ABSTRACT
The use of the internet, smartphones, social media and other forms of electronic communications are now ubiquitous across Africa. Courts are routinely faced with the question of the admissibility and probative value of different forms of electronic evidence and how best to implement laws governing the treatment of such evidence. This chapter critically analyses legislative and jurisprudential developments in Africa addressing the admissibility of electronic evidence and the weight to attach to it, with a focus on search and seizure of electronic evidence in the context of cybercrime. It shows that the African Union has provided some relevant guidance on both the requirements for admissibility and the weight to attach to such evidence. However, not all African states have domesticated such guidance. All the 55 African Union member states need to review their cybercrimes and procedural laws to ensure that electronic evidence is regulated adequately. This is critical to the protection of fair trial rights and to improving the administration criminal justice.
