34th Christof Heyns African Human Rights Moot Court Competition in Cape Town: Highlights and Results

The long-awaited 34^th edition of the Christof Heyns African Moot Court Competition took place at the University of Cape Town (UCT), South Africa, from 29 June to 5 July 2025. The winners of this year’s competition were the combined team from the University of Nairobi, Kenya, and Instituto Superior de Ciências e Tecnologia de Moçambique, Mozambique. The University of Nairobi was represented by Mwiti Edna Nkirote and Dickson Gitonga, while the Délcia de Albertina Julião and Miguel Enzo Antonio represented Instituto Superior de Ciências e Tecnologia de Moçambique.

The runners-up were the British University in Egypt, represented by Hala Ezzeldin and Seif Ezzat, and the Université Catholique d’Afrique de l’Ouest, represented by Monké Jude Samuel-Élie Gnanzi and Yah Arielle Mariame Touré.

The final round took place at J & J Conferences, Belmont Square, where the competing teams argued before a bench of six eminent judges. Presiding Judge, Judge CMJ Fortuin (Western Cape Division) was joined by Professor Catherine Maia (Professor of International Law, Lusófona University), Justice Duncan Gaswaga (Judge at the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights), Dr Solomon Dersso (Commissioner at the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights), Professor Benyam Mezmur (Chairperson, UN Committee on the Rights of the Child), and Mr Kissi Agyebeng (Special Prosecutor of Ghana).

Co-host: UCT

For this edition, UCT served as co-host of the competition. Professor Danwood Chirwa, Dean of the Faculty of Law, played a pivotal role in the event’s success. He was supported by Mrs Faiza Mohamed, and a dedicated team of staff members. The Centre also gratefully acknowledge the commitment of UCT student volunteers who provided on-the-ground support throughout the week.

Conference and Opening Ceremony

Held on 29 June at the Kramer Law Building at UCT, the conference unfolded in two parts. The first part addressed one of the main themes for this year’s hypothetical case, statelessness. The second part focused on the African human rights system. Moderators were Sheryl Kunaka and Professor Frans Viljoen, respectively. The keynote address was delivered by Justin MacDermott, the Regional Director of the International Organization for Migration sub-Regional Office for Southern Africa.

Later in the evening, the opening ceremony took place at the Law Building. The keynote speech was given by Alan Richard Winde, the current Premier of the Western Cape. Welcoming remarks were also shared by UCT Vice-Chancellor Professor Mosa Moshabela and University of Pretoria Vice-Chancellor Professor Francis Petersen.

Preliminary Rounds

This year saw participation from 57 universities: 41 Anglophone, 9 Francophone and 7 Lusophone teams. Among the new entrants was Mohammed VI Polytechnic University, marking its debut in the competition.

The preliminary rounds involved all participating teams arguing the hypothetical case twice: once as Applicant and once as Respondent. The rounds were held separately in English, French and Portuguese. The panels of judges were made up of human rights lecturers and lawyers. Scores were awarded based on the following criteria:

Knowledge of facts
Articulation and correct analysis of issues
Familiarity with international law, with preference for African authorities
Persuasiveness
Ingenuity
Organisation
Ability to respond to questions

Top 10 English Teams

Team	University	Country	Score	Ranking
46	Kenyatta University	Kenya	85,37	1
22	Makerere University	Uganda	83,71	2
9	University of Ghana, Legon	Ghana	83,56	3
39	University of the Free State	South Africa	82,83	4
2	The British University in Egypt	Egypt	82,35	5
31	University of Nairobi	Kenya	81,93	6
52	The University of Lusaka	Zambia	81,42	7
33	Stellenbosch University	South Africa	81,41	8
8	Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology	Ghana	81,16	9
40	Daystar University	Kenya	81,04	10

Top 5 French Teams

Team	University	Country	Score	Ranking
9	Université Officielle de Bukavu	DRC	83,13	1
5	Université Felix Houphouët-Boigny de Cocody	Ivory Coast	83,02	2
6	Université Catholique d’Afrique de l’Ouest	Ivory Coast	82,18	3
13	Mohammed VI Polytechnic University	Morocco	80,79	4
4	Institut Universitaire d’Abidjan	Ivory Coast	77,46	5

Top 5 Portuguese Teams

Team	University	Country	Score	Ranking
6	Universidade Eduardo Mondlane	Mozambique	82,31	1
7	Universidade Jean Piaget de Angola	Angola	81,63	2
1	Universidade Zambeze	Mozambique	78,88	3
3	Instituto Superior de Ciências e Tecnologia de Moçambique	Mozambique	76,66	4
5	Universidade Wutivi	Mozambique	72,01	5

Top 10 English Memorials

Ranking	University	Country	Memorial
1	Uganda Christian University	Uganda	87,00
2	Makerere University	Uganda	85,75
3	Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology	Ghana	84,50
4	University of Ghana, Legon	Ghana	84,00
5	University of Venda	South Africa	84,00
6	Kenyatta University	Kenya	83,75
7	University of the Free State	South Africa	83,50
8	Haramaya University	Ethiopia	83,00
9	Islamic University in Uganda -Kampala Campus	Uganda	82,75
10	Nelson Mandela University	South Africa	81,00

Top 5 French Memorials

Ranking	University	Country	Memorial
1	Université Felix Houphouët-Boigny de Cocody	Ivory Coast	74,75
2	Université Officielle de Bukavu	DRC	72,50
3	Mohammed VI Polytechnic University	Morocco	70,25
4	Université Catholique d’Afrique de l’Ouest	Ivory Coast	68,75
5	Université du Burundi	Burundi	67,75

Top 5 Portuguese Memorials

Ranking	University	Country	Memorial
1	Universidade Eduardo Mondlane	Mozambique	86,50
2	Universidade Jean Piaget de Angola	Angola	81,75
3	Universidade Catolica de Mocambique – Nampula	Mozambique	78,25
4	Universidade Wutivi	Mozambique	77,00
5	Universidade Zambeze	Mozambique	76,50

Top 10 English Oralists

Ranking	University	Country	Names	Individual 35%
1	Kabarak University	Kenya	Ms Adeline Chelagat Kiptoo	30,36
2	Kenyatta University	Kenya	Mr Simon Kimuhu Muriithi	30,35
3	University of Nairobi	Kenya	Ms Mwiti Edna Nkirote	30,10
4	Kenyatta University	Kenya	Ms Cynthia Yego	29,90
5	University of Nairobi	Kenya	Mr Dickson Gitonga Mwebia	29,85
6	Makerere University	Uganda	Ms Sweetie Catherine Ogwal	29,60
7	Stellenbosch University	South Africa	Ms Carolyn Laker	29,41
8	University of Ghana, Legon	Ghana	Mr Laud Nii Mantey Annang	29,23
9	The University of Lusaka	Zambia	Mr Tadala Kaluba	29,21
10	University of the Free State	South Africa	Ms Hope Mogakane	29,15

Top 5 French Oralists

Ranking	University	Country	Names	Individual 35%
1	Université Catholique d’Afrique de l’Ouest	Ivory Coast	Ms Yah Arielle Mariame Touré	29,79
2	Université Officielle de Bukavu	DRC	Mr Minani Joël	29,42
3	Université Felix Houphouët-Boigny de Cocody	Ivory Coast	Ms Aya Prisca Evelyne Koffi	28,65
4	Mohammed VI Polytechnic University	Morocco	Ms Malak Rafik	28,38
5	Université Catholique d’Afrique de l’Ouest	Ivory Coast	Mr Monké Jude Samuel-Élie Gnanzi	28,34

Top 5 Portuguese Oralists

Ranking	University	Country	Names	Individual 35%
1	Universidade Zambeze	Mozambique	Dudas Galhardo	29,66
2	Universidade Eduardo Mondlane	Mozambique	Pedro Ezequiel Cossa	29,65
3	Universidade Jean Piaget de Angola	Angola	Manuel Campos	28,79
4	Universidade Jean Piaget de Angola	Angola	Marina Calanda	28,32
5	Instituto Superior de Ciências e Tecnologia de Moçambique	Mozambique	Délcia de Albertina Julião	27,50

Closing Ceremony

As the curtains fell on an incredible week, participants of the Moot Court were treated to a grand closing dinner held at Akamah Estate, in Upper Constantia.

Support

The event would not have been possible without the generous financial support of the Millennium Trust and the European Union through the Global Campus of Human Rights. Their contributions were instrumental in bringing together students, academics, and legal professionals from across the continent and beyond.

2026 Moot Court Competition

The 2026 edition of the Christof Heyns African Human Rights Moot Court Competition will be hosted in Ivory Coast. This marks the competition’s return to the West African region, following its successful hosting in East Africa (Rwanda) in 2024 and in Southern Africa (South Africa) in 2025.