African Court Opens First Tripartite Judicial Dialogue On Human Rights

The African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights (AfCHPR) has begun the first tripartite judicial dialogue between regional courts in Africa.

The tripartite dialogue, which between Monday, June 27 and 29, will take place in Zanzibar, the United Republic of Tanzania, has the East African Court of Justice (EACJ) and the ECOWAS Community Court of Justice (ECOWAS CCJ) as the other two participants.

The EACJ sits in Arusha, Tanzania, while the ECOWAS CCJ sits in Abuja, Nigeria.

The three-day dialogue will discuss, among others, best practices for enhancing judicial cooperation and protection of human rights on the continent and mechanisms for better implementation of court decisions.

The dialogue, which will assemble about 30 judges and over 50 lawyers from the three regional and sub-regional courts, will be officially opened by the President of Zanzibar H.E. Dr Hussein Ali Mwinyi, who will also deliver a keynote address.

A statement signed by the registrar of the court, Robert Eno, quotes the President of the African court, Lady Justice Imani Daud Aboud, as saying “the dialogue will provide opportunities for knowledge sharing and how best to face common challenges.’’

Both president of the EACJ, Hon Justice Nestor Kayobera and the ECOWAS CCJ president, Justice Edward Amoako Asante, welcomed the dialogue as a historic event to strengthen cooperation and efficiency in delivering on their mandates.

This dialogue has been facilitated by the Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law, through support from the Swedish Development Cooperation, and in cooperation with Konrad Stiftung, GIZ, and the UN Office of the High Commission on Human Rights.