Opening Address by the President of the Mozambique Bar Association, Dr. Carlos Martins, at the Opening Ceremony of the 25th Annual Conference of the SADC Lawyers Association (SADC-LA)
Your Excellency, the Minister of Justice and of Constitutional and Religious Affairs
Your Excellency, Mr. President of the SADC Lawyers’ Association
Distinguished President-Elect of the Mozambican Bar Association
Honorable President of the Supreme Court
Honorable President of the Administrative Court
Honorable Attorney General of the Republic
Honorable Ombudsman
Your Excellency, Mr. President Armando Emílio Guebuza
Your Excellency, Ms. Essilina Macome
Members of the Governing Bodies of the Bar Association
Your Excellency, the President of the Municipal Council of the City of Maputo
Your Excellency, the Secretary of State in the City of Maputo
Distinguished Judges, Public Prosecutors, Lawyers and Trainee Lawyers
Academics, Researchers, Students and other participants
It is with immense honor that the Mozambican Bar Association welcomes you to the city of Maputo for the 26th Annual Conference of the SADC Lawyers’ Association. Hosting this Conference holds enormous symbolic significance, because it was precisely in this city that, in 1999, the vision of a united regional legal profession, committed to the rule of law, the defense of fundamental freedoms, and the legal integration of Southern Africa, was born. Today we return to the place where it all began – not in order to celebrate the past, but rather to decide the future, because, as African wisdom teaches, “It is not aging that should concern us, but growing“: in other words, we should not only exist, but also progress, with awareness and courage.
We live in a time in which law has ceased to be merely an instrument for conflict resolution, and has become a real factor of competitiveness, and of economic, financial, social, and even political sustainability. No country attracts and retains investment without legal certainty. No market prospers without strong and credible institutions, founded on solid and stable norms. No democracy can withstand the test of time without an independent legal profession. And no region will achieve lasting prosperity if the fundamental principles of its legal systems remain incommunicable, slow, or unable to keep up with the speed of economic and technological transformation – all of which affects social justice, which is the bedrock of all States.
The theme of this Conference — “Strengthening the Resilience of the SADC Region, in the Areas of Agriculture, Energy and Industry” — was not chosen by chance. Agriculture, energy and industrialization are currently the three pillars of the economic transformation of our region. Without food security, there is no social stability. Without energy, there is no industrialization. Without industry, there are no sustainable jobs, and without law, there is no investor confidence. Law is, therefore, the invisible infrastructure for the growth and freedom of our economies, independently of the distinct legal traditions of each of the region’s members.
Over these two days we will discuss governance, food security, access to land, energy transition, investment, contracts, arbitration, dispute resolution, industrialization, regional trade, innovation and sustainability. But the real challenge of this Conference is not just to produce excellent debates. The real challenge lies, on the one hand, in transforming ideas into concrete public policy proposals, recommendations into legislative reforms, and consensus into commitments for the future, and on the other hand, in encouraging intellectual freedom, critical freedom, freedom through civic education, and economic freedom.
It is precisely for these reasons that we intend this Conference to result in a Maputo Declaration – not just one more institutional document, destined for the archives, but a real plan of action for the region, capable of propelling governments and the private sector towards the building of a more integrated, resilient, and competitive SADC community, with benefits for all. To this end, we must reconcile differing interests, and strengthen regional cooperation, while also acknowledging that the frequent political and institutional instability of some of our member states makes it difficult to harmonize legal norms and practices.
Allow us also to reflect on the SADC Lawyers’ Association itself. Organizations do not remain relevant simply because they have a respectable history. They remain relevant because they manage to reinvent themselves, overhauling themselves in response to the broad spectrum of challenges of the time. The SADC Lawyers’ Association has, for over two decades, played a timid role in the defense of the rule of law, human rights, and the independence of the profession. But the regional context has changed profoundly, and demands a different organization: one that is more dynamic, more influential, more present, and more useful for, and in, the protection of its members, their interests, and the regional legal profession itself, with firm intent.
We must also, with humility and frankness, acknowledge some of the constraints that limit our capacity for intervention. Excessive reliance on membership fees and annual conferences in order to ensure financial sustainability, limited member participation throughout the year, reduced institutional visibility, insufficient production of regional legal knowledge, and the difficulty of transforming recommendations into concrete actions, are challenges that we cannot continue to ignore. Organizations do not weaken because its members are of a poor quality. They weaken when they fail to meet the needs of their members. Tomorrow’s narrative begins with today’s decisions, and our decision, here and now, can be the first step on a new path.
Therefore, we believe that the time has come to transform the SADC Lawyers’ Association into a permanently active organization. The wounds of glory are healed by glory itself. The involvement of lawyers and law firms in the region cannot be limited to two or three days of conferences, per year. We need to build a true regional legal community, in which cooperation is ongoing, in which members feel that they belong to an organization that adds value every day, and not just during annual meetings, in which corporate solidarity prevails, and in which effective solidarity extends between peoples. The greater the sense of belonging, the greater the collective commitment to our mission, for the humanization of our region.
Ongoing training should be one of the top strategic priorities of the SADC Lawyers’ Association. The law evolves daily and constantly. Artificial intelligence, minerals market, the digital economy, cybersecurity, energy contracts, climate finance, and international arbitration demand increasingly specialized skills. The SADC Lawyers’ Association should become a regional benchmark in the training of lawyers, promoting courses, certified programs, professional exchanges, and specializations in strategic areas. Investing in training is investing in the credibility of the profession and the sustainability of the organization itself.
We also advocate for the institutionalization of quarterly online events, through webinars, virtual conferences, and thematic roundtables, with rotation among the Organization’s members. This is a simple, financially accessible measure with enormous impact. It will allow us to maintain ongoing dialogue among professionals in the region, to publish best practice guidelines, to discuss relevant case law, and to bring together those lawyers who would otherwise find it difficult to meet in person. Geographical distance cannot be a barrier to the legal integration of the SADC region.
Another crucial step will be the creation of a Regional Arbitration Center for the SADC Lawyers’ Association, or at least, the joining of an existing Regional Arbitration Center. Our region needs to promote credible, specialized, and independent institutions with which to resolve commercial, investment, infrastructure, energy, mining, and regional trade disputes. A center of this nature will strengthen alternative dispute resolution mechanisms, increase investor confidence, and establish the SADC Lawyers’ Association as a provider of legal services which add a high level of value. Moreover, it will create an important source of its own revenue, in order to ensure the financial sustainability of the organization, which is so dependent on sponsorship.
We also need to build a real regional digital platform. Imagine a SADC Lawyers’ Association website, containing a comprehensive database of lawyers, law firms, and legal experts from the fifteen SADC countries. A platform whereby any company, investor, or citizen is able to identify qualified professionals for cross-border operations, and on which it is possible to publicize professional opportunities, relevant decisions, scientific publications, and training programs.
We would be creating a real regional legal marketplace, bringing professionals closer together, and fostering new business opportunities.
These measures may seem simple. But it is precisely these simple measures, when implemented consistently, that transform institutions. We don’t need super-organizations, we need more useful organizations. We don’t just need inspiring speeches, we need measurable results. We don’t just need to celebrate regional integration, we need to build it every day, and so we must seek sustainable governance models. We need to invest in digital platforms, technological capacity-building, and institutional security, in order to meet the challenges of our time.
At the same time, we must deepen cooperation with universities, research centers, regulators, arbitration tribunals, business organizations, financial institutions, and international partners. The SADC Lawyers’ Association must establish itself as a real regional center for the production of legal knowledge, by influencing legislative reforms, issuing technical legal opinions, promoting comparative studies, and actively participating in major debates on economic development and African integration.
The legal profession has always played a role far beyond the mere practice of law. It has always been the conscience and critical voice of society. It has always been present in the great struggles for freedom, democracy, and human rights. Today, this mission remains, but a new responsibility is added: to actively contribute to creating legal conditions that favor economic development, innovation, responsible investment, and the shared prosperity of the peoples of Southern Africa.
The SADC region was built upon the ideals of cooperation, solidarity, and the free movement of its peoples. The mobility of people, including lawyers, business people, workers, students, and investors, is an essential factor for regional integration, for boosting economies, and for the exchange of knowledge. Strengthening our community depends on the ability to guarantee an environment of security, respect for human dignity, and observance of the rule of law, because a region that facilitates the movement of people and ideas inevitably becomes more prosperous and more united.
May this Conference mark the beginning of a new season for the SADC Lawyers’ Association. A season of closer ties with its members, greater financial independence, greater scientific output, greater institutional involvement, and greater regional influence. A season in which we cease to be merely an association that organizes conferences, and establish ourselves as a true African benchmark for the promotion of the rule of law, legal integration, and sustainable development.
We would like to address a special word to the young lawyers present. The future of our profession will be determined less by the titles you accumulate, and more by your ability to learn continuously, cooperate across borders, and put legal knowledge at the service of people. The legal profession of the future will be increasingly international, interdisciplinary, technological, and committed to solutions. Preparing this generation is a responsibility that belongs to us and that we cannot decline.
We conclude by recalling that no organization transforms itself solely through the decisions of its leaders. Institutions transform when each member decides to assume a share of the collective responsibility. May we return to our countries determined to do more for the SADC Lawyers’ Association, for the legal profession, and for regional integration. May this result in a stronger, more modern, more sustainable, and more useful organization for all its members.
We hope that the 26th Annual Conference of the SADC Lawyers’ Association will produce bold ideas, solid consensus, and lasting commitments. May Maputo once again be, as it was in 1999, the birthplace of a new era for regional law. And may we, in the future, when we look back on this Conference, be able to say that it was here that the SADC Lawyers’ Association decided not only to celebrate its history, but also to build its future. The important thing is that we continue to grow and mature with purpose, broadening horizons and deepening our roots. Enjoy this beautiful and unique nation.
Thank you very much for your attention.
To an ethical, high-quality, and modern legal profession, at the service of society.
Maputo, 2 July, 2026
The President of the Mozambican Bar Association
Dr. Carlos Martins
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