Delegates attend the workshop. — Photos courtesy of the Department of Law Dissemination, Education and Legal Aid

QUẢNG NINH — Amid the ongoing Industrial Revolution 4.0 and national digital transformation, Việt Nam is gradually realising the goal of social equity and protecting the legitimate rights of all citizens, especially the poor and vulnerable groups.

The legal aid mobile application – an activity implemented within the framework of the project 'Enhancing legal aid for the poor and vulnerable groups' funded by the World Bank through the Japan Social Development Fund - is seen as one such positive initiative.

It promises to be a stepping stone in the process of digitising access to free legal aid services, bringing justice closer to those in need of legal assistance.

Tô Thị Thu Hà, deputy director of the Department of Law Dissemination, Education and Legal Aid, chairs the workshop.

A workshop was recently organised by the Department of Law Dissemination, Education and Legal Aid (now called Department in short) under the Ministry of Justice in the northern province of Quảng Ninh to gather feedback on developing a legal aid application on mobile phones, aiming to provide an additional tool to support access to legal aid for vulnerable people.

The event was attended by delegates from State legal aid centres including legal aid officers, information technology (IT) staff and some collaborators from different provinces such as Quảng Ninh, Lạng Sơn, Lào Cai, Lai Châu, Vĩnh Long, Phú Thọ, Hưng Yên and Bắc Ninh.

This is a follow-up to the initial workshop held in the central city of Huế in early this month.

In her opening remarks, Tô Thị Thu Hà, deputy director of the department, emphasised the importance of digital transformation in legal aid.

She said this is not just a trend, but also an urgent requirement to enhance effectiveness and efficiency, ensure equal access opportunities to state legal aid services and maximise the protection of people's rights, especially vulnerable groups.

This mobile application is not just a reference tool but a digital bridge to bring free legal services to people in remote and difficult-to-access areas where direct access faces many obstacles.

The core objective of the application is to provide a comprehensive access tool that allows users to search for news and legal documents related to legal aid, and to access, receive and process legal aid requests from the public.

This helps them quickly access and timely resolve legal aid needs, thereby improving the quality and prompt delivery of free services.

The application will be piloted in two provinces, Điện Biên and Lào Cai.

After the pilot phase, the app quality and effectiveness will be assessed so that its implementation expansion to other provinces and cities if suitable and feasible will be considered.

Nguyễn Ngọc Quang, from the UPNEXT Technology Joint Stock Company, speaks at the event.

At the workshop, IT experts from the UPNEXT Technology Joint Stock Company presented the basic research findings on the necessity and feasibility of developing the app, including technical solutions, technology used and key features.

Delegates were able to directly experience the trial version, gaining a full and concrete understanding of the app in practice.

The research content and trial version have been promptly refined in collaboration with the department, based on feedback from delegates at the first workshop held in Huế City.

Representatives discuss the new app's features during the event.

Delegates, including legal aid officers and IT staff from legal aid centres, expressed their joy at, and highly appreciated, the app's practicality and usefulness.

They confirmed that this app was the digital key to breaking down psychological, geographical and economic barriers, enabling vulnerable groups to truly access justice.

Delegates especially emphasised their hope that the application will soon be deeply connected with the Legal Aid Information System being developed by the department, creating a synchronised and efficient data network.

The app, along with features that connect to specialised databases for beneficiary verification, will help shorten administrative procedures.

Delegates share opinions at the workshop.

Speakers also proposed adding functions to better accommodate diverse users, particularly special legal aid beneficiaries such as the elderly and persons with disabilities, who need the most support.

These features must ensure authenticity and personal information security.

Delegates expressed the wish for the application to be completed soon with official versions available on CH Play (Android) and App Store (iOS), enabling both citizens and legal aid providers to experience the application fully and seamlessly.

An overview of the event.

Concluding the workshop, Deputy Director Hà reaffirmed the commitment of the central legal aid authority.

“The Department will closely cooperate with the UPNEXT Technology Joint Stock Company to finalise the application based on the maximum incorporation of feedback from delegates,” she said.

“The ultimate goal is for people, especially legal aid beneficiaries, to access free services as easily and quickly as possible, laying the foundation for new advances in applying information technology and digital transformation in legal aid to strive for the goal of ‘leaving no one behind in accessing the law and legal aid.” — VNS