ABSTRACT
Extant legal and governance mechanisms at regional and/or national levels are not potent enough to adequately address the gradual decline of Africa’s environment and promote sustainability. There is general agreement that a paradigm shift to (African) regional environmental governance, is required; but in what direction? Perhaps, in light of the transboundary nature of existing environmental threats and degradation as well as their sources and the responsible entities in Africa, the judiciary may just be a pragmatic platform to secure an effective environmental governance regime in Africa. The idea that environmental courts can play a major role in redeeming and protecting Africa’s rich environment is gradually gaining prominence. This prominence is premised on earlier proposals for an International Environmental Court made at the UN Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro in 1992. It supports the idea of establishing regional environmental courts in Africa as part of global efforts to redesign the architectural structures of environmental governance in Africa to seek climate and environmental justice. This chapter assesses the feasibility, desirability, and justifications for establishing an African regional court, and engages with its potential criticisms and challenges. To achieve the foregoing objective, the chapter uses the doctrinal research methodology.
