Series · UGGC Africa country factsheets
Practical benchmarks, country by country, for investors and general counsel. Each factsheet combines a base of factual data — company forms, taxation, incentives, key sectors, foreign-exchange rules — with a practitioner’s reading from UGGC Africa: what the texts say vs ground reality. Twenty-nine countries across three legal areas: the OHADA area and its uniform business law, North Africa where each State has its own legal regime, and the Gulf split between mainland and free-zone regimes.
OHADA area — 17 member States, a uniform business law
Seventeen states share a single body of business law, the OHADA Uniform Acts, and a common court — the CCJA in Abidjan — whose arbitral awards are enforceable across the whole area. Company forms, security interests and accounting standards (SYSCOHADA) are identical from Dakar to Libreville; taxation and foreign-exchange rules remain national.
North Africa — 6 countries, each with its own legal regime
No uniform framework here: each country applies its own company law, its own arbitration institutions and its own accounting standards. Foreign-exchange control is the decisive variable — convertibility for current transactions is generally available, while restrictions on capital movements vary widely from one country to the next.
Middle East and Gulf — 6 countries, mainland and free zones
Each state combines a mainland regime, governed by national law, with free zones that have their own regulators — and, in the financial free zones, their own courts in the common-law tradition. Corporate tax and VAT are not harmonised across the region despite the GCC framework agreement, and the rules on foreign ownership have been reformed at different dates from one country to the next.
Our method — what sets our factsheets apart
A UGGC factsheet is not an aggregation of public data. Each country is treated with:
- a sourced factual base (macro, company forms, taxation, incentives, FX);
- a practitioner’s reading — structuring choices, local pitfalls, text-vs-practice gaps — signed by the relevant office;
- the OHADA securing levers: CCJA arbitration, security interests, harmonised governance and accounting (SYSCOHADA).
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Disclaimer. These factsheets are provided for general information and do not constitute legal or tax advice. Figures are drawn from public sources and are subject to change. Any investment decision should be the subject of tailored analysis.