BACKGROUND TO THE YEARBOOK
The African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights (African Court), the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (African Commission), and the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (Committee) are pleased to announce the publication of Volume 7 of the African Human Rights Yearbook (the Yearbook). This volume features 21 contributions in English, French and Portuguese, focusing on various themes relevant to the African human rights system and African Union law. Five contributions discuss issues surrounding the African Union’s 2023 theme of the Year: “Acceleration of African Continental Free Trade Area (AFCFTA) Implementation”.
This open access journal can be accessed using this link: www.ahry.up.ac.za, and on the websites of the three institutions. This joint publication has been initiated within the framework of the complementarity relationships among the three institutions.
SCOPUS ACCREDITATION
To further enrich its impact and credibility, the Yearbook has recently received accreditation with SCOPUS, an international citation database launched in 2004. Journals listed in Scopus are considered to meet the requirement for peer review quality established by several research grant agencies for their grant recipients and by degree accreditation boards in numerous countries including South Africa, where the Centre for Human Rights is based. For example, papers from authors based at or affiliated to South African higher education institutions from 2024 qualify for subsidy from the Department of Higher Education. This accreditation bears testament to the rigorous editorial standards and scholarly significance of the Yearbook in enriching the intellectual wealth of the African human rights discourse.
INVITATION FOR CONTRIBUTIONS FOR VOLUME 8 (2024)
We invite submissions for fully developed articles and case discussions proposing to make ground-breaking academic-style contributions to the human rights discourse in Africa. Although the contributions are expected to take a continental (African) approach to the issues they cover, country-specific or sub-regional level case studies that relate to the African regional human rights system will also be considered. In so far as methodology is concerned, contributions adopting multidisciplinary and empirical approaches are highly encouraged.
Submissions in three categories (A, B and C) are invited:
A. Articles focused on aspects of the African human rights system/
African Union human rights standards
In this section, the call is for articles about the African human rights system or African Union human rights standards, including their domestic application and interpretation. Authors are, in particular, encouraged to explore the domestic impact of African Union human rights treaties including the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and its Protocols, and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child.
Authors are equally encouraged to explore the impact, at the domestic level, of cases decided by the three institutions (the Commission, the Court and the Committee).
B. Articles related to the African Union theme of the Year 2024: ‘Educate an African fit for the 21st century: Building resilient education systems for increased access to inclusive, lifelong, quality, and relevant learning in Africa’.
For this section, we invite articles that focus on the African Union’s theme of the year, which in 2024 is: ‘Educate an African fit for the 21st century: Building resilient education systems for increased access to inclusive, lifelong, quality, and relevant learning in Africa.’ Authors are encouraged to explore, among others, ways in which the African human rights system has fostered a propitious environment for the implementation of the right to education especially for vulnerable and marginalised groups and communities, women, children; the role of human rights education as well as the relevance of the three African human rights bodies in advancing the right to education.
C. Case Commentaries
In view of the need for more critical scholarly reflection and wider dissemination of the growing jurisprudence of the three organs, this section of the Yearbook invites critical propositions to analyse and improve case law. Commentaries may be on a single decision, or on the case law of one of the three organs, or provide perspectives on the case law of the three organs, jointly (by for example looking into cross-cutting jurisprudential issues, and complementarity). Authors should consult recent decisions and judgments of the Commission, the Court and the Committee on their respective websites to review recent jurisprudential developments these bodies have made.
GUIDELINES FOR SUBMISSION OF CONTRIBUTION
Fully developed articles (of no more than 10,000 words, footnotes included) and case discussions (of no more than 8,000 words, footnotes included) should be submitted, before or by
30 June 2024, together with the indication of the author’s professional qualifications and position by email to ahry@up.ac.za Contributions should set out: (i) the title of the article or case discussion; (ii) the author’s current designation, qualifications and ORCID number; (iii) an abstract of no more than 250 words, setting out the aim of the contribution, the methodology and the main findings.
REVIEW PROCESS
Papers will undergo double-blind peer review. Authors will be expected to incorporate comments, if any, and submit a revised and final paper by 30 September 2024. Accepted papers will be published in the eighth volume of the Yearbook, which is expected to appear in December 2024.
SUBMISSION GUIDELINES
• The submission must be original and not have already been published or submitted elsewhere.
• Articles should be between 8 000 and 10 000 words (including footnotes) in length.
• Case comments should be between 5 000 and 8 000 words (including footnotes) in length,
and should include web links to cases cited.
• Contributions may be submitted in Arabic, English, French or Portuguese; and should be edited for language before submission.
• Use UK English for papers submitted in English.
• Please adhere to the Pretoria University Law Press (PULP) style guidelines, www.pulp.up.ac.za/images/files/publish_with_pulp/PULP_STYLE_GUIDELINES.pdf
REMUNERATION
Contributions to the African Human Rights Yearbook are not remunerated. However, in recognition of their intellectual work and the value it adds to the Yearbook, authors of finally accepted papers will be added to a database of thematic experts of the African Court, the African Commission, and the Children’s Committee. In addition, they will be involved in various relevant activities and events organized by the three institutions either separately or jointly.
REMUNERATION
• Contributions to the African Human Rights Yearbook are not remunerated. However, in recognition of their intellectual work and the value it adds to the Yearbook, authors of finally accepted papers will be added to a database of thematic experts of the African Court, the African Commission, and the Children’s Committee.
• No page fees are charged.
INQUIRIES
For further information, see www.ahry.up.ac.za
Any questions on this call for papers should be directed to ahry@up.ac.za
