The Community Court of Justice, ECOWAS, will carry out a sensitization outreach and external?court session in Lagos State, Nigeria, from 5 to 7 May 2025 and 8 to 16 May 2025 respectively.
Sensitization outreaches and external court sessions are annual activities of the Court intended to create awareness about its mandate and jurisdiction as well as operations.
It is also aimed at promoting cooperation between the ECOWAS Court and the national courts of Member States and to bring the Court closer to the Community citizens at the grass root.
The Sensitisation Outreach programme in Lagos will hold from 5 to 7 May 2025 at Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos, Nigeria.
Highlights of the programme include an opening ceremony attended by top government officials, judges, lawyers, law students, representatives of civil society organisations, NGOs and the public.
The three-day event will feature presentations on various topics including the mandate and jurisdiction of the Court, filing of cases before the Court, rights of women and children, the relationship between ECOWAS Court and national courts, and the new ECOWAS Electronic Case Management System (ECMS).
The programme will be rounded off with a panel discussion on the role of government and non-governmental organisations in the promotion and protection of human rights before the ECOWAS Court, followed by a press conference.
The External Court Session will commence on Thursday, 8 May and end on Friday 16 May 2025 at the High Court of Lagos, Osborne Annex, Ikoyi, Lagos.
During the sessions, 35 cases will be heard by different panels of the Court and 15 judgments delivered.
The five current honourable judges of the Court participating in both activities are Honourable Justice Ricardo Cláudio Monteiro Gonçalves (President), Honourable Justice Sengu Mohamed Koroma (Vice President), Honourable Justice Dupe Atoki (Member), Honourable Justice Gberi-bè Ouattara (Member) and Honourable Justice Edward Amoako Asante (Member).
The scheduling of External Court Session outside the Seat of the Court is in accordance with Article 26(2) of the Protocol of the Court which states: “where circumstances or facts of the case so demand, the Court may decide to sit in the territory of another Member State.”
By an Order dated 3rd?March 2025, Honourable President of the Court, Ricardo Cláudio Monteiro Gonçalves authorised the holding of External Court session in Lagos State, Nigeria.
The two-week programme was preceded by courtesy visits to the top government officials of the host state, Lagos, Nigeria, and other major stakeholders.
The primary mandate of the Community Court of Justice, ECOWAS is the interpretation and application of the ECOWAS Revised Treaty, and other ECOWAS Community Texts.
However, following the adoption of the Supplementary Protocol A/SP.1/01/05 relating to the Court in January 2005, the Court has recorded remarkable increase in its judicial activities.
This?can be attributed to the granting of direct access to the Court to Community citizens in respect of certain causes of action including human rights violations.
Previous sensitization and external court sessions have been held in Member States including Senegal, Ghana, Togo, Liberia, The Gambia, Guinea, Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso, Benin and some Nigerian federating states such as Oyo and Kwara.
Source: GNA
The post ECOWAS Court to hold sensitisation outreach, external court session in Lagos appeared first on Ghana Business News.
Read Full Story
Facebook
Twitter
Pinterest
Instagram
Google+
YouTube
LinkedIn
RSS