A pivotal doctoral defense on contractual freedom in OHADA cooperative law
We are pleased to announce that on Wednesday, July 29, 2026, Mr. Sahalim AKAN successfully defended his doctoral thesis in private law. The defense, which took place in Room N°1 of the LTAG at the Université de Lomé in Togo, focused on the crucial topic of « Contractual Freedom in the OHADA Uniform Act on Cooperative Company Law ».
The esteemed jury comprised:
- Mr. Koffi Mawunyo AGBENOTO, Full Professor, Université de Lomé (Togo), served as the Jury President;
- Mr. Ampah JOHNSON-ANSAH, Associate Professor, Université de Lomé (Togo), acted as the Internal Rapporteur;
- Mr. Gnidouba Roger LANOU, Agrégé Associate Professor, Université Thomas Sankara (Burkina Faso), functioned as the External Rapporteur;
- Mr. Koffi Edem AVEGNON, Agrégé Associate Professor, Université de Lomé (Togo), participated as an Examiner;
- Mr. Akrawati Shamsidine ADJITA, Associate Professor and Dean of the Faculty of Law, Université de Lomé (Togo), guided the research as the Thesis Director.
Thesis summary
The manifestations of contractual freedom are increasingly evident today, playing a significant role within societies generally, and particularly concerning cooperative societies within the OHADA zone. This holds true despite potential skepticism arising from the binding nature of imperative rules governing these legal entities.
Indeed, considerable scope for freedom persists. This can be strategically leveraged through the careful drafting of social instruments, such as statutes and internal regulations, allowing for choices and supplementing the existing legal framework.
However, with numerous imperative rules still in place to limit its application, it becomes essential to examine the precise position of contractual freedom within the OHADA Uniform Act pertaining to cooperative company law.
This comprehensive study therefore seeks to delineate the boundaries within which the will of cooperative members can be expressed, while also identifying the constraints imposed by the institutional framework of corporate public policy. The actual reach of this public policy is not always easy to discern. The research offers the dual benefit of reigniting the debate between the contractual and institutional theories of legal personality, a subject of considerable interest to legal theorists, and revealing previously unrecognized areas of freedom for practitioners. Furthermore, it highlights certain legal deficiencies observed, proposing avenues for the enhancement of the AUSCOOP. The analysis ultimately demonstrates that statutory freedom is largely afforded to cooperative members, both during the formation of the cooperative society and throughout its ongoing operations.
Nevertheless, this freedom, far from being absolute, remains circumscribed by the mandatory regulations of cooperative company law, particularly through corporate public policy designed to safeguard the fundamental principles governing cooperative societies.
Keywords : Contractual freedom – Cooperative members – Public policy – AUSCOOP – OHADA.
For further details, you may contact :
Mr. Sahalim AKAN
Email : [email protected]
