• Pasience Mlowe – Legal and Human Resources Centre (Tanzania);
• Abiodun Baiyewu – Global Rights Nigeria (Nigeria);
• Franck Loufoua-Bessi – Rencontre pour la Paix et les Droits de l’Homme (Congo Republic);
• Michel Yoboue - Groupe de Recherche et de Plaidoyer sur les Industries Extractives (Cote d’Ivoire);
• Eric Kajemba - Observatoire Gouvernance (Democratic Republic of Congo); and
• Mutuso Dhliwayo - Zimbabwe Environmental Law Association (Zimbabwe).
With the exception of one member, Delphine Djiraibe – Public Interest Law Centre (Chad), all ACCA SC members were present. The ACCA Coordinator was also present at the three-day meeting which permitted SC members to discuss and brainstorm on the following matters: internal SC matters, matters pertaining to ACCA more broadly, ACCA work streams, recap from the previous ACCA General Assembly, plan for the upcoming ACCA GA, and goal-setting. During the three-day visit, the SC took advantage of their presence in Abuja to make a courtesy visit to OSIWA’s offices, and host an ACCA cocktail reception for ACCA members present in Abuja which attracted the attention of local media who conducted interviews with ACCA. The online articles may be found here and here.
The last day of the meeting commenced with a courtesy visit to the ECOWAS court, and a Skype meeting with potential funders. To unwind, Global Rights Nigeria treated the SC members to a tour of the local markets. Photos from the SC meeting may be viewed on the ACCA website by clicking here.
The event was a resounding success and helped set the tone for what looks like a fruitful year for ACCA. For any questions or further information on the SC meeting, ACCA members are invited to engage with either the Secretariat or any of the SC members. The Coordinator and SC members would like to express their gratitude to Abiodun Baiyewu and her team at Global Rights Nigeria for the warm hospitality shown towards the SC members.
Damian Oakes