Abdulai Osman Conteh (born 5 August 1945) is a lawyer and politician from Sierra Leone. He is a former vice president of Sierra Leone, who served under President Joseph Saidu Momoh before he was ousted by the military junta in 1992. Conteh later spent a considerable number of years in Belize, where he served as the country's chief justice before returning to Sierra Leone. Early life and education Dr Conteh was born on 5 August 1945 in the village of Rogbere, Gbinleh Dixon Chiefdom in Kambia District, British Sierra Leone. He is from Sierra Leone's Susu ethnic group, which is predominantly based in the north-eastern part of the country - especially Kambia. Conteh was raised mostly in Freetown; he attended Albert Academy and later Fourah Bay College before travelling to the UK for further studies. Dr Conteh has the following educational qualifications: Ph.D., (International Law), 1974, King's College, Cambridge; LLB (Hons): 1971, King's College, Cambridge; LLM: 1971, London University, United Kingdom; LLB (Hons): 1969, King's College London; Barrister at Law: Called to the Bar of England and Wales, 1970, at Lincoln's Inn, London, United Kingdom; Harold Porter Prize man In Land Law, 1968. He returned home in the early 1970s and worked for the SL Law Officers Department. Dr. Conteh later went into private practice and taught law at Fourah Bay College for several years. Political career in Sierra Leone Dr Conteh was a member of the All Peoples Congress (APC) party. His public service in Sierra Leone has included holding the offices of Minister of Foreign Affairs (1977–1984); Minister of Finance (1984–1985); Attorney-General and Minister of Justice (1987–1991) and First Vice-president and Minister of Rural Development (1991–1992). He served as a member of Parliament from Kambia District (his paternal home district) from 1977 to 1992. In late 2007, Conteh was nominated as a candidate to become Chairperson of the African Union Commission in early 2008, but he was not successful, with Jean Ping of Gabon being elected. Chief Justice of Belize (2000–2010) In January 2000, Conteh became the Chief Justice of the Belize Supreme Court. In 2007 and 2010, Conteh authored two decisions affirming the common law doctrine of aboriginal title and the existence of Maya customary land tenure in the Toledo District of Belize. Only the villages of Conejo and Santa Cruz were parties to the 2008 ruling; however, the 2010 ruling was the result of a representative