Senegal’s journey to digitalize its justice system is moving from vision to reality. On July 16, members of the UN Country Team’s Digital Transformation Group toured the new mini data center and microwave antenna linking the Pikine–Guédiawaye courthouse to Dakar—key infrastructure for the country’s first e-justice platform.
Funded by the Joint SDG Fund and implemented by four UN agencies—ITU, UNDP, UNOPS and UN Women, under the leadership of the UN Resident Coordinator in Senegal—the pilot aims to go live in Guédiawaye as early as September. By October, when courts reopen after the judicial break, the system could be rolled out across all Dakar jurisdictions, allowing citizens to request judicial documents, track cases, and eventually pay fees electronically—without having to wait in crowded courthouse lines.
“Once the judicial platform reaches cruising speed, Senegalese people will be able to request essential documents from home,” explained Ousseynou Gueye, Director of Dematerialization and Automation at the Ministry of Justice. “This is precisely what President Bassirou Diomaye Faye means by dematerialization of judicial procedures.”
The Pikine–Guédiawaye court has already been operating the platform on its internal computers, with technicians digitising case files and training staff during the August recess. “The major challenge is to reduce the time taken by the courts through this digitalization,” noted Mr. Gueye. “By September, they will have a fully operational tool.”
An SDG Fund grant provided Tier III equipment for the data center hosting judicial information from Pikine–Guédiawaye and Dakar, a backup site, antennas to connect the two, and essential hardware like scanners, computers and printers to enable a near paperless operation. The grant also supports software development for courthouses and “law shops,” training, and public outreach to ensure citizens—especially women and youth—understand how to access and use the service.
Each UN agency is contributing its expertise. UNDP provided data center hardware and equipment, building on earlier justice support programs. ITU is ensuring the network design and application development align with Senegal’s digital transformation roadmap. UNOPS is strengthening justice centers with advanced IT equipment and optimized connectivity. UN Women is equipping justice centers and training judicial actors, ensuring the platform responds to the needs of women and youth.
“Digital transformation is a catalyst for achieving the 17 Sustainable Development Goals,” said Ali Drissa Badiel, ITU Area Representative for West Africa and Chair of the Digital Transformation Group. “If we prove the effectiveness of e-justice here, we will be able to mobilize the additional resources needed to expand the service throughout Senegal.”
With the pilot nearly finalized, the government and partners see a model that could extend across Senegal’s 13 regions. The potential benefits are clear: shorter processing times, reduced courthouse congestion, and greater access to justice for all.
As Mr. Gueye concluded: “We will capitalize on this pilot to cover the rest of the territory; what we need now are the resources to make it happen.”
Originally published by United Nations Information Centre, Dakar, Senegal.
Note:
All joint programmes of the Joint SDG Fund are led by UN Resident Coordinators and implemented by the agencies, funds and programmes of the United Nations development system. With sincere appreciation for the contributions from the European Union and Governments of Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Monaco, The Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and our private sector funding partners, for a transformative movement towards achieving the SDGs by 2030.
