By Kemo Cham
Sierra Leone’s parliament on Thursday committed a proposed legislation that seeks to recognize the legal effect of electronic transactions, including electronic signatures.
“The Electronic Transactions Bill 2019”, which was committed to the Legislative Committee for consideration and further scrutiny after a brief debate in the well of parliament, provides a legal and regulatory framework for conducting transactions using electronic or related media, it also seeks to protect the rights of consumers and parties involved in a transaction, as well as their personal data.
Overall, the bill seeks to facilitate electronic commerce in the country.
The law, proposed by the Ministry of Information and Communication, will pave the way for the admissibility of electronic massages in evidence and it provides for the validity or enforceability of contracts executed in electronic forms.
If the law passes through, it means that lawyers, for the first time in Sierra Leone, can use electronic evidence in court. They can also print evidence from social media platforms in electronic form and use it as evidence in the court of law.
The government said the bill is part of efforts to reform how business is done by aligning the system to modern trend of technological development.
Deputy Minister of Information and Communication, Mamadi Gobeh-Kamara, who presented the bill to the House, explained that it is divided into six parts, notably the legal effect of electronic information and electronic transactions, validity of electronic transactions, consumer protection, and the validity of service providers.
If the law is passed, Sierra Leone will have joined the likes of Nigeria, Nepal, Tanzania and Uganda which have passed similar legislations.
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