The Dean of the Ghana Institute of Management & Public Administration (GIMPA) Law School, Dr Kwaku Agyeman-Budu, has been announced as the keynote speaker for the 2026 conference of the NYU African Law Association.

The conference, themed “Africa in Focus: Lawyering for Social Change and Good Governance,” will take place on March 6, 2026, at Furman Hall, 245 Sullivan Street, New York, from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

The event is being organised in collaboration with the NYU Changemaker Centre.

Dr Agyeman-Budu’s selection as the keynote speaker places Ghana at the centre of a high-level international dialogue on the evolving role of legal practitioners in shaping democratic governance, advancing social justice, and strengthening institutional accountability across the African continent.

As Dean of GIMPA Law School, he has been involved in legal education reforms and in thought leadership on public administration, governance, and the intersection of law and development.

The conference aims to explore how lawyers are deploying the law as a strategic tool to promote people-centred justice, foster sustainable development, and enhance international cooperation within African legal systems.

Organisers say the forum will bring together practitioners, academics, and students to reflect on the current landscape of legal practice in Africa and its broader global implications.

A distinguished lineup of speakers will join the Ghanaian dean on the platform. They include Alice Adu Gyamfi, Associate at DLA Piper; Jacqueline C.A. Dugard, Senior Lecturer at the Institute for the Study of Human Rights at Columbia University; Paolo Galizzi, Clinical Professor of Law and Director of the Sustainable Development Legal Initiative at Fordham Law; Themba Mahleka, Associate Director at Pathfinders for Peaceful, Just and Inclusive Societies at NYU; and Emerson J. Sykes, Senior Staff Attorney at the American Civil Liberties Union and Adjunct Professor of Law at NYU Law.

The event is expected to attract students, scholars, policymakers, and members of the legal community interested in Africa’s governance trajectory and the transformative potential of law in addressing contemporary social challenges.