The Hague Conference on Private International Law (HCCH), an intergovernmental organisation established in 1893 and comprising 91 member states and the European Union, is set to establish its African regional office in Morocco, following the signing of a host country agreement in Rabat.
The agreement, which formalizes the establishment of the HCCH’s regional office for Africa, was signed on Monday in the Moroccan capital by Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccan Expatriates, Nasser Bourita, and HCCH Secretary General, Christophe Bernasconi.
This future office will be the third of its kind globally—after Latin America and the Asia-Pacific, marking a significant step in the organisation’s strategic expansion across the African continent.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Bernasconi emphasised that the new regional bureau will facilitate the promotion and implementation of HCCH’s legal cooperation instruments, particularly in areas such as family law, child protection, cross-border litigation, and the authentication of public documents.
The event was attended by Rachid Ouadifi, Director of Civil Affairs and Legal and Judicial Professions at the Ministry of Justice, who also serves as Morocco’s central authority for HCCH conventions and instruments.
Since its inception, the HCCH has developed more than 40 legal instruments aimed at improving cross-border civil and commercial cooperation.
Bernasconi hailed Morocco’s “recognised expertise” and its active participation in numerous HCCH conventions since becoming a member in 1993. “Thanks to its experience, Morocco will play a central role in the dynamism of this new bureau,” he stated.
The decision to establish the African office in Morocco was unanimously approved during the recent meeting of the Council on General Affairs and Policy (CGAP), held from March 4 to 7 at the HCCH headquarters in The Hague. The session brought together 452 delegates, representing 75 member states, 44 non-member states, and around 20 intergovernmental and non-governmental organisations.
During the meeting, Bernasconi expressed his “deep gratitude to the Moroccan authorities for their steadfast support and commitment to international legal cooperation,” voicing hope that the Rabat office would be inaugurated in the near future.
MK/te/sf/lb/gik/APA