Leading South African firm ENSafrica has announced it is to join forces with one of Ghana’s most highly rated firms, Oxford & Beaumont. The firm is among the market leaders in Accra, and has IFLR1000 Leading lawyers Elikem Nutifafa Kuenyehia and Paa Kwesi Morrison in its ranks.
Ghana is a logical step in ENS’s recent progression into sub-Saharan Africa. Alongside a wealth of natural resources, Ghana boasts a fast and growing economy, is politically stable and has an open legal market, making it an attractive destination for the firm to make its next move.
The firm launched in Tanzania earlier this year after combining with local firm Rex Attorneys, and other recent additions to the growing network include Mauritius and Uganda. The roadmap has so far been focused on African jurisdictions lying in the south and east of the continent, and this will be the firm's first foray into the west of the continent.
Active now in seven jurisdictions, the firm is distinct in that all of its offices operate as one firm, opposed to many other pan-African networks who maintain independance and ultilise a referral system.
Given the relaxed regulations surrounding foreign practice in Ghana, it is something of a surprise that ENS are among the first to establish in the jurisdiction, but it is unlikely they will be the last to do so.