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

这项研究的动机是需要解决全球普遍存在的“正义鸿沟”。据估计，全世界有15亿人(每5个人中就有一个)有他们无法解决的司法问题。在坦桑尼亚，这个问题被放大了。在衡量普通人负担得起的、可获得的和有效的司法解决方案方面，坦桑尼亚在全球排名第76位(世界正义项目，2020年)，妇女受到的影响不成比例(丹瑟，2015)。旨在解决这一诉诸司法危机的实际解决方案往往既昂贵又繁琐。在坦桑尼亚，律师助理、社区司法服务提供者和非正式纠纷解决方法在提供司法服务和解决纠纷方面发挥了关键作用，但仍有许多公民没有途径满足他们的司法需要。移动电话、互联网和计算机网络等信息和通信技术已在全球得到利用，以促进社会和经济发展，并正在成为促进国际发展的工具(ICT4D)。在坦桑尼亚，移动电话普及率(拥有移动电话的家庭)估计为全国86%，93%的坦桑尼亚人可以使用移动电话(Lotto，2018)。最近，坦桑尼亚的国际发展方案利用移动电话开展小额信贷、教育、营养和农业活动。利用信息和通信技术提供法律服务，特别是使用移动电话，为这一部门的变革提供了机会，创造了在各级司法服务提供中增加公民参与的机会，特别是对妇女而言。作为坦桑尼亚人口最多的城市和经济中心，达累斯萨拉姆(达累斯萨拉姆)是坦桑尼亚手机普及率最高的城市之一，也是本研究的重点(GSMA，2019年)。目前ICT4D使用的一个重大限制是，许多干预措施是由工程师在距离使用地点数千英里的地方构建的，与殖民时代后的机构关系相互关联，将控制和资本转移到外部参与者，使用需要持续维护和资金的工具来实现长期可持续变化或规模化效益(Linus，2020)。利用参与式设计过程与坦桑尼亚法律服务提供者合作建立数字司法服务工具，这项研究将批判性地审查共同为达累斯加州妇女制定有效和可持续的数字司法解决方案的情况。这项研究将通过开发一种低成本、可扩展的数字司法工具来弥合正义差距并支持妇女法律赋权，从而对该领域作出新的贡献；同时产生与发展信息和通信技术以促进可持续发展的参与性方法有关的学习。

This research is motivated by a need to address the 'justice gap' that is evident globally. It isestimated that 1.5 billion people worldwide (one in 5 people) have justice problems that theycannot solve . In Tanzania this problem is amplified. Tanzania is ranked 76/128 globally onmeasures of affordable, accessible and effective justice solutions for ordinary people (WorldJustice Project, 2020 ), with women being disproportionately affected (Dancer, 2015).Practical solutions directed at addressing this access to justice crisis are often costly andcumbersome. In Tanzania, paralegals, community justice providers and informal methods ofdispute resolution play a critical role in justice service delivery and dispute resolution butthere are still many citizens left without a pathway to address their justice needs.Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) such as mobile phones, internet andcomputer networks, have been utilised globally to improve social and economicdevelopment, 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). Recentinternational development programmes in Tanzania have leveraged mobile phones for microfinance, education, nutrition, and agriculture activities. The provision of legal services usingICT, particularly mobile phones, presents an opportunity to transform this sector, creatingopportunities 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 esSalaam (Dar) has one of the highest levels of mobile phone penetration in Tanzania and willbe the focus of this study (GSMA,2019).A significant limitation of the current use of ICT4D is that many of the interventions are builtby engineers thousands of miles away from the site of use, interlinked with postcolonialinstitutional relationships, diverting control and capital towards external actors, using toolsthat need ongoing maintenance and funding to achieve long-term sustainable change orbenefits at scale (Linus, 2020).This research is a response to these opportunities and limitations. Using a participatorydesign process to build a digital justice service tool in collaboration with Tanzanian legalservice providers, this study will critically examine the co-generation of an effective andsustainable digital justice solution for women in Dar.This research will make a novel contribution to this field by developing a low-cost, scalabledigital justice tool to bridge the justice gap and support women's legal empowerment; whilegenerating learning relating to participatory approaches for developing ICT for sustainabledevelopment.