Guide to Insolvency and Business Restructuring in Africa

Welcome to the fifth edition of the Insolvency and Business Restructuring Guide for Africa. As head of the Insolvency, Business Rescue and Restructuring practice group at Werksmans, it is a pleasure to bring you this publication which is published in collaboration with all of our LEX Africa member firms in over 28 jurisdictions across the continent.

The purpose of the guide is to share pertinent data and information with all of you, which will provide you with a better understanding of each of the relevant jurisdictions’ approach to insolvency and restructuring matters. We hope this guide, which is unique in both its content and reach, will be used to your benefit in the years to come.

It is our intention to continuously update this publication with further contributions from additional African jurisdictions as well as keep you abreast of the latest legal frameworks and developments affecting this area of practice. There are diverse challenges and risks which any investor, financial institution or international corporate might face in investing in any jurisdiction around the world. Particularly, in emerging markets like those found in Africa, it is important to understand the limitations, scope and efficacy of the insolvency regimes applicable in each jurisdiction and the ability to foreclose and extract value in a distressed debt situation.

The purpose of the publication is to gain a better understanding of what makes up the various insolvency and rescue regimes in each one of the relevant African jurisdictions. As can be seen, there have been certain legislative reforms in various African jurisdictions in the insolvency space. Although there are significant and crucial differences between individual African jurisdictions in the realm of insolvency legislation, current reforms appear to reflect an attempt to harmonise insolvency and restructuring regimes across the continent.

Many of these legislative enhancements have been imported from international and domestic insolvency regimes which have been adapted to bring local regimes into line with international best practice.

This edition of the Insolvency and Business Restructuring Guide sets the tone for the African continent and establishes a guideline which is both informative and useful. There is no doubt that the key issues raised in the guide will assist in gaining a better understanding of the various applicable insolvency regimes operative across the continent.

LEX Africa is the first and largest African legal alliance with a long history of assisting clients across the continent. It is hoped that our insight into these issues will be both informative and practical.

I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge and thank those of my colleagues both within Werksmans and the LEX Africa Alliance who contributed their time and specialist expertise to assist in the production of this publication. In particular, I would like to thank Lauren Becker of Werksmans for her input in editing the publication.