The use of low-cost legal technology to enhance access to justice for women in Tanzania

This research is motivated by a need to address the 'justice gap' that is evident globally. It is estimated that 1.5 billion people worldwide (one in 5 people) have justice problems that they cannot solve . In Tanzania this problem is amplified. Tanzania is ranked 76/128 globally on measures of affordable, accessible and effective justice solutions for ordinary people (World

Justice Project, 2020 ), with women being disproportionately affected (Dancer, 2015). Practical solutions directed at addressing this access to justice crisis are often costly and cumbersome. In Tanzania, paralegals, community justice providers and informal methods of dispute resolution play a critical role in justice service delivery and dispute resolution but

there are still many citizens left without a pathway to address their justice needs. Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) such as mobile phones, internet and computer networks, have been utilised globally to improve social and economic development, and are emerging as tools for international development (ICT4D). In Tanzania,

mobile phone penetration (households with mobile phone ownership) is estimated at 86% countrywide with 93% of Tanzanians having access to a mobile phone (Lotto,2018). Recent international development programmes in Tanzania have leveraged mobile phones for micro finance, education, nutrition, and agriculture activities. The provision of legal services using

ICT, particularly mobile phones, presents an opportunity to transform this sector, creating opportunities for increased citizen engagement across all levels of justice service delivery, particularly for women. As the most populous city in Tanzania, and an economic hub, Dar es Salaam (Dar) has one of the highest levels of mobile phone penetration in Tanzania and will

be the focus of this study (GSMA,2019). A significant limitation of the current use of ICT4D is that many of the interventions are built by engineers thousands of miles away from the site of use, interlinked with postcolonial institutional relationships, diverting control and capital towards external actors, using tools

that need ongoing maintenance and funding to achieve long-term sustainable change or benefits at scale (Linus, 2020). This research is a response to these opportunities and limitations. Using a participatory design process to build a digital justice service tool in collaboration with Tanzanian legal

service providers, this study will critically examine the co-generation of an effective and sustainable digital justice solution for women in Dar. This research will make a novel contribution to this field by developing a low-cost, scalable digital justice tool to bridge the justice gap and support women's legal empowerment; while

generating learning relating to participatory approaches for developing ICT for sustainable development.