AU Exploring A More Focused And Strategic Orientation To Human Rights Challenges In Africa

NEWS BANJUL THE GAMBIA(MB)-Addis Ababa, 4 March 2010- There is need to deepen dialogue and establish African Union policy leadership over the strategic direction of human rights initiatives in Africa.

In this regard, and in view of the multiplicity of human rights initiatives and institutional entities in Africa, the African Union will be hosting an African Human Rights Strategy meeting in Banjul, the Gambia from 11 to 13 March 2010 with the aim of exploring the challenges that necessitate a more focused and strategic orientation to the human rights challenges in Africa; and engage with approaches that facilitate comprehensiveness in the existing African Union Human Rights Strategy.

In particular, the meeting will establish the strategic objective, content and value addition of enhancing the existing and unfolding human rights strategy, and build synergies between the Human Rights Strategy and other governance initiatives like the evolving African Governance Architecture.

The meeting will be structured to facilitate the achievement of the following specific outputs:
Develop modalities for enhancing the Human Rights Strategy for Africa, owned and led by the AU;
Focus action on moving the collective African Human Rights Strategy forward;
Make clear recommendations on building synergies between the strategy and other governance initiatives in Africa

It is anticipated that the meeting will also establish a base on which to enhance the implementation and enforceability capacity of African human rights institutions and organs, and establish the collective action that needs to be instituted in human rights for the short and long term.

Presentations to be discussed at the meeting will include: the African human rights system, current challenges and opportunities; mapping of the human rights strategy for Africa: relationship of the human rights strategy for Africa and the governance architecture; and a new roadmap and way forward for the future human rights strategy for Africa.

Media representatives are invited to attend the opening ceremony of the meeting at 10:00 at the Senegambia hotel in Banjul.


Media enquiries and requests for interviews may be sent to Mrs. Wynne Musabayana, Deputy Head of Communication at the AU Commission on wynnemusabayana@yahoo.com or Banjul telephone 7487342