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African Regional Forum Conference 2010 - Cape Town
25-26 March 2010
Programme
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Time |
Thursday, 25 March 2010 |
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07:00 - 17:00 |
Registration |
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08:30 - 09:00 |
Welcome
-
Fernando Pelàez-Pier
Hoet Pelàez Castillo & Dunqu, Caracas;
IBA President
Jacob Saah
Saah & Co, Accra; Chairperson of IBA
African Regional Forum |
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09:00 - 09:15 |
Introduction of opening speaker |
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09:15 - 10:00 |
Opening Address -
President Jacob Zuma |
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10:00 - 10:30 |
Tea/Coffee Break |
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10:30 - 12:30 |
Session One : Plenary
Topic:
A decisive
factor for a successful democracy is the
judicial institution as a guardian of
the Rule of Law and protector of basic
human rights. Such a judiciary not only
serves the immediate interests of
citizens, but also promotes a stable
society which is governed by an
efficient system of civil and criminal
law.
A lack of trust in the judiciary as a
direct consequence of its being
perceived as a ruling
government-controlled institution is
often a concerning factor in Africa. A
diverse panel of experts will examine
the issues and debates the impact of the
Rule of Law and its applications in
Africa.
Session chairperson.
Ashwin Trikamjee Garlicke &
Bousfield, Umhlanga, South Africa;
Vice-Chairperson, IBA African Regional
Forum
Speakers
Chief Justice Georgina Woode
Chief Justice of Ghana
Justice Ralph Zulman (ret)
Johannesburg
Ambassador Raychelle Awuor Omamo
Coulson Harney, Nairobi; former
president of the Law Society of Kenya
Oluwarotimi Odunayo Akeredolu
President of the Nigerian Bar
Association
Sternford Moyo
Scanlen & Holderness, Harare;
Vice-Chairperson,
IBA
Human Rights Institute
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12:30 - 14:00 |
Lunch |
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14:00 - 17:00 |
Session
2,3,and 4 (Parallel Sessions)
Refreshment break 15h30-16h00
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1.
International Arbitration in
Africa
Why are most international
arbitrations involving African
parties held outside Africa? How
can African countries promote
and develop international
arbitration in Africa?
This session will
·
consider the role played
by domestic, regional and
international arbitration
organizations;
and
·
identify and examine both
existing and possible future
African regional arbitration
initiatives.
Session Chairperson:
Des Williams
Werksman incorporating Jan S de
Villiers, Johannesburg
Speakers
Sami Houerbi
DH Avocats, Tunis; Director of
the ICC Dispute Resolution
Services for the Eastern
Mediterranean, Middle East and
Africa
Dorothy Ufot
Dorothy Ufot & Co, Lagos; Member
of the ICC International Court
of Arbitration and the ICC
Commission on Arbitration;
member of the Council of the
Legal Practice Division of the
IBA and a former
Vice-Chairperson of the
Arbitration Committee of the IBA
Michael Kuper SC
Johannesburg Bar, Johannesburg;
Chairperson of the Arbitration
Foundation of Southern Africa
Olasupo
Shasore
Attorney-General of Lagos State, Lagos
2.
Climate Change: Africa’s challenge and
response
This session will discuss
Africa's policy, legal and
business responses to climate
change.
There will be particular focus
on the outcome of the Copenhagen
COP in December 2009 and the
consequences for emerging
economies. Some of the
topics to be discussed are:
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the post-Kyoto landscape and
the position of developing
countries
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the scope and future of
emissions trading in Africa,
including African
participation in the Clean
Development Mechanism and
the feasibility
of cap-and-trade regimes in
Africa
-
carbon disclosure
initiatives such as the
Carbon Disclosure Project
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carbon taxes and other
legislative responses
-
climate change-related
business and legal
opportunities in Africa
The timing of this session and
the continental focus thereof,
will make it particularly
topical.
Session Chairperson:
Johann Scholtz
Webber Wentzel, Johannesburg
Speakers
Joanne Yawitch Deputy
Director-General of
Environmental Affairs,
Government of South Africa, Cape
Town
Teni Odujinrin CEO, EcoXchange Limited
Alberto Tsamba Director, GED, Maputo
Pancho Ndebele
Director, Emvelo Group,
Sandton, South Africa
Dr Youba Sokona
Executive Secretary, Sahara and
Sahel Observatory, Tunis
Stef Raubenheimer Consultant
and Director, SouthSouthNorth,
Cape Town
3.Mining Law: Dealing with the impact of the global
financial crisis
Africa contains a veritable
treasure trove of the world's
mineral resources. The global
financial crisis – and the end
of a six-year commodities boom –
has had a serious impact on
exploration activity, mining
production as much as M&A
activity in the African mining
sector over the last eighteen
months. The session will
·
examine the impact of the
crisis on the African mining
sector from an investment,
regulatory
and risk perspective
and
·
assess the response of
particular African mining
jurisdictions to mitigating the
crisis,
whether from a fiscal,
regulatory or other perspective.
A multijurisdictional panel will
accordingly analyse particular
country responses in order to
assess their effectiveness in
dealing with the crisis.
The session will include input
from the Oil and Gas Committee
given the importance of these
upstream activities in west and
central Africa.
Session Chairperson:
Peter Leon
Webber Wentzel, Johannesburg
Speakers
Michael Walter
Herbert Smith, London
Otsile Matlou
Deneys Reitz, Johannesburg
Charles Rwechungura
CRB Attorneys, Dar es Salaam
Morné van der Merwe
Werksmans; Johannesburg
Jorge Graça
MGA Advogados e Consultores,
Maputo
Charles Mkokweza
Corpus Legal Practitioners,
Lusaka
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19:00 - 22:00 |
Conference Dinner
Moyo's at Spier |
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Time |
Friday,26 March 2010 |
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07:00 - 12:00 |
Registration |
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07:30 - 09:00 |
Breakfast Session:
Woman's Interest Group |
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09:00 - 12:30 |
Session 5,6,and 7 (Parallel
Sessions)
Refreshment break 10h00 - 11h30
1.Managing
for survival: African law firms
in changing times (1)
Most African law firms remain
small and
poorly managed, while at
the same time global law firms
have turned their attention to
Africa as a source of work and
revenue. This session will
examine the causes of the
weakness in governance of
African law firms and make
suggestions on how these may be
addressed. The panel will, among
other issues, explore
·
strategy;
·
financial management;
·
quality standards; and
·
the
marketing and promotion of law
firms.
Moderator
Max Boqwana
(Boqwana Loon & Connellan, Port
Elizabeth)
Speakers
Nalini Gangen,
Director, Cape Law Society
Olufunke Adekoya,
Aelex Partners, Lagos, Nigeria
Stephen Denyer (Senior Vice
Chairman, IBA Law Firm
Management Committee, Allen &
Overy LLP,)
Nkikia Moshesh (Webber Wentzel,
Johannesburg)
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2.Bridging Africa’s infrastructural deficit – key issues
in structuring and financing
projects
There is consensus that the state of
infrastructure in most African economies
hinders successful modernization. The
World Bank estimates that African faces
an infrastructure financing gap of US$35
billion economies per year.
This session will examine the challenges
confronting African countries and
distill the lessons to be learnt from
projects such as the Gautrain high-speed
train link in South Africa.
Session Chairperson:
Brigette Baillie
Webber Wentzel, Johannesburg
Speakers
David Ofosu-Dorte
AB
& David Law Affiliates, Accra
Lawrence Fubara Anga
Aélex, Lagos
Evans Monari
Daly & Figgis
Advocates, Nairobi
Jackie Midlane
Deneys Reitz, Johannesburg
3.
The emerging rule of law, human rights,
peace and security architecture of the
African
Union (AU)/ Prospects for rule of law,
human rights, peace and security at the
Regional
Economic Communities (1)
The session, which will be in two parts,
will first examine developments at the
continental level with specific
attention on the African Union. The
second part of the session will
highlight developments at the
sub-regional level.
Moderator:
Olawale Fapohunda
Legal Resources Consortium, Lagos
AU Panel: Judge President Bernard Ngoepe
Pretoria; Judge of the
African Court for
Human and Peoples’ Rights
Jeremy Gauntlett SC Cape Town Bar, Cape
Town
George Mukundi
Africa
Transitional Justice Programme, Centre for the Study of Violence and
Reconciliation, Cape Town
Ben Kioko
Legal Counsel, African Union
Akere Muna
President of the Pan African Lawyers
Union (PALU)
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12:30 - 14:00 |
Lunch |
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14:00 - 17:00 |
Session 8,9,and 10 (Parallel
Sessions)
Refreshment break 15h30 - 16h00
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4. Managing for survival: African law firms in changing
times (2)
Most African law firms remain
small and
poorly managed, while at
the same time global law firms
have turned their attention to
Africa as a source of work and
revenue. This session will
examine the causes of the
weakness in governance of
African law firms and make
suggestions on how these may be
addressed. The panel will, among
other issues, explore
·
strategy;
·
financial management;
·
quality standards; and
·
the
marketing and promotion of law
firms.
Moderator
Max Boqwana
(Boqwana Loon & Connellan, Port
Elizabeth)
Speakers
Nalini Gangen,
Director, Cape Law Society
Olufunke Adekoya,
Aelex Partners, Lagos, Nigeria
Stephen Denyer (Senior Vice
Chairman, IBA Law Firm
Management Committee, Allen &
Overy LLP,)
Nkikia Moshesh (Webber Wentzel,
Johannesburg)
5.
Corporate Governance: Friend or
Foe to the Successful Business?
The Corporate Governance session
is led by a key note speech by
Professor Mervyn King, Chairman
of the King Committee which
drafted the King Report on
Corporate Governance in South
Africa. The session will
explore different perspectives
of Corporate Governance
considering the challenges for
the policy makers and for the
different stakeholders including
the Board, management and
external investors. The role of
in-house Counsel in enforcing a
Corporate Governance regime will
also be explored pointing to
some of the tensions implicit in
the role.
Speakers will include the
Chairman of a Nigerian company,
an in-house Counsel, a Tanzanian
business consultant specializing
in Corporate Governance, a
representative from the
Johannesburg Securities Exchange
as well as the Chief Executive
of a Zambian business with
recent experience in this area.
Session Co-Chairpersons:
Udochi
Iheanacho
Udochi Iheanacho Partnership, Lagos
Christopher Owen
Manches LLP, London
Pieter Steyn
Werksmans, Johannesburg
Speakers
Prof Mervyn Kings SC
Chairman of the King Committee
which drafted the King Report on
Corporate Governance
Ayo Akinmade
Executive Chairman of Workplace
Plus (operators of the Regus
franchise in Nigeria)
Patrick Chisanga
Corporate Governance Consultant, Zambia
Noah Greenhill
Johannesburg Stock Exchange,
Johannesburg
Nkechi Nwosu
Head of Legal Services, Diamond
Bank Plc, Nigeria
Dr Edmund
Mndolwa
PriceWaterhouseCoopers, Dar es
Salaam
6.
The Emerging Rule of Law (2)
Regional Economic
Communities segment:
Session chairperson
Anton Katz Cape Town Bar, Cape
Town
Speakers
Femi Falana
Falana & Falana Chambers, Lagos;
West African Bar Association
Mabvuto Hara Hara & Associates,
Blantyre; President, SADC
Lawyers Association
Don Deya
Chief Executive Officer, Pan
African Lawyers Union
Francois Serres
Avocat, Paris
Justice A Benin
ECOWAS Court of Justice
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International Bar Association |
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