• Mauritania, Morocco sign deal to digitize justice systems
• Agreement includes training, infrastructure, and legal tech reforms
• Digital justice aims to boost access, transparency, and efficiency
  

Mauritania is stepping up efforts to digitize its justice system, signing a cooperation agreement with Morocco on Oct. 20. Under the deal, which covers the 2026-2027 period, Morocco’s Ministry of Justice will share its digital and institutional expertise with its Mauritanian counterpart.

According to Morocco’s Justice Ministry, the program aims to improve court administration and modernize Mauritania’s justice system through exchanges of expertise in digitalization, training, and institutional reform.

The partnership also covers the development of digital infrastructure, the use of electronic judicial services, continuous training for court staff, and the drafting of laws on new technologies in the justice system, the ministry said in a statement posted on Facebook.

Accelerating justice digitalization is a key objective of Mauritania’s National Justice Reform and Development Plan, adopted at a national conference in January 2023. The plan calls for an assessment to modernize the sector’s ICT infrastructure and the creation of online platforms for nationality applications, court websites, and judicial administration services to improve transparency and access.

The government has already digitized judicial records, which citizens can now request and obtain online since March 2025. Justice Minister Mohamed Mahmoud Ould Cheikh Abdoullah Ould Boya said the reform aims to make justice more accessible, speed up case handling, and improve transparency. He added that digitalization will gradually cover all judicial processes, including criminal and commercial cases, from filing to verdicts and appeals.

Morocco, whose experience is serving as a model, has also made justice digitalization a top priority. Speaking at the 18th Annual Conference of the African Prosecutors Association held in Angola on Oct. 15-18, Jamila Sedqi, Attorney General and Advisor to the President of the Public Prosecutor’s Office, said Morocco accelerated its efforts after the Covid-19 pandemic.

“Since then, Morocco has adopted an ambitious strategy to expand electronic procedures, streamline communications, and integrate digital tools across the judicial system, from filing complaints to executing decisions,” Sedqi said, as reported by Moroccan media Maghreb Arabe Presse.

She explained that the strategy rests on four pillars: expanding online access to justice for citizens and legal professionals; digitizing judicial processes to cut delays and improve record management; promoting remote hearings through videoconferencing; and sharing legal information via open-data platforms and online portals.

Earlier this month, the Justice Ministry issued an order creating a national online registry for property-related powers of attorney, expected to go live by April 2026. Other services already available include digital criminal records, nationality documents, online payment of traffic fines, case tracking, and online property auctions. Dedicated platforms also support legislative work on civil and criminal procedure reforms.

Morocco is also implementing a $9.03 million Judicial System Digital Transformation Support Project with the UNDP, running from 2022 to 2026. The project focuses on building digital governance, supporting the implementation of the national transformation strategy, and promoting best practices through regional and international knowledge sharing.

Isaac K. Kassouwi