In a significant shake-up ahead of one of East Africa’s premier legal events, the East Africa Law Society (EALS) has officially announced the relocation of its 30th Annual Conference and General Meeting from Tanzania to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. This follows a communiqué issued by EALS President Ramadhan Abubakar, dated June 20, 2025, from Arusha, Tanzania.
Originally slated to be hosted in Zanzibar, Tanzania, the landmark conference was expected to celebrate EALS’s 30th anniversary with pomp and regional unity. However, ongoing political developments in Tanzania, including the upcoming general elections, have led the EALS Governing Council to reconsider the venue. The decision was reached during a council meeting held on June 16th, 2025.
The statement strongly emphasizes that the governing body opted to prioritize the safety, comfort, and full participation of all its members, leading to the final decision to hold the conference in Addis Ababa, which is hailed as the center of continental diplomacy in Africa.
The 30th EALS Annual Conference is expected to attract over 800 legal professionals including lawyers, judges, academics, regulators, and policy makers from across East Africa and beyond. This year’s event holds special significance, as it commemorates three decades of EALS’s work in advancing the rule of law, regional integration, and legal excellence in the region. EALS currently boasts over 45,000 members spread across the East African Community, the Horn of Africa, and Southern Africa.
The relocation to Addis Ababa also coincides with the recent admission of the Ethiopian Federal Advocates Association (EFAA) into EALS membership, marking Ethiopia’s formal integration into the East African legal fraternity. The communiqué views this as an ideal moment to foster deeper collaboration and welcome Ethiopian colleagues into the EALS fold.
The move, while diplomatically phrased, is a blow to Tanzania’s image as a regional hub for major legal and policy events. It also underscores how electoral activities can influence the scheduling and location of key regional functions. The East African legal community will now turn its eyes to Addis Ababa, where the symbolic 30th Anniversary of EALS is set to unfold under a renewed banner of continental unity.
