Ohada

OHADA is a system of business laws and implementing institutions adopted by sixteen West and Central African nations. OHADA is the French acronym for "Organisation pour l'Harmonisation en Afrique du Droit des Affaires", which translates into English as "Organization for the Harmonization of Business Law in Africa". It was created on October 17, 1993 in Port Louis, Mauritius.

The OHADA Treaty is made up today of 16 Africans states. Initially fourteen African countries signed the treaty, with two countries subsequently adhering to the treaty (Comoros and Guinea) and a third, the Democratic Republic of Congo) due to adhere shortly. The Treaty is open to all states, whether or not members of the Organisation of African Unity [ [http://www.ohada.com/index.php?newlang=english OHADA 18/12/2007] ] .

Characteristics

As a West and Central African initiative to harmonise business laws and implementing institutions, OHADA aims to alternative solutions to the lack of economic growth in sub-Saharan Africa - a region which has challenged and puzzled development economists for several decades. The stated purpose of the initiative is to facilitate and encourage both domestic and foreign investment in the member states, and seeing as how most of the participating countries are former French colonies, they draw chiefly on a modernised French legal model to achieve their goals. The laws promulgated by OHADA are exclusively business-related. The OHADA treaty has created a supranational court to ensure uniformity and consistent legal interpretations across the member countries, and the French influence in court proceedings is apparent [ [http://law.bepress.com/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3073&context=expresso Dickerson, Claire M.: "Harmonizing Business Laws in Africa: OHADA Calls the Tune" 18/12/2007] ] .

Member States

*Benin
*Burkina Faso
*Cameroon
*Chad
*Central African Republic
*Comoros
*Congo
*Equatorial Guinea
*Ivory Coast
*Gabon
*Guinea
*Guinea-Bissau
*Mali
*Niger
*Senegal
*Togo
*Democratic Republic of Congo (joining soon)

Notes