It is our great pleasure to welcome our esteemed readers in Africa and beyond to this 68th volume of the Journal of African Law. This issue, which comes as we approach the 70th anniversary of the journal, is special in several respects: we are taking the opportunity to celebrate our editors who have served the journal and are now transitioning to other interesting roles; we are also taking the opportunity to introduce ourselves as the incoming editors; lastly, we are taking this opportunity to outline our vision and hopes for JAL.
In thanking our outgoing editors, we would like to extend our special gratitude to Professor Sope Williams, who has been with JAL since 2009 and has served it as an editor over so many years with grace, excellence and rigour. She has been a key pillar in the growth of the journal, its expansion into new regions and fields (especially the corporate and commercial law field), as well as its publishing of both established and early-career researcher material. The journal has transitioned and been reconfigured throughout the years, and Professor Williams has been a constant source of direction. We would also like to thank Professor Lutz Oette, who during his six years as editor contributed immensely to the redefinition of the journal and its expansion into new topics and regions as well. He has strengthened the journal's human rights direction and facilitated the commissioning, editing and publication of impactful special issues: The African Charter of Democracy, Elections and Governance at 10 (2019); Refugees, Returnees and Internally Displaced Persons in Africa (2021); and COVID-19 and the Law in Africa (2021). We would like to express our gratitude to the journal's editorial managers, Raphael Jacquet and Rowan Pease, and to our copy editors, Rachel Wright and Claire Taylor-Jay, for their professionalism, commitment and support in ensuring every issue of the journal is delivered on time and is of the highest quality.
As we move forward, we envision a Journal of African Law built on past editors’ successes, while charting a future path that takes into account normative developments in African law. African law continues to evolve with new developments in different aspects of law emerging from regional/sub-regional courts and regional/subregional organizations. New technologies are also driving legal innovation and new forms of regulation on the continent, prompting and influencing the development of new fields of African law. We also note that developments in economic integration have resulted in fresh directions of regionalism, underpinned by diverse legal arrangements. All these developments have opened new vistas for the Journal of African Law, in addition to its present coverage.
Lastly, we are very keen to receive manuscripts and attract submissions across all regions of Africa, especially parts that we have traditionally engaged with less, including the Horn of Africa, East Africa and North Africa.
