United Kingdom’s Prof Dapo Akande backed by five United Nations members for 2021 International Law Commission election
Prof Dapo Akande, the UK’s candidate for the International Law Commission election has been nominated by four other countries: Japan, Kenya, Nigeria and Slovenia
Highlighting the calibre of Professor Akande’s legal experience and expertise, this is the first time in ILC history that a candidate has been nominated by countries from four different United Nations (UN) regional groups. This wide-ranging support demonstrates that Professor Akande is exceptionally well qualified to serve on this prestigious UN body.
With over 25 years of experience at top academic institutions and a prolific author, Professor Akande has strong links with the international legal community. He is an internationally renowned expert in Public International Law, and currently teaches at the University of Oxford. Professor Akande is also a founder of EJIL:TALK! and a board member for several legal journals and scholarly societies around the world.
As a lawyer, he has advised countries from around the globe and has appeared before many of the world’s leading legal institutions, such as the International Court of Justice, the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, the International Criminal Court and the European Court of Human Rights.
Professor Akande has a strong vision and if elected he has three main aims: to help the Commission solve contemporary problems of international law; to work closely with UN member states in identifying topics and developing solutions and; to ensure the highest standards of technical legal expertise.
The UK Foreign Secretary, Dominic Raab, stated:
The United Kingdom has always been a strong supporter of the International Law Commission and is proud of the contribution that British international lawyers have made to its work. I believe that Professor Akande is perfectly positioned to strengthen this contribution yet further.
The UK’s candidate to join the Commission, Professor Akande, said:
It is a true honour to be nominated by the UK, Nigeria, Japan, Kenya and Slovenia for the International Law Commission. Throughout my career, I have championed and promoted internationalism. If elected, I will strive to make a meaningful contribution to international law and international cooperation.
On 10 June Professor Akande will take part in the event ‘Crimes Against Humanity: the legal framework and the work of the International Law Commission’ with Professor Charles Jalloh, Sierra Leone candidate for the ILC, and Professor Phoebe Okowa, nominated for the ILC by Kenya and UK.
Background
Professor Dapo Akande is the United Kingdom candidate for the International Law Commission for the term 2023 to 2027, and has also been nominated by Japan, Kenya, Nigeria and Slovenia. Each member of the International Law Commission may nominate up to four candidates, and the UK has also nominated Japan’s Professor Masahiko Asada and Kenya’s Professor Phoebe Okowa. The election will take place in November 2021. For further details about Professor Akande, his campaign brochure is available in English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Arabic, Chinese and Russian.