UCC Law Journal

The concept of informed consent in healthcare delivery in Ghana: a rhetoric or reality?

Daniel Bioyel Bewel — 2025-09-01

This paper examines the doctrine of informed consent within the Ghanaian healthcare system, interrogating the significant disconnect between its progressive enactment and the practical realities of its implementation. The claim made in the paper is that the complex legal doctrine of informed consent, when transplanted into Ghana’s healthcare system, reflects modern patient-centric standards from advanced jurisdictions, yet remains largely theoretical in Ghana. This shortfall is evidenced by a complete absence of judicial precedents and direct jurisprudence on informed consent, amid persistent systemic and socio–cultural barriers. Using a doctrinal research methodology coupled with a socio-legal contextual analysis, this paper analyses primary and secondary legal sources to establish the challenges encountered in implementing the doctrine of informed consent. Although informed consent, as outlined in Ghanaian law, reflects the context in which it has been used and applied in advanced countries, systemic challenges, evidenced by recent data on literacy rates and inadequate doctor-to-patient ratios, are identified as hurdles that render the practical application of the doctrine of informed consent largely aspirational. Ghana’s doctor-to-patient ratio falls below the World Health Organisation recommended ratio of 1:1,320. The paper concludes that for informed consent to transition from rhetoric to reality in Ghana, a modified framework of contextualised informed consent is required. This paper proposes measures such as the development of standardised consent protocols for low-literacy populations, the formulation of official guidelines for navigating familial involvement in decision-making, and the introduction of comprehensive language policies in the training of health professionals and medical interpreters.

Promoting grassroots mediation as a mechanism for peace reinforcement

Victoria M. Time — 2025-12-09

This study reports findings on ethnographic research done in three counties in Kenya from January to June 2023. Two levels of exploration were applied. First, based on participant observation of 31 local trials, the study reports on how the affable ways of settling disputes provide a stage-setting for peacemaking and reconciliation. Second, through 62 interviews, 10 of which were with jurists in Nairobi, and 52 with local mediators in the three research counties, descriptive accounts of the merits of mediation, including its harmony-focused goal, help to clarify and further substantiate the peacemaking perspective in criminology, which advocates understanding, compassion, peace, and social justice. The underlying focus of the study was to learn why Alternative Dispute Resolution, in particular mediation, resonates profoundly among a significant number of Kenyans. Some key reasons are the celerity, convenience, congeniality, and cost efficiency, among others, entailed in mediating cases. A few limitations of the study are reported, including a less-than-robust sample and the absence of interviews with litigants.

Regulatory standards for the decommissioning of oil and gas installations in Nigeria: A cross-national case study

Enobong Mbang Akpambang — 2025-09-01

Petroleum assets decommissioning is ineluctable once the oilfield reaches the end of its operational lifespan, as extending or replacing the infrastructure may no longer be technically or commercially sustainable. In Nigeria, most studies on decommissioning focus mainly on comparing Nigeria’s frameworks with those of developed petroleum-producing countries, overlooking lessons from developing oil-rich nations. To address the gap, the paper examines Nigeria’s decommissioning regulatory framework and implementation challenges via a comparative analysis with the United Kingdom (UK) and Ghana to identify lessons that Nigeria can draw from the comparator countries. The UK was selected for its widespread decommissioning experience and robust regulatory regime, while Ghana, a developing hydrocarbon-producing country, currently executing decommissioning operations of its Saltpond oilfield, provides practical insights for Nigeria, which has yet to start any decommissioning activities. Utilising a doctrinal legal research method, the article examines conventions, statutes, case laws, and relevant literature. Findings disclosed that though the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021 and its regulations align with international standards, considerable regulatory and institutional gaps impede effective implementation. Challenges include undue ministerial discretion, weak enforcement, limited technical capability, and possible fiscal risk linked to unstable financial institutions managing decommissioning funds. Comparatively, the UK exemplifies a strong regulatory and practical model, while Ghana accentuates the importance of early and proactive decommissioning planning. The article concludes that Nigeria can reinforce its decommissioning governance, mitigate environmental concerns, and improve socio-economic gains through effective implementation of extant laws, embracing global excellent practices, and drawing lessons from both the UK and Ghana.