ANTALYA 

As forensic science advances across Africa, leaders from Somalia and The Gambia see artificial intelligence (AI) as a potential “key” game-changer, though progress remains heavily reliant on training, resources and international support.

“In terms of AI, it is a new era in Somalia,” said Col. Muhidin Ahmed Osman, head of the Police Criminal Investigations, highlighting that the technology enables facial recognition from video footage and helps organize evidence collected in investigations. Though still in its early stages, AI is already assisting investigators by making it “easier” and “faster” to conduct and advance their work.

Muhidin Osman shared those insights with Anadolu at the 20th International Forensic Medicine Days in the Turkish resort city of Antalya, which brought together nearly 800 experts from 27 countries to examine the advancements AI is poised to bring to forensic science, with African nations among participants.

Somalia’s forensic journey began in 2016, when the country built its first forensic laboratory and relied entirely on manual investigations.

“Since that, we structured our forensic lab in Somalia, then we trained our officers in different departments or units. One of them is digital forensics, the other one is fingerprint,” as well as plastic and DNA samples, said Osman.

Despite the advances, AI use in Somalia remains limited to the physical identification of suspects, and the country still lacks in-house DNA analysis capacity. Samples are collected and sent to partner laboratories in South Africa for processing. Somalia also shares biometric data with the neighboring states of Kenya, Ethiopia, South Africa and Uganda, enabling cross-border tracking.

Osman emphasized the transformative potential of AI. “If we initiate such kind of artificial intelligence in our forensic lab, everything will be done faster … it will change our day-to-day,” he said, stressing that he is confident that even the suspect will be easier to identify and trace, including movements and crimes they have committed.

He added that Somalia is actively seeking AI tools to integrate into its future investigative workflow.

Foreign support has been crucial to the development of Somalia’s forensic technology capabilities.

Osman noted that the US provides significant backing, embedding experts and mentors within the country’s forensic laboratory. Collaboration also extends to the FBI, the African Union, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, the European Union and Interpol. US assistance at the lab supports the analysis of explosives in terrorism investigations, while digital evidence is sometimes sent abroad for processing, underscoring the vital role of international partnerships in strengthening Somalia’s forensic infrastructure.

'AI is the way for the new world ... to get the dream come true’

In The Gambia, Fa Kebba Darboe, head of the country’s forensic medicine institution, spoke candidly about the current state of forensic capabilities. “Currently, we are not yet at the level of AI. We are basically manual steel. However, … AI is in the pipeline, it is in the thinking, but not yet actively in use,” he said.

Despite the limitations, Darboe acknowledged AI’s transformative potential in crime-fighting. “It (AI) will be a key player,” he stressed.

“We have the interest in advancing our DNA lab and, of course, developing into forensic ballistic examinations and questioned documents. Currently, we are constrained with DNA,” Darboe explained. “We want to advance in the area of sophisticated DNA examination,” he added, pointing out that AI use would have made DNA analysis much easier.

Darboe said that following the fall of Yahya Jammeh's regime in 2017, there was an urgent need to provide redress to the families of missing persons. The Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission was established, and officers with limited skills assisted in its work. The main challenge was the “identification of victims,” which relied entirely on manual methods, primarily perpetrators’ confessions.

Since most cases involved skeletal remains, identifications were often speculative. Darboe emphasized that expertise in skeletal analysis and digital identification would have been far more effective, as manual methods alone were insufficient for DNA analysis.

On the regional front, The Gambia is leveraging partnerships through Senegal, Ghana and the West African Network of Forensic Officers (WAFNET). “Where you lack the ability to examine … you sought for the cooperation of the other,” Darboe noted, highlighting the importance of cross-border collaboration while AI and technological upgrades are developed.

The lack of specialized personnel remains a key bottleneck, said Darboe. “We are only 15 personnel,” he said.

“We really needed enhancement in the capacity of more training in specialized areas … Specialization is a problem in the Gambia,” he noted, stressing the need for political commitment. “We will accelerate this with the political players to get the dream come true … AI is the way for the new world.”

He hopes to establish training exchanges with countries like Türkiye in ballistics, toxicology and anthropology.​​​​​​​