The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (the African Commission), meeting at its 85th Ordinary Session, held from 7 to 30 October 2025 in Banjul, The Gambia;
Recalling its mandate to promote and protect human and peoples’ rights in Africa, in accordance with Article 45 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (the African Charter);
Reaffirming the legal obligations of States Parties to the African Charter to respect, protect and promote the rights of all persons within their territory or under their jurisdiction, without distinction of any kind based on nationality, origin, or migration status;
Further recalling the obligations of African States concerning the international protection of refugees and migrants, as set out in the 1969 OAU Convention Governing the Specific Aspects of Refugee Problems in Africa, the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol, as well as the 1990 International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families;
Taking note of the African Guiding Principles on the Human Rights of All Migrants, Refugees and Asylum Seekers, adopted by the African Commission in 2023, in particular Principle 5 (Human Dignity), Principle 8 (Liberty and Security of the Person), Principle 9 (Enforced Disappearances and Missing Migrants), Principle 11 (Due Process), Principle 21 (Asylum) and Principle 22 (Refugee Protection);
Recalling the African Commission’s press releases of 4 August 2025, concerning the expulsion of African and non-African migrants from the United States of America to certain African States, and of 1 September 2025, concerning the ongoing bilateral negotiations on migration agreements between the United States and several African States under which extra-continental migrants would be transferred, detained, or resettled on African soil;
Recalling further that others countries within the European Union, the European Union as an institution and the United Kingdom have also engaged in such agreement with African States ;
Concerned by the growing trend among certain non-African States and regional organizations to externalize their migration and asylum policies to African States for the management of migration flows — including, inter alia, mechanisms for readmission, extraterritorial asylum processing, the funding and training of interception units, and the creation of transit or relocation centres — and stressing that such arrangements cannot delegate, transfer, or dilute the international obligations of States Parties under the African Charter and international law, particularly the principle of non-refoulement, the prohibition of collective expulsions, the right to an effective and fair individual procedure, and judicial oversight;
Deeply concerned by the lack of guarantees for the protection of fundamental human rights or access to a fair and individual status-determination procedure; by certain African States that have agreed to receive, detain, or expel migrants — including members of the African diaspora and persons of African descent — transferred by non-African States, notably the United States of America, and the European union,
Emphasizing that such practices may expose affected persons, including migrants, asylum seekers, refugees, and members of the African diaspora, to serious risks of refoulement, arbitrary detention, discrimination, and violations of the right to dignity and security;
Reiterating the African Commission’s consistent position that any migration partnership or agreement must be fully compliant with the African Charter, regional and international human rights instruments, and the African values of dignity, hospitality, and mutual respect;
Convinced that challenges related to migration and human mobility on the continent must be addressed in the spirit of the African Charter, through equitable intra-African cooperation and in full respect of States Parties’ international, regional, and national legal obligations;
The African Commission:
1. Emphasizes that African States must not conclude or maintain migration partnerships when they know, or ought reasonably to know, that such agreements entail a real risk of serious human rights violations, including but not limited to those set out in the African Guiding Principles on the Human Rights of All Migrants, Refugees and Asylum Seekers;
2. Calls on African States to make public any existing or proposed agreements with non-African States concerning the reception or detention of migrants, asylum seekers, or refugees, in order to ensure transparency and accountability in migration and asylum policies;
3. Affirms that African States must take all necessary measures to protect the life, dignity, security, and fundamental rights of all persons under their jurisdiction, including migrants transferred pursuant to bilateral or multilateral agreements with non-African States;
4. Recalls that all migration cooperation must strictly comply with the principle of non-refoulement, the right to due process, and the guarantees of humane and non-discriminatory treatment;
5. Condemns the engagement of States parties to the African Charter to any agreement with non-African States or entities or in any practices that leads to collective expulsions and forced transfers of migrants carried out without individual examination, recalling that such practices are prohibited by Article 12(5) of the African Charter, constitute violations of customary international law, and that the principle of non-refoulement constitutes an absolute obligation under international law;
6. Invites African States to strengthen South-South cooperation on migration management and to promote African alternatives to asymmetrical partnerships, grounded in human rights and human dignity.
Done in Banjul 30 October 2025
