Forty Years On, African Human Rights System Faces A Defining Test
Princess-Ekwi Ajide
How has the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights been able to translate continental commitments into protection for people four decades after the Charter came into force?
Though Africa’s human rights framework has matured considerably, this ability remains a central challenge.
For this, the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) will place that question at the heart of its 89th Ordinary Session, which will feature commemorations of the 40th anniversary of the Charter’s entry into force.
The Charter, adopted on 27 June 1981 in Nairobi, Kenya, under the Organisation of African Unity, entered into force on 21 October 1986.
It established a continental framework for protecting rights and, through Article 30, provided for the creation of the ACHPR.
The Commission became operational in 1987 and is headquartered in Banjul, The Gambia.
It comprises 11 independent members elected for six-year terms and holds two Ordinary Sessions each year, alongside Extra-Ordinary Sessions when required.
Its mandate is broad: promoting and protecting human and peoples’ rights, interpreting the Charter and undertaking other responsibilities assigned by African Union policy organs.
Over the years, the Commission has developed several mechanisms to carry out that mandate.
These include promotional missions, thematic Special Mechanisms, consideration of human rights complaints, urgent appeals, fact-finding missions and examination of State reports.
Its caseload illustrates the scale of the continent’s rights challenges.
Since its establishment, the Commission has considered 882 human rights complaints, with 177 communications currently pending.
In situations where there is a risk of irreparable harm, it can issue provisional measures to protect alleged victims while cases are being determined.
The Commission also undertakes fact-finding missions into serious or widespread violations.
In 2025, it conducted a mission concerning the human rights situation in Sudan, reflecting the continuing relevance of its protective mandate amid conflicts and political crises across the continent.
The Charter’s 40th anniversary therefore comes at a significant moment.
While the African human rights system has expanded through the work of the Commission and the establishment of the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights, implementation remains critical.
The Commission is quasi-judicial, meaning that although States are expected to comply with its decisions and recommendations under their obligations to the Charter, its decisions do not carry the same binding force as judgments of a court.
The African Court was subsequently established to complement and reinforce the Commission’s protective mandate, including through the referral of cases.
The 89th Ordinary Session will consequently be more than a commemoration of an historic legal instrument.
It will offer an opportunity to assess what four decades of the Charter have delivered, identify the gaps that continue to undermine rights protection, and consider how Africa’s human rights architecture can respond to emerging threats.
Under the theme, “40 Years of the African Charter: Celebrating Africa’s Human Rights Journey, Legacy, and Future,” the anniversary is expected to honour the architects of the Charter and former Commissioners while examining its continuing relevance.
The central question is no longer simply what the Charter promised Africa in 1981.
It is how effectively those promises can be converted into justice, dignity, equality and accountability for Africans in the decades ahead.
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