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Africa: legal resources for sub-Saharan jurisdictions: Home

Purpose of this guide

This guide is intended for students and researchers studying the law and legal systems and traditions of the countries of sub-Saharan Africa at the University of Oxford, although students and researchers from any field may find it useful.

Use this guide to find out about sources and commentary for sub-Saharan jurisdictions, including ebooks, ejournals, and databases.

Sub-Saharan Africa: quick start

The Law Bod has subscriptions to some specialist legal databases for law reports & legal journals from African jurisdictions: for licensing reasons access is limited to current OU students & faculty members with an Oxford SSO. For more information & how to access them see links below.

There are some reliable sources of African law on the free web. WorldLII Africa is a useful starting point, particularly if you are interested in jurisdictions belonging to the common law or Anglo-American legal tradition. 

Online resources available to anyone with access to the internet

The Law Bod shelves its collections of printed materials for individual African nations on Level 1 (one floor beneath the entrance level). The books are grouped by jurisdiction, with shelf marks beginning with the country name or an abbreviation of it. 

Depth of coverage varies considerably: you may well discover that for some countries the print collection has an historic rather than a current emphasis. It is also strongest in those countries with a British colonial legacy.
Note. The Law Library's largest collection is for South African law. For more on this jurisdiction, please consult our dedicated South African guide
For more detailed guidance for commentary on other sub-Saharan jurisdictions, please see the Books page and the Journals page in this guide.

The Law Library's collection is searchable using SOLO, Oxford University's online catalogue

If you are having difficulty using SOLO there is an online guide below,

Your searches in SOLO may well reveal other Bodleian Libraries have material which would support your research. 
In most cases, if you have a current Oxford University Card or a Bodleian Reader's Card, you will already be able to access these libraries - however, please do check information on the other Libraries' own websites, particularly their location & opening hours.

"The Africa Oxford Initiative (AfOx) is a cross-university platform for academic and research collaborations between the University of Oxford and African researchers and institutions. The Initiative supports the work of universities and research institutions across Africa and facilitates the development of equitable and extensive collaborations between Oxford and African institutions."

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