Applications open for continental shelf seminar in Arusha, Tanzania
Levi Hanssen
30/11/2017
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Applications open for continental shelf seminar in Arusha, Tanzania

In September 2019, researchers, post-graduate students, civil servants, practitioners and diplomats will gather in Arusha, Tanzania, for the annual Summer Academy of the Continental Shelf (SACS).

SACS is an in-depth seminar on intricate legal and technical aspects that relate to the regime of the continental shelf and its resources, tutored by leading international experts. Its objective is clear: to disseminate knowledge about the scientific and legal contours appertaining to the legal regime applicable to the continental shelf under international law.

Dr. Bjørn Kunoy is entrusted the organisation of the legal part of the course. Based in Tórshavn, the Faroe Islands, Kunoy has accumulated lengthy academic and professional experiences relating to the regime applicable to the continental shelf.

Dr. Kunoy believes the seminar is important because it gives students invaluable knowledge about a complex issue from some of the leading experts within the field. He says: “The establishment of outer limits of the continental shelf is a very complex exercise and involves the interaction of different sciences. Further, this exercise does not involve much transparency, all the more a reason for organizing an expert academy whose aims are to vest students with the legal and scientific requisites to fully understand on a critical basis the mechanisms and procedures applicable to the establishment of the outer limits of the continental shelf.”

African counties face continental shelf challenges 
SACS 2019 is organised by the University of the Faroe Islands and the African Institute of International Law (AIIL), and is sponsored by the Korean Maritime Institute. The seminar, which has held in the Faroe Islands for the first three years, will be held in Arusha, Tanzania for the second time, in 2019.

As to the decision to hold the seminar in Tanzania, Dr. Kunoy says: “Several African countries face non-negligent challenges relating to the establishment of the outer limits of the continental shelf. From this background, the Government of the Faroe Islands decided to allocate a substantial amount to the University of the Faroe Islands in order to jointly establish with the African Institute of International Law, Arusha, Tanzania, an expert academy. The academy’s primary aim is to disseminate knowledge relating to the regime of the continental shelf, which is of such tremendous political importance for several countries on the African continent.”

The corps professoral of the academy will be formed by judges at the International Court of Justice, members of the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf, and legal and scientific practitioners with lengthy experiences in legal and scientific matters relating to the continental shelf.

The Summer Academy on the Continental Shelf will be held from 1-7 September, 2019. The deadline for submitting an application is 1 June, 2019. An application should include a CV, personal statement, two-reference letters and copies of relevant diplomas, or academic certificates, and should be sent to sacs@setur.fo. Candidates from African countries should submit their applications to programs@aiil-aidi.org.

For more information, visit https://www.setur.fo/fo/setrid/samstarv/sacs-2019/