OUR MISSION
The mission of the Center for International Law and Policy in Africa (CILPA) is as follows:
To promote the study of the codification, progressive development and implementation of international and regional law in Africa.
To encourage, through teaching, research and publication, the scientific study of and development and dissemination of international law and policy taking into account the needs and specificities of African peoples and African States.
To serve as a forum for informed discussion and debate of current events and issues in international law and African Union law, in particular, including how best to advance human security, human development and human innovation on the continent and internationally.
To foster, through research and advocacy, a culture of respect for fundamental human rights and freedoms as enshrined in various African and international legal instruments.
To bring international law to African policy makers, and African policy makers to international law through the conduct of studies and development of policy options on timely topics with implications for the African region as a whole.
To highlight and promote African perspectives, contributions and scholarship in international law, policy, and justice, including through the provision of high-quality educational programs, seminars, workshops, training, symposia, publications of academic journals, occasional policy papers, books, and other similar scholarly activities.
To engage in any other lawful purpose that may assist in advancing the above goals.
Climate Change Symposium
Building on the success of the all-day high-level hybrid symposium on African Perspectives on International Climate Change Law co-organised by the Center for International Law & Policy in Africa (CILPA), the Human Rights Program at Harvard Law School, and the Dullah Omar Institute at the University of the Western Cape at Harvard Law School on 29 March 2024, CILPA is in the process of organising a second symposium on the topic on the African continent, to further address the distinctive challenges African States and societies face in the global effort to address climate change including in relation to equitable access to financial resources, technology transfer, infrastructure for adaptation, mitigation and research, and representation and influence in decision-making processes. The date is to be confirmed. If you are interested in collaborating with us on this symposium please reach out to Prof. Charles Jalloh at [email protected].
ICC Colloquium
On 29 March 2021, CILPA launched the International Criminal Court Colloquium – a series dedicated specifically to advancing the scholarly debate on the work of the world’s only permanent international penal tribunal with responsibility to prosecute genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and the crime of aggression. The series, which is part of our Africa-ICC Research Project, and co-sponsored by the American Society of International Law and the International Nuremberg Principles Academy, seeks to highlight issues of particular relevance to the future success of the ICC, especially from an African perspective. Three ICC Colloquium sessions were hosted in 2021, and two in 2022. We hope to relaunch the Colloquium this year.