthened, and the promise of open government becomes real. With such potential impact on governance, justice cannot be something distant and procedural. It must be felt in everyday life, in the resolution of the problems that matter most to people. By putting citizens at the centre, governments can ensure that justice works for everyone, every day.
Written by Zainab Malik (Senior Policy and Advocacy Advisor, HiiL) and Adna Karamehic-Oates (Lead, Policy and Partnerships, OGP)
