GIMPA law dean urges African lawyers to drive institutional reform

The Dean of the Law School at the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration has called on African lawyers to broaden their role beyond courtroom advocacy and focus on reforms that strengthen institutions and promote accountability.

Dr Kwaku Agyeman-Budu made the remarks while delivering a keynote address at a symposium organised by the African Law Association at New York University on 6 March 2026.

Speaking under the theme “Africa in Focus: Lawyering for Social Change and Good Governance,” he urged legal professionals across the continent to engage more deeply with the institutional structures that shape governance and justice systems.

According to him, discussions about law and governance in Africa should move beyond theoretical debates and focus on how legal systems affect the everyday lives of citizens.

Dr Agyeman-Budu noted that the symposium coincided with Ghana’s Independence Day, which he described as symbolically significant for conversations about governance and legal reform.

He told participants that it had been 69 years since the former British colony of the Gold Coast gained independence and became Ghana, a development that helped inspire liberation movements across the African continent.

According to him, the push for independence was fundamentally about social transformation and self-governance, themes that remain relevant to contemporary debates on law and governance in Africa.

Despite the existence of strong constitutional frameworks in many African countries, Dr Agyeman-Budu said a persistent gap remains between legal provisions and real-world outcomes.

He argued that the continent does not necessarily suffer from a shortage of legal rules, noting that many states, including Ghana, possess extensive constitutional and institutional frameworks.

However, he questioned why the distance between “law on the books” and “law in action” continues to persist.

Drawing on his experience within the criminal justice system, he highlighted structural challenges that undermine justice delivery in many African jurisdictions.

While criminal procedures formally protect rights such as the presumption of innocence and protection from arbitrary detention, he said the situation in practice often reflects different realities.

Overcrowded prisons, delays in pre-trial detention, limited prosecutorial resources and uneven access to legal aid, he explained, demonstrate that the problem is not only legal but institutional.

Dr Agyeman-Budu also pointed to the historical origins of many African legal systems, noting that elements of criminal law, evidence rules and public order legislation were shaped during colonial rule.

He said these systems were originally designed to maintain control over populations rather than empower citizens.

As a result, he argued that meaningful reform requires deeper structural changes rather than surface-level amendments to legal texts.

The law scholar emphasised that strong institutional culture and integrity remain central to effective governance.

While courts may issue bold decisions, he noted that their impact ultimately depends on compliance by other arms of government and active civic oversight.

He added that litigation alone cannot transform governance systems and must be supported by broader democratic engagement, including civic education, investigative journalism and transparent public administration.

Dr Agyeman-Budu also warned that rapid technological adoption across African states presents new governance challenges.

From digital financial platforms to biometric voter systems and artificial-intelligence tools used in policing, he said the expansion of digital technologies requires careful regulatory oversight.

If poorly regulated, he cautioned, such systems could reinforce bias, expand surveillance without safeguards or concentrate control of data without accountability.

Turning to the future of the legal profession in Africa, Dr Agyeman-Budu encouraged young lawyers and scholars to pursue practical institutional engagement rather than symbolic activism.

He said lawyers could contribute to reform through legislative drafting, strategic litigation, regulatory oversight and public service.

At the same time, he cautioned against two extremes in reform efforts: cynicism that assumes change is impossible and excessive optimism that assumes constitutional texts alone can transform society.

Dr Agyeman-Budu concluded by stressing that strong and independent institutions remain essential to sustainable governance across Africa.

He said that when institutions are protected from political interference, social change becomes more durable, but when they are weakened, rights become vulnerable.

According to him, the work of lawyers on the continent should ultimately focus on strengthening democratic institutions while adapting universal legal principles such as dignity, equality and accountability to Africa’s realities.