Joint African Union / ICC Seminar
Regional Cooperation Seminar |
Addis Ababa | Ethiopia | African States
The fourth Joint African Union/ICC seminar brought together 40 high-level officials, State officials and other legal expert participants from 16 different countries, including 9 States Parties (Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Ghana, Mali, Niger, Sierra Leone, Tunisia, Zambia) and 7 non-States Parties (Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Saharawi Republic, Swaziland, Togo, Zimbabwe) to the Rome Statute, as well as the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie and the African Union. The overall objective of the seminar was to establish greater commitment between and strengthen mutual understanding of the African Union, the ICC and African States. The more specific objectives of the event were, inter alia, to: continue dialogue and compare views of the Court and African Union; explore other areas of engagement, cooperation and coordination within the principle of complementarity as enshrined in the Rome Statute; improve understanding of the respective mandates of the ICC and African Union; and identify areas of mutual interest and concern as a means to explore possible synergies. The event was made possible thanks to the financial support from Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie and the European Union, and to the organizational support of the African Union.
The ICC’s High-Level Regional Cooperation Seminars aim to enhance cooperation with the Court by increasing understanding about the ICC’s cooperation regime amongst the invitees; promoting dialogue and efforts towards universality of the Rome Statute; and reinforcing high-level and technical-level contacts and partnerships amongst the Court and key interlocutors. Target audiences include Heads of State, Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Justice, and senior officials in charge of operational issues related to the ICC and/or international judicial assistance in criminal matters.
