Vice President Aliu Mahama on Friday welcomed United States assistance to reform the judicial system saying, it would engender confidence and ensure speedy and fair administration of justice.

Vice President Mahama said this when Justice Ann Claire Williams of the United States Court of Appeals called on him at the Castle, Osu, to hold discussions on the issue.

Describing Ghana's criminal justice system as slow, Vice President Mahama said with its advancement and rich experiences, the US could help to transform the sector to ensure that cases were heard within reasonable time.

"We believe in the rule of law as the foundation for socio-economic development and we know that a good legal system would strengthen that. It will also build investor confidence and facilitate the government's vision to achieve a Golden Age of Business," he said.

The Vice President assured the US that the government would honour its responsibility to make the reforms successful.

Justice Williams, who is based in Chicago, Illinois, said her country's assistance was aimed at making people have faith in the judicial system and ensuring that the poor and the underprivileged had better representation when the need arose.

She said, enforcing the rule of law depended largely on a credible judicial system.

"We have a lot of experiences, ideas and resources to offer to enrich the reforms, but we do not want to make Ghana a small US. We, therefore, hope that our contributions would be tailored to suit your needs," she said.

Justice Williams described Ghana as a beacon of hope for Africa, saying the US wanted to push Ghana's socio-economic development so that she would serve as a model for other countries.

She said she had held fruitful discussions with the Attorney-General, the Chief Justice, Members of the Legal Reform Committee and the Bench, who, she noted, were very impressive.

She was accompanied by Mr Robert F.Bennet, Consul-General of Ghana, Chicago.