The Palais de Justice in Dakar houses all the city’s court functions: trials, judge and clerk offices. The building was constructed in 2008 and replaced the old, falling-apart justice building that was built when Senegal was still a French colony.
The new building was a big source of pride for Senegalese officials. It cost about $10 billion CFA (about $21 million USD). The old Palais de Justice is still standing, but it’s in disarray.
Here’s a recent photo of the inside, and this is what it used to look like, soon after its construction:
Rachael Cullins is a twentysomething American girl living in Dakar, Senegal, with her husband and two dogs. She blogs about her adventures in Senegal and travels elsewhere in West Africa. She will reside in Dakar until summer 2013, when she and her family will move to another foreign post as part of her husband’s career with the U.S. government. In addition to West Africa, she has traveled to France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Italy and Costa Rica and plans to continually add to that list.
