AGA-Africa Programme Director and Country Coordinator for Kenya, Chukukere Unamba-Oprah, represented the Programme’s leadership at the Regional Symposium on Africa Regional Judicial Dialogue themed: Strengthening Adjudication of Transnational Organised Crimes and Illicit Financial Flows in Africa; Experiences, Challenges and Emerging Issues on 3rd-5th October, 2023, where distinguished delegates converged at the Sarova Whitesands Hotel, Mombasa, Kenya. The symposium was organized by the Kenya Judicial Academy (KJA).
The AGA-Africa Programme participated in the three-day symposium that brought together heads of judicial training institutes and judges from various African countries such as Botswana, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Morocco, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Tanzania, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The symposium also brought together delegates from the United States Department of Justice (USDoJ), United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), International Development Law Organisation (IDLO), Anti-Money Laundering and Combatting the Financing of Terrorism Platform in East, South, Central of Africa & Yemen (AML-CFT ESCAY), Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammanerbeit (GiZ), Mombasa County Government, Kenya Wildlife Service, East Africa Data Handlers, Eastern and Southern Africa Anti-Money Laundering Group (ESAAMLG) and African Union Commission Political Affairs Peace and Security.
The symposium was officially opened by Hon. Justice Dr. Smokin Wanjala, Judge, Supreme Court of Kenya and Director, Kenya Judicial Academy. His Excellency Abdullswamad Sherrif Nassir, Governor, Mombasa County, His Excellency Tewodros Meheret Kebede, Chief Justice of the Federal Supreme Court of Ethiopia also made opening remarks.
Hon. Lady Justice Martha Koome, Chief Justice and President of the Supreme Court of Kenya delivered the keynote address.
Speaking at the symposium, Chukukere Unamba-Oparah, AGA-Africa Programme Director and Country Coordinator for Kenya, noted that cross-border cooperation was essential to combatting transnational organised crime. “Criminal justice actors must exploit globalization for justice,” he said.
The AGA-Africa Programme brought in Mercy Buku, AML/CFT Risk Management Consultant, Banking and Digital Financial Services Sector as a subject matter expert.
Mercy took part in the panel discussion under the theme: ‘An Overview of the Trends and Typologies in Transnational Organised Crimes’.
Other distinguished guest speakers were Hon. Lady Justice Wendoh, Judge, High Court of Kenya, Hon. Justice John Katsala, Judge, Supreme Court of Malawi, Hon. Jose Carrilho, Judge, Supreme Court of Mozambique, Hon. Justice P.M. Ayua, Judge, High Court of Nigeria, Hon. Lady Justice Diana Mochache, Judge, High Court of Kenya, Hon. Judge Mustapha Ismail, Judge, Anti-Corruption & Economic Crimes Tanzania, Hon. Justice Susan Mtonga Wanjelani, Judge in Charge, Lusaka High Court, Economic and Financial Crimes Division, Joseph Jagada, Senior Technical Expert, Eastern and Southern Africa Anti-Money Laundering Group (ESAAMLG), Hon. Justice Benjamin Chikowero, Judge, High Court of Zimbabwe, Hon. Ahemd Mohamud Hassan, Director Judicial Training Institute of Somalia, Hon. Justice Bugalo Maripe, Judge, High Court of Botswana, Hon. Judge Etmet Assefa Asamire, Judge, High Court of Ethiopia, Hon. Justice Mangeh Deen-Tarawally, Judge, Court of Appeal of Sierra Leone, Hon. Justice Tsekisi Joachim Mokoko, Judge, High Court of Lesotho, Hon. Lady Justice Tonia Barnett, Judge, Court of Appeal, Sierra Leone, Scott Adphaug, Anti-Corruption Resident Legal Advisor, United States Department of Justice (USDoJ), Hon. Justice Angula, Deputy Judge President, Supreme Court of Namibia, Hon. Justice John Chirwa, Judge, High Court of Malawi, Hon. Justice Luka Kimaru, Judge of the Court of Appeal, Hon. Justice Lydia Marfo, Judge, High Court of Ghana, Hon. Justice Annabel Mtalimanja, Judge, High Court of Malawi, Hon. Justice Daniel Musinga, President of the Court of Appeal of Kenya, Faraja Nchimbi, Director, Asset Forfeiture Transnational Specialized Crimes Division of the National Prosecutions Services of Tanzania, Hon. Justice Reginald Fynn, Acting Head, Judicial Training Institute of Sierra Leone, Amb. Degefe Wakijera, Chief Director, Federal Law and Justice Institute of Ethiopia, Hon. Justice Salisu Garba, Administrator, National Judicial Institute, Nigeria, Hon. Helio Canjale, Judge, Judicial Court of Tete Providence, Mozambique and Hon. Justice Tanko Amadu, Justice, Supreme Court of Ghana and the Director of the Judicial Training Institute, Ghana.
Hon. Lady Justice Philomena Mwilu, Deputy Chief Justice of Kenya delivered the closing remarks, bringing the symposium to a close.
