Senegal digitizes civil status services to resolve birth certificate issues

Senegal is undergoing a significant modernization of its civil status services to address widespread issues with birth certificates. According to Matar Ndao, Director General of the Agence nationale de l'état civil (ANEC), approximately 77% of the country's 629 civil status centers have been integrated into the digital modernization process, with over 15.3 million records already digitized.

The transition from paper to digital systems aims to resolve long-standing problems such as transcription errors, damaged registers, and missing documents. The lack of proper documentation has had severe consequences for citizens; for instance, in 2024, hundreds of thousands of preschool and elementary students lacked birth certificates, and thousands of candidates were unable to sit for national exams like the CFEE and BFEM due to missing civil status records.

To facilitate access, the ‘Sama État civil’ platform allows citizens to request birth, marriage, and death certificates remotely. Authorities recommend that citizens request a ‘copie littérale’ (literal copy) to verify that names, dates, and parental information match other official documents like passports or identity cards, as discrepancies can block essential administrative procedures such as renewing biometric ID cards or traveling.