About Us

Africa Legal Aid (AFLA) is an influential pan-African entity devoted to promoting rights and accountability. AFLA was founded on 21st October 1995, to coincide with Africa Day of Human Rights. Celebrated for its convening power and its flagship publications, AFLA provides leadership and support to key institutions and organisations.

Translating paper-written rights into practical reality is the spirit behind AFLA’s motto: ‘Making Human Rights a Reality’.

Recognition of Evelyn A. Ankumah and AFLA:

‘A major flaw in the ICC Statute was the lack of institutional recognition for Defence and Victims’ Counsel. With no institutional recognition, Defence and Victims’ Counsel at the ICC were perceived as intruders in judicial proceedings before the Court. In this grossly unfair context, the fulfilment of the fair trial guarantees in the Rome Statute could not be reasonably attained or ascertained. This institutional injustice was obvious to everyone but no one took up the challenge to address it’.

‘Evelyn Ankumah, the Executive Director of AFLA took up the challenge. At the 13th Session of the Assembly of States Parties to the ICC held at the UN Headquarters in New York, in December 2014, she provided a platform and voice for experts and resource persons to address the problem and find solutions. This provided impetus leading to the establishment of the International Criminal Court Bar Association in 2016 and its institutional recognition by the Assembly of States Parties to the ICC’.

Chief Charles Taku, Former President, International Criminal Court Bar Association

A Full house at AFLA’s Seminar on Complementarity, the Habre Trial, and the Evolution of Universal Jurisdiction, Dakar, Senegal, 30 May – 1 June 2016. The Seminar coincided with the delivery of the Habre judgement on 30 May.