Faculty Journal Articles and Book Chapters
Abstract
This seminar paper considers whether OHADA - an experiment in unifying business law in African countries - has been a success. Following a prologue that explains the origins of the paper, the first part of the paper sets out basic information about the Organisation pour l’Harmonisation du Droit des Affaires en Afrique (“Organization for the Harmonization of Business Law in Africa,” known by the acronym OHADA). This part is followed by a review of law and development literature to assess the value of this literature for an evaluation of the success (or not) of OHADA. A third part then focuses on one specific uniform law, the law of secured transactions. The paper concludes that notwithstanding challenges the OHADA institutions exist and have produced uniform business laws for the formal business sector. Whether OHADA has been the cause of increased investment and trade requires studies that have not been carried out.
Document Type
Article
Keywords
African law, commercial law, law reform, law and development, secured transactions, unification of law
Recommended Citation
Winship, Peter, Law and Development in West and Central Africa (OHADA) (2015). SMU Dedman School of Law Legal Studies Research Paper No. 272. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2772121