Eversheds Sutherland Africa Group - events

Our Africa legal lawyers provide thought-leading briefings and conferences, to help practitioners develop their understanding of law and regulation across the Africa market. We work with our lawyers to help organisations understand new legal requirements prior to implementation dates.

You will find below information on all upcoming and past events.

Upcoming events

Webinar: Understanding litigation and arbitration opportunities in the Middle East and Africa

Date: 30 June 2021 - 12.00pm (BST) / 14.00pm (EAT) / 15.00pm (UAE)

Client event: With litigation funding emerging as a significant opportunity for claimants, join our panel of experts for a discussion and Q&A in which we will assess the opportunities and relevant laws on litigation and arbitration funding. We are pleased to be joined by Mark King of Harbour Litigation Funding to provide insights directly from an active funder in the market. To find out more information and to register for this webinar, please contact Litigation webinar enquiries

Past events

Renpower Nigeria 2021

Date: 31 March - 1 April 2021

Client event: Oil-rich Nigeria is turning to renewable energy in a big way. The country has recently invested more than USD 20 billion in solar power projects, seeking to boost the capacity of the national grid and reduce reliance on it by building mini-grids in rural areas without electricity. Under the National Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Policy (NREEEP), Nigeria commits itself to sourcing 20% of electricity generation from renewables by 2030 - with PV, wind power, geothermal, hydropower, and biomass all to be developed. Nigeria has a large, widely dispersed rural population and a sparse deployment of grid networks. Being the most populous country in Africa, it has the second-largest off-grid energy market in the world. The potential is immense as this is just the kick-off of a scaling up process. Eversheds Sutherland is delighted to be a Partner at Renpower Nigeria 2021 - the leading business event for future energy, sustainability & cleantech in Nigeria. Rob McNabb, head of Eversheds Sutherland's clean energy construction team will chair the opening session of the 2 day program.

During the conference the following will be explored;

Nigeria's global renewable targets
Upcoming projects in Solar PV, wind power, geothermal, hydropower and biomass
New Technology, integrated energy solutions, storage system and other industry and commercial applications
Distributed power, off-grid solutions anmini-grid deployment

To receive the agenda and for any questions, please contact Michel Masquelier .

Green Hydrogen in Africa

Date: 24-25 March 2021 - 9.00 am (GMT)

Client event: Hydrogen has been used for several decades by industrial companies because of its great convenience as fuel stock with regards to storage and transport. And thanks to decreasing cost of renewables, the potential for green hydrogen is now growing exponentially and opening new avenues of use for hydrogen. The success of green hydrogen will be linked to its production cost and the African solar industry is ideally positioned to play a major role in this global industry as the continent enjoys some of the best solar resources in the world. But other factors may still prove challenging and could limit the extent to which Africa will benefit from this nascent industry. In this e-conference Eversheds Sutherland hydrogen lead partner, Jubilee Easo , is delighted to be joining other experts in the industry exploring the potential of green hydrogen for economic growth in Africa and the role solar can play. For more information and to register please click here

Eversheds Sutherland Africa Alliance meeting - Global Relationship Firm Conference

Date: 9 March 2021 - 14.00 -15.00 pm(GMT)

ESAA networking event: This year's virtual Global Relationship Firm Conference (GRFC) will deliver a blend of live and on demand content, with a mixture of plenary sessions, roundtables, regional meetings and a networking hub.

For more information, please contact Leanne Alford

Webinar: Ethiopia, the Red Sea and the wider region

Date: 16 December 2020 - 14.00 - 15.15 pm (UTC)

Client event: A webinar co-hosted by Eversheds Sutherland with Menas Associates, and will focus on Ethiopia's:

Domestic politics including the Tigray crisis
Foreign policy and regional relations
The Red Sea and the wider region
Macro-economy
Investment opportunities

Speakers:

Patrick Gilkes was Advisor, Strategic Planning, in Ethiopia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs for 15 years from 2004 until December 2019). He previously worked as; Senior Research Analyst on the Horn of Africa in the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office (2002-2003); a political consultant on the Horn of Africa for various international organizations; and in the BBC World Service (1974-93). He has written and broadcast extensively on the Horn of Africa. His latest contribution is ‘Eritrea-Ethiopia Rapprochement and its Impact on Foreign Policy’ in Ethiopia and Eritrea, Insights into the Peace Nexus, ed. Belete Belachew Yihun, Tsehai Publishers, Los Angeles, 2020.

Patrick Curran is a Senior Economist at Tellimer and focuses on emerging market macro/sovereign research across Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. Prior to joining Tellimer, he worked at Eaton Vance in Boston conducting sovereign fixed income analysis and spent time at the South African Reserve Bank in Pretoria. He holds an MA in International Economics at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies in Washington and is a CFA charterholder.

For more information, please contact Greg Falkof .

Webinar: Third party funding for litigation / arbitration in Africa

Date: 15 October 2020 - 10.00 - 11.00 am (BST)

ESAA event: Now more than ever, third party funding is offering increasing opportunities across Africa. If anything, the COVID-19 pandemic is likely to make third party funding an even more attractive option for businesses many of whom will need to find alternative ways of funding their disputes and recovering sums to which they are entitled. The event will be jointly led by John Kemkers and Greg Falkof and will cover:

What is third party funding, its relevance and how does it work?
Benefits to clients using third party funding and case examples
What do you need to know about third party funders and their terms
Funding options
Issues arising from third party funding
Q&A session

To find out more information, please contact John Kemkers .

Webinar: Can mediation be a credible alternative or a complement to arbitration in Africa?

Date: 10 July 2020 - 3.00 pm (Paris time)

Client event: Eversheds Sutherland, along with CIArb Young Members Group , will participate in an webinar on arbitration and mediation in Africa on Friday 10 July 2020, at 3pm Paris time. This event will explore the hot button topics in a region that is experiencing a boom in the use of alternative dispute resolution methods. For example, it is often said that mediation, as a more informal form of alternative dispute resolution, is ingrained in the legal culture of many African states. Is that true? How do parties in Africa resolve their disputes today and how will they do so tomorrow? How will the establishment of the African Continental Free Trade Area affect dispute resolution? Are there any particular issues that arise when States are parties to international disputes? How have African States responded to the Singapore Convention on mediated settlements?

Join a panel of brilliant speakers, who will discuss these questions, and join in the debate as to how mediation can be a credible alternative or complement arbitration in Africa.

Speakers:

Francisco Abriani , Legal Counsel, ICSID
Julius Nkafu , Barrister, Arbitrator and Mediator, Great James Street Chambers
Omonigho Oyoma Brown , Contract Manager, Julius Berger
Pacôme Ziegler , Partner, Delaloa

Moderators:

Athina Fouchard Papaefstratiou , Counsel, Eversheds Sutherland
Alexander Leventhal , Senior Associate, Quinn Emanuel

To register for this webinar, click here .

Webinar: Finding the state: Foreign Investment and Disputed Territories

Date: 6 July 2020 - 5.00 - 6.30 pm (Paris time)

Client event: Finding the State and the resolution of investment disputes can be particularly complex when investments are located in disputed territories, or when the establishment of the investment or the resolution of disputes between a State and an investor intervenes in a context of military conflicts or State succession. Eversheds Sutherland has brought together a panel of eminent international law experts who have significant experience acting as Counsel or experts before the International Court of Justice and other international courts and tribunals. They will address some important issues of State responsibility, attribution and representation in these particular situations of military conflicts, State succession or disputed territories.

Speakers:

Professor Nicolas Angelet , Professor of International Law, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Associate Tenant of Doughty Street Chambers, London.
Professor Alina Miron , Professor of International Law
Professor Christian J. Tams , Chair of International Law, University of Glasgow - Academic member, Matrix Chambers, London.

Moderator: