March 3-13, 2007

The International Legal Exchange (ILEX) Program of the ABA Section of International Law organized a briefing trip to Ghana, Liberia, and Sierra Leone March 3-13, 2007. The 16-member ILEX Delegation was led by ABA International Chair Deborah Enix-Ross. Delegates represented six countries: the U.S., Bermuda, England, France, Nigeria, and Ghana. The delegates met with bar leaders, judges, ministry officials, academics, and legal practitioners. The focus of the trip was Rule of Law issues confronting the emerging democracies of Sierra Leone and Liberia and strengthening democratic institutions and the legal profession in Ghana. The visit to Ghana also coincided with its 50th anniversary of independence.

In particular, the ILEX West Africa trip had primary goals of:

1. Engaging in a dialogue on practical and policy developments involving nation-building and strengthening legal institutions among jurists from the U.S. and West Africa, top leaders of the ABA, and key practitioners from the bar associations of Ghana, Liberia, and Sierra Leone;
2. To show the ABA’s support for institutions promoting the administration of justice, the rule of law, and the implementation of a legal framework for human rights and economic development in West Africa;
3. To gain insight into the reconciliation processes in Liberia and Sierra Leone.

The ILEX delegation had deep and meaningful discussions in each of the countries visited, and the Section hopes to collaborate with their legal communities on future projects. You can see what the Section is currently doing by visiting the sites for each country: Ghana, Liberia, and Sierra Leone.

ILEX Delegation Members

Trip Itinerary

Trip Photo Album

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