Dr. Iyare Otabor-Olubor (Aston University Law School): Adopting the MAC Protocol in African countries - Cross-border financing and realising the AfCFTA objectives

About the speaker:
Dr. Iyare Otabor-Olubor is a Lecturer in Commercial Law at Aston University Law School (UK). He leads and teaches the “Law and Business in a Global Context” module on the LLM International Commercial Law programme. He specialises in the field of International Commercial Law with a focus on African economies and the African Union.

About the topic:
Access to mining, agricultural and construction (MAC) equipment represents the foundational development that can enable economic growth in Africa. An enabling legal environment is also critical to protect the proprietary rights of foreign investors in MAC equipment. The Mining, Agricultural and Construction Equipment Protocol (‘MAC Protocol’) was adopted at a diplomatic conference in South Africa in 2019. The MAC Protocol is a uniform law prepared by the International Institute for the Unification of Private Law (UNIDROIT). This presentation will broadly consider the significance of the MAC Protocol in enabling private sector financing in Africa while serving as an opportunity to further the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Agreement to boost cross-border intra-African financing of MAC equipment.

About the virtual workshop series:
There is a growing interest in the study of private international law in Africa. In an environment of growing international transactions in both civil and commercial matters, private international law can play a significant role in Africa in addressing issues such as globalization, regional economic integration, immigration, etc. The series intends to discuss new scholarly work on private international law in Africa and advance solutions on how the current framework of that field can be improved on the continent.