MANDATE AND BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES
On the occasion of its 25th Ordinary Session held in Bujumbura, Burundi, from 26 April to 5 May 1999, the African Commission adopted resolution ACHPR/res.38 (XXV) 99 on the appointment of a Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Women in Africa. The Resolution appointed the first Special Rapporteur in May 1999 retroactively as from october 1998.
The mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Women in Africa is provided as follows:
- To serve as a focal point for the promotion and protection of the rights of women in Africa amongst the 11 Members of the African Commission;
- To assist African governments in the development and implementation of their policies of promotion and protection of the rights of women in Africa, particularly in line with the domestication of the newly entered into force Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ rights, relative to the Rights of Women in Africa and the general harmonization of national legislation to the rights guaranteed in the Protocol;
- To undertake promotional and fact finding missions in African countries Members of the African Union, in order to disseminate the human rights instruments of the African Union and to investigate on the situation of women’s rights in the countries visited;
- To follow up on the implementation of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and its Protocol relative to the Rights of Women in Africa by State Parties, notably by preparing reports on the situation of women rights in Africa and propose recommendations to be adopted by the Commission;
- When appropriate, to draft Resolutions on the situation of women in the various African countries and propose them to the Members of the Commission for adoption.
- To carry a comparative study on the situation of the rights of women in various countries of Africa;
- To define guidelines for State reporting in order to bring Member States to address adequately women’s rights issues in their periodic and/or initial reports submitted to the African Commission;
- To collaborate with relevant actors responsible for the promotion and protection of the rights of women internationally, regionally and nationally, such as:
- National governmental departments responsible for gender issues is each African Union Member State;
- Intergovernmental organizations acting at regional and national levels in Africa;
- Non governmental organizations (NGOs) and National Human Rights Institutions;
- Other Special Rapporteurs from the United Nations and from other regional human rights systems.
The Special Rapporteur takes part in various projects organised by International, regional, national organisations. She serves as a resource person and disseminates information on the Protocol to the African Charter on the Rights of Women in Africa and on the African Commission on Human and Peopls’ Rights. To invite the Special Rapporteur to take part in your initiative to realise the rights on women in Africa, please contact the Secretariat of the African Commission at: email@example.com and send information on your project.