For a long time, there have been many calls from African scholars for the harmonization of commercial laws,[32] and OHADA perhaps is the strongest echo. “OHADA” is the French acronym for the Organization pour l''Harmonization en Afrique du Droit des Affairs, with the English meaning Organization for the Harmonization of Business Law in Africa (OHBLA). The organization was created according to the Treaty on the Harmonization of Business Law in Africa signed in Mauritius in 1993. Currently OHADA has 16 member states, most of them--Benin, Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, the Republic of Congo, C?te d''lvoire, Gabon, the Republic of Guinea, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo—are Francophone, but Guinea-Bissau is Portuguese-speaking, while Equatorial Guinea is Spanish-speaking. There is one bilingual member state, Cameroon, both Anglophone and Francophone. The Treaty is open to all African states, whether or not they are members of the African Union (AU).[33]The Democratic Republic of Congo has officially announced its decision to become an OHADA member and is currently proceeding with the admission process.
It has been made clear in the Treaty that the main objective of OHADA is to remedy the legal and judicial insecurity that prevails in member states by modernizing and harmonizing commercial laws and promoting arbitration as a means of settling contractual disputes and in the end to realize the economic integration.[34]In pursuance of its aims, OHADA issues unified legislation in the form of Uniform Acts on particular areas of the law.[35] So far, 8 Uniform Acts have been adopted in relation to general commercial activities, securities, company law and commercial interest grouping (GIE) laws, bankruptcy, debt recovery and enforcement law, arbitration, accounting, and road transport contracts. These Acts are directly applicable and overriding in the Contracting States notwithstanding any conflict they give rise to in respect of previous or subsequent enactment of municipal laws.[36] “OHADA is therefore a process of unification, rather than harmonization”.[37] OHADA is not just a system of uniform laws; it is a unified legal system designed to protect and enhance the pro-investment qualities of the OHADA laws.[38] To assure the uniform application and interpretation of the Acts in the Contracting States, a Common Court of Justice and Arbitration (CCJA) was set up. All these efforts are thought highly of, as Mr Aregba Polo, Permanent Secretary of OHADA, indicated that OHADA efforts are more ambitious than the EC harmonization effort due to the direct application of the Acts and the harmonized interpretation made by CCJA.[39]
Although the OHADA system is still under construction, lawyers and businessmen already acknowledge that OHADA has made a significant contribution to enhancing the legal environment for investment in Africa.[40] It not only introduces modern and market-friendly legislation but also creates a common legal area in the region,[41] thus enhance the investor''s confidence in the region. However, regrettably the harmonization of commercial laws in the OHADA region does not receive much attention from Chinese investors or scholars. Up to now, there are no special books or articles on the harmonized commercial laws of OHADA in China; they are only referred to briefly in books or articles.[42]
