Arusha Initiative Calls for Prioritization of the African Human Rights System in the Ongoing AUC Elections
The Arusha Initiative takes note of the ongoing elections for the African Union Commission (AUC) and calls on African Heads of State and Government to elect a Chairperson and a Deputy Chairperson who are committed to upholding the African Union’s mandate to promote and protect human and peoples’ rights and to strengthen the continent’s human rights mechanisms.
The African Human Rights System, comprising the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, is instrumental in safeguarding human rights across Africa. While the Executive Council of the AU is responsible for selecting the leadership of these mechanisms, the AUC must take a more active role in supporting them, given its mandate as custodian of the AU Constitutive Act and other key legal instruments, including the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.
A key priority for the incoming AUC Chairperson will be to oversee the continuation and conclusion of President William Ruto-led institutional reforms. However, the lack of transparency surrounding the reform process raises concerns about its potential impact on the structure and functioning of the regional human rights mechanisms. The AUC must ensure that these reforms align with the AU’s core objectives of promoting and protecting human rights and fostering greater awareness and stakeholder engagement in the process.
Furthermore, the failure to implement the decisions of the African Union and its human rights mechanisms remains a pressing challenge. While the AU Chairperson debates acknowledged the importance of implementing these mechanisms’ decisions, there is an urgent need for concrete action. The new AUC leadership must undertake a comprehensive study on the barriers to implementation and develop a clear strategy to enhance State-party compliance with decisions issued by both political and human rights bodies.
The Arusha Initiative urges the incoming AUC administration to:
- Enhance transparency in the nomination and selection process for members of African human rights mechanisms.
- Ensure adequate resources—including financial support, personnel, and institutional backing—for the effective functioning of these mechanisms.
- Strengthen efforts to implement decisions, recommendations and opinions issued by human rights bodies, ensuring greater accountability from State parties.
The Arusha Initiative remains committed to facilitating rights-holders’ awareness and engagement in the selection and nomination processes for African human rights mechanisms. We look forward to working closely with the African Union Commission to enhance and promote the effectiveness of the human rights system on the continent.
About Arusha Initiative
Formally known as the African Human Rights Mechanism Nomination and Selection Initiative, the Arusha Initiative was birthed in 2023 as an outcome of a concerted civil society effort to enhance efficiency, independence and effectiveness of the African human rights mechanisms.
Our aim is to ensure a more transparent, participatory and merit-based process for nominating and selecting members of the continent’s human rights mechanism, specifically the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights (ACHPR), the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACERWC).
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