- 9 Agho Street, Benin City, Nigeria
Call us :
- + 234 708 745 2889
- info@cfcomlaw.com
The Centre for Community Law (CFComLaw) is a non-profit organisation dedicated to advancing knowledge of ECOWAS law and oceanic law across West Africa. Through research, public education, policy engagement, and its peer-reviewed academic journal, CFComLaw works to ensure that ECOWAS frameworks become a living reality for the citizens, institutions, and coastal communities they are designed to serve. CFComLaw holds observer status with the International Seabed Authority under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
- Address
- 9, Agho Street, BeninCity, Edo State, Nigeria
- Phone
Who We Are
The Centre for Community & Oceanic Law
Bridging Law and Community Across West Africa
The Centre for Community & Oceanic Law (CFComLaw) is a non-profit, non-political organisation registered as an Incorporated Trustee under the laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in January 2020.
We are dedicated to advancing knowledge of ECOWAS law and oceanic law across West Africa — making regional legal frameworks accessible, actionable, and beneficial for citizens, governments, and institutions across all fifteen member states of the Economic Community of West African States.
Our work sits at the intersection of law, policy, and community — grounded in the conviction that a legally informed citizenry is the foundation of a just, integrated, and prosperous West Africa. From the courtrooms of the ECOWAS Community Court of Justice to the deep-sea governance floors of the International Seabed Authority, CFComLaw brings West Africa’s legal interests to where decisions are made.
Our Founding & Legal Status
Registered, Recognised, and Rooted in West Africa
CFComLaw was established in January 2020 and is registered as an Incorporated Trustee (Charity) under the laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Our principal offices are located at No. 9 Agho Street, off Ekehuan Road, Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria, and at the Faculty of Law, University of Benin — our primary academic hub, with whom we maintain a formal Memorandum of Understanding.
We are listed in the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA) Civil Society Database, and our SDG initiative is registered with the United Nations. In October 2024, the Assembly of the International Seabed Authority (ISA) granted CFComLaw Observer Status — recognising our organisation as a credible voice in the global governance of the international seabed Area.
Incorporated Trustee
Registered under Nigerian law, January 2020
UN DESA Listed
SDG initiative registered with the United Nations
ISA Observer Status
Granted October 2024 by the ISA Assembly
What We Do
Five Core Areas of Activity
Research & Publication
Peer-reviewed Journal of Community and International Law (JCIL), analytical blog posts, and policy briefs on ECOWAS law, oceanic law, and regional governance.
Public Legal Education
Webinars, community outreach, and online resources that make ECOWAS law accessible to citizens, students, and practitioners.
Policy Engagement
Evaluating member state compliance with ECOWAS obligations and engaging legislators, judges, and bar associations through evidence-based advocacy.
International Engagement
Representing West Africa's interests at the ISA, participating in tripartite judicial dialogues, and collaborating with academic institutions across the region.
Capacity Building
Seminars, workshops, moot court competitions, and roundtables that develop the next generation of regional legal practitioners and researchers.
Why CFComLaw Matters
Fifteen member states. Over 400 million people. One Community. ECOWAS was founded on the promise of economic integration, peace, and shared prosperity across West Africa. Yet the laws, protocols, and court decisions that underpin this community remain largely unknown to the citizens they are designed to protect. CFComLaw was created to change that.
The twelve coastal member states of ECOWAS sit on one of the world’s most resource-rich ocean frontiers — the Atlantic coast and the Gulf of Guinea. CFComLaw is the only organisation in ECOWAS dedicated specifically to translating this opportunity into knowledge, policy, and action.
Foundation
Our Vision & Mission
Our Vision
A West Africa in which ECOWAS law is known, respected, and actively used by citizens, governments, and institutions — and in which the vast ocean entitlements of the ECOWAS Community are governed sustainably, equitably, and in the collective interest of all fifteen member states.
Our Mission
The Centre for Community & Oceanic Law exists to bridge the knowledge gap between the ECOWAS legal regime and the national laws, practices, and expectations of member states — through research, public education, policy engagement, and the promotion of sustainable, knowledge-based governance of West Africa’s shared ocean space.