President John Agyekum Kufuor said on Thursday that the establishment of law and order was gaining root by the strengthening of the relevant agencies and empowerment of the courts and other institutions that oversee civil liberties.

"The computerisation of the courts is in progress and there are plans to establish a Fast Track Court in each region to speed up the administration of justice", he said in his State of the Nation address to Parliament.

The President said a recruitment drive into the Police Service was in progress. This, he added, was aimed at increasing Police numbers by 4,000 within the next two years.

This would bring the strength of the service to about 19,000 although it would still be short of the 50,000 Police personnel that the nation of almost 20 million people should have.

President Kufuor said the transportation and equipment needs of the Service were being addressed and this year, some 600 vehicles with communication equipment had been provided.

He said the Police Service was being invigorated and a training programme was being redirected to induce a heightened sense of social responsibility among officers.

With the help of the Chinese government, a barracks building scheme is also underway to address their housing problem, which had long standing.

The President called for co-operation from all citizens to help the Police transform itself to serve the society well.

President Kufuor commended the Ghana Armed Forces for helping the Police to curb the menace of armed robbery and during national emergencies.

He said they had continued to bring honour to Ghana through their exemplary conduct in peacekeeping operations they had undertaken in various parts of the troubled world.

The President commended the Forces for the growing sense of professionalism adding, "I am happy to note that this is going hand in hand with a lot of physical regeneration as well."