85th ORDINARY SESSION OF THE AFRICAN COMMISSION ON HUMAN AND PEOPLES' RIGHTS
INTER-SESSION ACTIVITY REPORT
OF
COMMISSIONER SOLOMON AYELE DERSSO
In Memory of Angelo William Jey Mayot, with appreciation to the work of legal officers in the Commission
I Introduction
1. This Report is presented in accordance with Rules 25(3) and 64 of the Rules of Procedure of the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights (the Commission) (2020), and in accordance with its Resolutions: ACHPR/Res 148 (XLVI) 09; ACHPR/Res 236 (LIII) 13; ACHPR/Res 271(LV) 14; ACHPR/Res. 447 (LXVI) 20; ACHPR/Res.467 (LXVII) 20; and ACHPR/Res. 473 (EXT.OS/ XXXI) 21.
2. The Report, which is presented in eight parts, covers activities carried out between June 2025 and October 2025 and comprises the following:
I. Activities undertaken as a Member of the Commission;
II. Activities undertaken as Chairperson of the Working Group on Extractive Industries, Environment and Human Rights
III. Activities undertaken as Chairperson of the Resolutions Committee
IV. Activities undertaken during the inter-session period in respect to countries of responsibility
V. Activities undertaken as Focal Point on Human Rights in Conflict Situation
VI. Activities undertaken as Focal Point for the Study on AI, new and emerging technologies and human and peoples’ rights
VII. Thematic report on the right to environment in Africa
VIII. Conclusion and Recommendations
I. ACTIVITIES UNDERTAKEN AS A MEMBER OF THE COMMISSION
Protection activities
3. In pursuit of the Commission’s protection mandate particularly within the framework of the principle of complementarity of the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights’ mandate to the protection mandate of the Commission, on 4 June 2025 I led the delegation of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights to Arusha, Tanzania as the commissioner rapporteur for Application No. 006/2012. The purpose of the mission was to represent the African Commission, as applicant of the case, in the first-ever compliance hearing of Application No. 006/2012 – African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights v. Republic of Kenya that the African Court convened on non-implementation of the merit judgement of 2017 and the reparations judgement of 2022.
4. The following are the activities undertaken during this mission:
a. Upon arrival on 3 June, I convened a meeting with the legal team involving the lead counsel and the supporting Counsel, as well as the legal team of the original applicant. This meeting helped to streamline and agree on the approach, organisation, and contents of the submission to be made on behalf of the Applicant.
b. On 4 June, I led the presentation of the Commission’s submission as the applicant in the case. Apart from affirming the uniqueness of the African Commission’s appearance before the Court both as a principal organ invested with original mandate for the promotion and protection of human and peoples’ rights and particularly within the framework of the Court’s role in complementing the Commission’s protective mandate, I led the African Commission’s presentation both in outlining the core arguments contained in the written submission and elucidated further by the lead counsel and the supporting Counsel and in responding to the questions posed by the justices of the African Court. Finally, I made concluding remarks on the issues raised, providing a succinct summary of what can be discerned from the submissions made for granting the prayers of the African Commission as the applicant.
5. In my capacity as a member of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, I participated in the 84th ordinary session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights held from 21st to 30th July 2025. During the session, I presented draft decisions on communications (human rights complaints against state parties submitted for adjudication by the Commission). Additionally, my involvement in the session covered chairing the Resolutions Committee that reviewed and cleared draft resolutions it deemed for consideration and adoption by the plenary and participation in the review of various documents on the activities of the Commission, including concluding observations on state reports and various reports.
6. I also participated in the work of the ACHPR Fact-Finding Mission on Sudan towards the finalisation of the preparation of its draft report, including in my capacity as Focal Point on Human Rights in Conflict Situations. Additionally, I also participated in the consideration by the plenary of the Commission of the draft report during the 84th session of the Commission.
Promotion activities
7. On 5 July, upon the invitation of the Centre for Human Rights, University of Pretoria, I served as one of the judges who presided over the final round of the 2025 edition of the 34th All Africa (Christof Heyns) moot court competition. The competition, organized annually by the Centre for Human Rights, University of Pretoria, was hosted by the University of Cape Town, in Cape Town, South Africa, from 29 June to 5 July 2025. It served as a platform for profiling the African Commission to young law students from across the African continent.
8. During 27–28 September 2025, Accra, Ghana, I participated in the Commission’s Conference on Advocacy for the Continental Ratification and Implementation of Treaties under the Supervisory Mandate of the ACHPR, held under the theme ‘Towards the Universal Ratification and Implementation of All African Human Rights Treaties.’ The conference that brought together experts and state representatives not only served as a platform for creating awareness on the state ratification of various human rights instruments but also for advocating for advancing both ratification and significant implementation. During the conference, I made a presentation on the ratification and implementation of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, putting emphasis on the need for an approach to implementation that is more expansive than a narrow legalistic conception and thereby highlighting the importance of the role of citizens, media and CSOs.
9. I joined a delegation of the African Commission made up the Country Rapporteur on the human rights situation in the Republic of Ghana, the Special Rapporteur on Prisons, Conditions of Detention and Policing in Africa, the Chairperson of the Committee on the Prevention of Torture and Chairperson of the Working Group on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in undertaking a promotion mission to Ghana from 29th September to 2nd October 2025. The promotion mission provided us first-hand experience of the major human and peoples’ rights issues currently prevailing in Ghana and the country’s efforts in advancing the implementation of the African Charter, as a state party to the African Charter. Of particular significance to the Working Group on Extractive Industries, Environment and Human Rights Violations in Africa that I have the privilege of Chairing, was the finding of the mission of the highly concerning human and peoples’ rights issues relating to environmental despoilation from informal gold mining in Ghana, known in local parlance as ‘galamsey’. In the concluding press conference, our mission characterized the human and peoples’ rights crises involving the widespread environmental pollution from ‘galamsey’ as having reached a complex human rights emergency, deserving urgent and decisive response.
II. Activities undertaken as Chairperson of the Working Group on Extractive Industries, Environment and Human Rights in Africa
10. Upon the invitation of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), I participated in the experts’ consultation on human rights and environment that UNEP convened on the margins of the 40th African Ministerial Conference on the Environment (AMCEN) on 12-13 July 2025. Participating in my capacity as Chairperson of the Working Group, I made two presentations during the expert consultations. The first relates to environmental rights initiatives in Africa. This session provided an opportunity for highlighting the pioneering role of the African Charter in recognizing the right to environment, decades ahead of the recognition of this right at the international level and the work undertaken by the African Commission, both through the Working Group by way of soft law instruments and advocacy and its jurisprudence, such as the SERAC and Endorois cases. Finally, I also made a presentation on the regional approach to environmental rights in Africa and the opportunities for advancing environmental rights in Africa through the African Commission’s proposed General Comment on Article 24 of the African Charter.
11. In pursuit of the task entrusted to the Working Group for developing a general comment on Article 24 as part of its mandate, I convened a consultation with experts working on the right to environment and environmental rights defenders at the UNEP offices in Nairobi, Kenya, on 14 July 2025. First, the consultation sought to share the background to and objectives of the proposed general comment on the right to environment, with the present participants. In so doing, it provided necessary information and analysis for a common understanding of the task assigned to the Working Group. Second, and importantly, it served to solicit the reflections of the participants on questions relating to the process for the development of the general comment and on the issues expected to be canvassed in the content of the general comment.
12. As a follow-up to and in pursuit of the development of the thematic section of my intersession report for which we invited inputs through a public call, we collaborated, in my capacity as Chairperson of the Working Group, with the Environmental Rights Africa (ERA) in convening a public consultation on 19 September 2025. The consultation brought together environmental rights activists, civil society organizations, indigenous representatives, journalists, and international partners. A total of 222 participants registered, with over 100 actively contributing during the two-hour session. The consultation provided a unique opportunity for canvassing the various issues impacting the right to environment from participants across the continent. These range from substantive issues such as environmental pollution endangering the safety of land, water sources and air, threatening the life, personal security, livelihood, health of individuals and the existence of communities. These issues are captured in the section of this report dedicated to the thematic focus of my intersession activities.
III. Activities undertaken as chairperson of the Resolutions Committee
13. In my capacity as Chairperson of the Resolutions Committee, I, along with members of the Committee, Hon. Commissioner Idrissa Sow (Vice-chairperson), Hon. Commissioner Ourveena Geereesha Topsy-Sonoo, and Hon. Commissioner Salma Sassi, engaged in the processing of various draft resolutions that were initiated for consideration in the plenary of the African Commission.
14. Following the consideration and review of the six resolutions submitted to the Resolutions Committee in the meeting the Committee held on 19 July, the members of the Committee decided to propose the revision and presentation for the plenary of the Commission of three of the draft resolutions and defer the proposal to present the remaining three.
VI. Activities undertaken during the inter-session period in respect to countries of responsibility
15. During the intersession period, I continued to monitor the human rights situation of the countries of my responsibility, namely Kenya, Nigeria, Seychelles, South Africa and South Sudan. In line with Article 45 (2) of the African Charter and the established practice of the Commission and its Rules of Procedure, my engagements in the intersession period included, beyond monitoring trends, protection activities undertaken in respect to some of the countries through the initiation of protection measures through press statements and urgent letters of appeal.
Kenya
16. During the intersession period, various human rights developments have been observed. Following reports of arbitrary arrest on 30 May 2025 of Ms Rose Njeri, a Kenyan software developer and digital activist, for the launch of an online civic platform she had developed to facilitate public feedback on the Finance Bil 2025, I, together with the Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression and Access to Information, sent a joint letter of urgent appeal to President William Ruto on 4 June 2025. Apart from expressing concern about the confiscation of belongings, particularly electronic devices without a court warrant and infringements of Ms Njeri’s other rights, including the right to personal liberty and the right to due process of the law, the joint urgent letter of appeal noted that the arrest of Ms Njeri for an act that amounts to ‘a commendable act of civic duty that enriches democratic processes in Kenya’ carries a chilling effect on the civic space and democratic participation in Kenya.
17. The African Commission received a response from the Office of President Ruto dated 13 October 2025 informing the Commission that the Court, where Ms Njeri was charged, dismissed the charges against Ms Njeri for lack of meeting the requisite legal threshold to constitute the alleged breaches. The Commission welcomes with utmost appreciation the response from the Office of the President and strongly commends the Kenyan Judiciary for not allowing the use of unfounded prosecution for unjustifiably restricting civic rights guaranteed in the 2010 Constitution of Kenya and under the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.
18. In terms of human rights developments involving law enforcement and security institutions, the African Commission notes with appreciation the steps taken for expanding the presence of the Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) to 21 counties. I wish to observe that this expanded geographic presence of IPOA needs to be accompanied by enhancing the effective functioning of the IPOA in holding the police to account. This is instructive in light of concerning trends involving excessive use of force by law enforcement and security entities, encapsulated by the report that by 2025, at least 246 people had been killed by police, over 601 injured, 1,765 arbitrarily arrested, and 82 forcibly disappeared during Gen Z-led protests.
19. The treatment of persons in police custody is another area of concern during the reporting period. In this context, I issued a statement on 12 June 2025, deploring the death in police custody of Mr Albert Omondi Ojawang. In the statement, the Commission found ‘troubling and distressful the reports on the finding of the post-mortem conducted on the body of the victim that he was hit on the head and his death was likely to have been caused by assault, indicating the culpability of those responsible for his treatment while in detention.’ The statement called for the review of ‘standard of conduct of law enforcement officers in the treatment of detained persons and institute monitoring and accountability systems relating to the handling and treatment of detained persons in the custody of state agencies.’ I invite the Government of Kenya to provide us with an update on the steps taken for holding perpetrators of such violence accountable and in reviewing standards of conduct with respect to the treatment of detained persons in the custody of state agencies.
20. In addition to the foregoing, along with the Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders, Focal Point on Reprisals and on Judicial Independence in Africa, the Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Women in Africa, the Special Rapporteur on Prisons, Conditions of Detention, and Police Action in Africa, Chairperson of the Working Group on the Death Penalty, Extrajudicial, Summary, or Arbitrary Killings, and Enforced Disappearances in Africa, and the Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression and Access to Information in Africa, I issued a joint statement on 29 June, deploring the use of live ammunition by police on unarmed peaceful protestors in Kenya. Condemning the police shooting on the head, from a close distance of Mr Boniface Kaiuki during the Gen Z-led protests on 17 June 2025, the statement echoed the observation of the Kenya Judiciary, expressing concern over the ‘rising incidents of police brutality and the growing trend of peaceful protests being infiltrated by goons.’
21. As we continue to urge systematic and decisive resolution of the longstanding issue of excessive use of force against peaceful protestors and police brutality, we welcome the expression of commitment by the Government of Kenya for making amends for victims of violence with the establishment of the Panel of Experts on Compensation of Victims of Demonstrations and Public Protests between the period 2017 to 2025, without prejudice to the right of victims and their families to judicial remedies.
22. I also note that during the intersession period, Parliament passed the Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes (Amendment) Bill, 2024, and the President assented to it on 15 October 2025. While welcoming what this act sought to achieve in terms of the provision of clearer definitions of misinformation and cyber harassment, the African Commission expresses concern on the inconsistency of aspects of the act most notably provisions permitting the blocking of websites and other communication platforms without court authorization, infringing, among other entitlements, Article 9 of the African Charter on freedom of expression and access to information.
Nigeria
23. Despite some positive developments, a review of the human rights situation in Nigeria during the intersession period highlights a concerning trend characterised by a) protracted insecurity, b) violations that at times involve mass atrocities committed by both state and non-state actors, and c) significant threats to fundamental freedoms. The situation is complicated by overlapping humanitarian emergencies and systemic failures in accountability.
24. Alarming incidents include the perpetration of mass killings and continuation of displacement, particularly in the North Central region, specifically in Benue State. The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) reported that mass killings in Benue State in June 2025 alone claimed at least 218 lives and displaced nearly 4,800 people. Further to these mass violence incidents, women and children were reportedly abducted during a bandit attack in Zamfara State.
25. Additionally, the African Commission also noted that some of the key trends that were recorded during this period include infringement of freedom from discrimination and human dignity, socio-economic rights, and reports of denial of access to justice. I also note with concern the arrest of journalists on the grounds of purported violations of cybercrime laws, often without resultant charges, for reporting on corruption. Such arrests endanger the right to be free from arbitrary deprivation of liberty and the right to due process of the law.
Seychelles
26. The human rights situation in Seychelles during the reporting period showed a mixed picture. On the positive side, a constitutional amendment was introduced in June 2025 (Twelfth Amendment Bill) to allow citizens who turn 18 on an election day to vote, demonstrating an effort to broaden franchise rights. This was in preparation for the general election, which was conducted on 27 September 2025 and a subsequent run-off election, which led to a peaceful transfer of power from the incumbent to the winner of the election from the opposition. Seychelles has also made significant strides in recognising the rights of persons with disabilities through the Disability Inclusion in the Media for crisis preparedness, promoting inclusive communication and better representation of persons with disabilities.
27. On the downside, the Commission has noted reports highlighting that Seychelles is still grappling with lengthy pre-trial detention, reflecting challenges within the criminal justice administration system. The lack of resolution of these conditions is particularly detrimental to non-nationals held in pre-trial detention with little access to legal assistance. While the Judiciary seeks to reinforce judicial independence, the issue of slow justice persists. Additionally, another issue deserving of particular attention is the implementation of the recommendations of the Truth, Reconciliation, and National Unity Commission (TRNUC) for addressing historical human rights abuses, including torture and disappearances, through reparations.
South Africa
28. During the period under review, I noted that while the number of reported xenophobic violence incidents varied, there was sustained concern over harmful anti-immigrant rhetoric, including Operation Dudula, that particularly targets vulnerable nationals from other African countries. I share the sentiment expressed in the statement of the representative of South Africa that such actions ‘not only contravene our fundamental human rights of equality and non-discrimination as provided for and protected under the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, but also undermine the pan-African solidarity that defines our shared heritage.’ However, the government bears responsibility not only to respect the rights guaranteed in the African Charter for all people under its jurisdiction, including non-nationals, but also to protect such rights from attacks by third parties. This underscores the need for South Africa to adopt all the necessary measures, including legislative, institutional, budgetary and social measures for the protection of non-nationals from xenophobic rhetoric and related acts, including those being experienced by those engaged in Operation Dudula.
29. The other area that the Commission follows during the reporting period concerns the crises of gender-based violence and femicide, with high rates of sexual offences and murder of women that continue to be reported in South Africa. Some victims have seemingly been failed by the criminal justice system, and the subsequent failure to operationalise new legislation like the National Council on Gender-Based Violence and Femicide Act, which is yet to be achieved due to a lack of adequate funding. These conditions underscore the urgency of the operationalisation of the National Council on GBV and Femicide and the need for addressing the inadequacies undermining responsiveness to GBV in the criminal justice system that are letting victims down.
30. In July 2025, the KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner, Lieutenant-General Mkhwanazi, held a press conference in which he made serious allegations that criminal syndicates and drug cartels had infiltrated the police and the judiciary. While these allegations need to be legally established, the fact that they emanated from a senior member of one of the criminal justice institutions of South Africa signifies that they deserve serious consideration. Furthermore, the allegations pose direct and serious concerns as they have an impact on human rights, justice and accountability in South Africa. As such, I welcome the steps taken by the Government of South Africa, particularly the establishment of the Commission of Inquiry into allegations of criminality, political interference and corruption in the criminal justice system. I call on South Africa to ensure accountability as a critical measure for restoring the credibility of and public trust in the criminal justice system and its role in ensuring equality before the law by acting promptly on the recommendations of the Commission of Inquiry.
South Sudan
31. During the reporting period, we welcome the progress registered towards the operationalisation of the Commission for Truth, Reconciliation and Healing (CTRH) with the submission from various sectors of society of nominees of the Selection Panel responsible for South Sudanese members of the CTRH. However, this is negated by the alarming deterioration of the human rights situation affecting civil and political, socio-economic and collective rights of peoples in South Sudan. Persisting insecurity and incidents of fighting continue to claim the lives of people and forcibly displace others. Reports indicate that some 129 civilians were killed and over 300,000 were displaced in Upper Nile alone. Overall, the United Nations (UN) reported in August 2025 that a ‘total of 856 civilians were killed, 792 were injured, 117 were abducted, and 209 were arbitrarily arrested and detained’ during the period of April-August 2025. These conditions of insecurity and fighting continue to infringe on the collective rights of South Sudanese to peace and security as envisioned in Article 23 of the African Charter.
32. Furthermore, the worsening economic conditions in South Sudan are exacerbating the precarious socio-economic situation of ordinary South Sudanese. Most notably, the spike in the consumer price index in South Sudan by 89% as reported by the UN, has hugely eroded the purchasing power of ordinary households and their ability to access basic necessities.
33. During the reporting period, I met with the UN Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan during the visit of the Commission to Addis Ababa for sharing findings of the latest report of the Commission titled Plundering a Nation: How rampant corruption unleashed a human rights crisis in South Sudan. This report paints a deeply concerning picture of how the pervasive and large-scale corruption sustained as a deliberate strategy constitutes and facilitates serious human rights violations in South Sudan. As stated in the advisory note that I received from the UN Commission on 14 October, the situation of South Sudan in 2025 is ‘characterised by aerial bombardments, indiscriminate targeting of civilian populations and infrastructure, and arbitrary arrests, detention and politically motivated trials of key opposition leaders.’ Most of all, it warned that ‘South Sudan is at a tipping point.’
34. I also learned with deep alarm that the body monitoring the 2018 Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan reported that the country faces a serious and growing risk of the unravelling of the 2018 peace agreement and relapse back to full-blown war. The fighting and violations of the terms of the 2018 peace agreement are causing untold suffering. Unless concerted efforts are made to salvage the peace agreement and reverse the gathering cloud of the country’s relapse back to full blown war, there will be devastating consequences for the already dire human rights situation, more so due to the lack of care to the plight of ordinary South Sudanese on the part of both state and non-state armed actors and the prevailing environment of impunity in South Sudan.
V. Activities undertaken as Focal Point on Human Rights in Conflict Situation
35. During the reporting period, apart from monitoring human rights in conflict situations, I participated in the conference that was held at the Nelson Mandela Foundation on 19-20 June 2025, titled Draft Treaty on Crimes Against Humanity: The Struggle for Justice and Accountability for Apartheid. During the conference, I made a presentation on the importance of drawing on the provisions of the African Charter, the Constitutive Act of the African Union (AU) and Africa’s historical and contemporary experiences in the development of the treaty on crimes against humanity. I have emphasized that Africa’s engagement should be based also on, in view of the AU theme of the year, its experience with slavery, colonialism and apartheid, and other grave crimes that have in recent times affected the people on the continent.
36. As a follow-up to this conference and to advance further engagement by States Parties and other stakeholders, I collaborated with the conveners of the conference for the organization of a side event on the development of the draft treaty on crimes against humanity within the framework of the 85th ordinary session of the Commission. The event was accordingly held on 19 October 2025 on the margins of the 85th session.
VI. Activities undertaken as Focal Point for the Study on AI, new and emerging technologies and human and peoples’ rights
37. During the intersession period, the submission that I filed to the Secretary-General of the United Nations on 11 April 2025 on ‘Artificial Intelligence in the Military Domain and its implications for international peace and security’ was published as part of the UN Secretary-General’s Report in August 2025. This has profiled not only the ongoing work of the African Commission through the Focal Point on AI, New and Emerging Technologies and Human and Peoples’ Rights in Africa but also served to project Africa’s voice and perspectives in the ongoing debate at the global level for the development of the norms and regulatory arrangements for the global governance of AI and related new and emerging technologies for defending the interests and rights of the peoples of the continent.
38. Following the finalisation of the update and revision of the draft study, I issued a call for public input into the draft study. It was during the reporting period that we concluded the receipt and compilation of the public inputs. Additionally, following the updating of the draft study on the basis of the inputs received by the technical expert supporting the study, I am in the process of finalising the final revision of the study to make it ready for presentation to the Commission, for its consideration and adoption during the upcoming session of the Commission.
VII. Thematic report: The Grave Environmental Crises – the ‘silent’ killers of the living ecosystems and peoples in Africa
39. This thematic report is prepared in response to various statements presented during the Commission’s various sessions and reports reaching the Working Group on the very concerning state of the right to environment in Africa. It also serves to put a spotlight, through examples, on the nature and scale of the serious stresses to the environment and the resultant adverse impacts on the right to environment under Article 24 of the African Charter. This report also serves as a background resource in the development of the General Comment on Article 24 of the African Charter mandated by ACHPR Resolution 586 (2024). The report is divided into four parts. The first part presents the introduction, noting that the situation in Africa is characterized by grave environmental crises. The second part presents the manifestations of the grave environmental crises. Part three discusses examples of the conditions enabling these grave environmental crises. Finally, part four closes with a brief overview of the human and peoples’ rights implications of the grave environmental crises in Africa.
A) Introduction
40. One of the unique features of the African Human Rights system is the attention that it gives to not only human rights, but also peoples’ rights. Of significance in this respect are the collective rights of peoples, some of which, including most notably, the right to environment, received legal status under the African human rights system much, much earlier than their recognition under the international human rights system. And you all know there was a lot of celebration after the adoption of the resolution by the Human Rights Council and the General Assembly recognizing the right to environment. In this respect, we can indeed, as a human rights system, be proud of the African Charter for setting the precedent for this recent international recognition.
41. Despite the pioneering recognition of the right to environment, Africa is grappling with grave environmental crises of various scales and dimensions. The crises involve, among others, disproportionate and severe impacts from climate change, desertification and loss of biodiversity. As the contribution received from Environmental Rights Africa (ERA) pointed out, ‘communities across Africa continue to bear the brunt of the triple planetary environmental crisis of climate change, land, nature and biodiversity loss, pollution and waste. Furthermore, there is widespread pollution and despoilation of the environment, stemming from industrial production and extractive industries.’ Studies have shown that the operations of large industrial productions of chemicals and cement, and the operations of extractive companies, have adversely affected and carry a huge potential for environmental impact. The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (African Commission) also established this in its jurisprudence.
42. During the consultation that I held on 19 September for receiving inputs on the nature and type of threats to the environment affecting various parts of the continent, more than 100 participants from almost all regions of the continent participated. As depicted in the pie chart below, the largest percentage of the participants, constituting 32%, highlighted environmental degradation as the major challenge to the right to environment. This is consistent with the grave environmental challenges affecting people across the continent. The second highest percentage of participants, involving 29 % also focused their intervention on challenges relating to loss or lack of land rights.
B) Manifestations of the grave environmental crises in Africa
Pollution of land, air and water sources through industrial and extractive activities of various scales
43. During the consultation held on 19 September, the attention of the Working Group was drawn to the environmental threat posed by the ongoing drilling in the Okavango Basin in Namibia. Apart from the pressure that this may put on scarce water resources, there are concerns about water contamination, risks of pollution of groundwater and the Okavango River system and loss of biodiversity given the dependence of various plant and animal species on this system. It is reported that ‘[d]rilling near the Omatako River in Namibia already endangers the groundwater since the drilling waste fluids have been discarded in unlined pits.’ The Okavango Delta is a UNESCO World Heritage site and provides an ecosystem that is home to 130 species of mammals, 482 species of birds, and over 1000 species of plants. The ecological significance as well as the vulnerability of the territory heighten the nature and scale of the environmental risks involved, owing to the extractive activities, highlighting the imperative for thorough environmental risk assessment and rigorous consultation and participation of communities in the river basin system.
44. The issue of pollution of land, air and water is not unique to this case and is pervasive across the continent in areas where extractive activities are undertaken in a human rights and regulatory vacuum. Industrial emissions and mining dust, such as coal mining in South Africa and cement production in Egypt, constitute a major source of air pollution in the territories where such extractive operations are undertaken. As submitted to the Working Group by the Kenya Human Rights Commission, in Kambe Ribe, Kilifi in Kenya, operations by Simba Cement have caused severe environmental damage, including dust pollution, land degradation, and threats to water sources. Similar environmental pollutions are present in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in territories where extractive industries operate and small-scale mining is carried out.
45. Cases that illustrate the grave environmental crises from pollution include the hazardous heavy metal, particularly lead, contamination of land and water in Kabwe, Central Province of Zambia in respect of which the Working Group sent an urgent letter of appeal to the Government of Zambia, and the widespread water and environmental contamination from illegal gold mining in Ghana, known in local parlance as ‘galamsey’. During our recent promotion mission, we were informed that this phenomenon has resulted in the contamination of a staggering 60% of water sources in Ghana, making it the most pressing national crisis. Our preliminary conclusion was that this constitutes a serious human rights emergency, deserving of urgent and robust intervention.
46. The recent protests that erupted in the Southeastern coastal city of Gabès further highlight the grave consequences of environmental pollution. The source of the environmental pollution is the Gabè’s chemical complex that processes phosphate. It is reported that the industrial complex releases 14,000 to 15,000 tons of phosphogypsum waste daily, along with ammonia and nitrogen oxides. The consequences include damage to ‘seagrass beds’ and desertification of large marine areas.’ The risk from radioactive products reportedly includes long-term cancer and neurological strains.
Desertification and soil and land erosion
47. Desertification and soil and land degradation are the other most pressing environmental challenges affecting parts of the continent. These are major environmental challenges threatening ecosystems, livelihoods and the conditions for survival of communities.
48. As the African Development Bank pointed out, ‘[w]ith over 45% of the world’s degraded land located in Africa, the continent is disproportionately affected by these challenges.’ Similarly, the UN reported that approximately 65% of Africa's productive lands are degraded, and 45% are already desertified.
Climate change and the environment in Africa
49. Notwithstanding the fact that Africa bears no major responsibility for causing it, climate change carries various environmental risks for the continent. Due to climate change, Africa has faced unprecedented climate variations, such as higher temperatures, changes in rainfall patterns and an increase in extreme weather events, as well as rising sea levels eroding coastal territories, with serious adverse impacts on the environment.
50. These include marine heat waves (MHWS) precipitating the health and productivity of marine life and the formation and intensification of tropical cyclones and exacerbation of existing environmental stresses, including desertification and land erosion, as well as loss of biodiversity. Freshwater ecosystems, essential for biodiversity and vital resources, face threats such as climate change.
Oil spills and gas flares
51. Oil spills and gas flaring are some of the serious environmental issues that the African Commission had to pronounce itself on, in the context of the case involving the Ogoni people of the Niger Delta region. It is reported that over 40 million litres of crude oil are spilt in the Niger Delta each year, killing people and harming the ecosystem there in the process. Between 1976 and 2014, the oil-rich region experienced more than 12,000 oil spill occurrences, according to a 2018 report by the Journal of Health and Pollution.
52. Unity State in South Sudan is under the grip of pollution and contamination from oil spills of water sources on which people depend for drinking and household use, including cooking and their livelihoods. The contamination is exacerbated by climate change-induced heavy flooding, which spreads across large swaths of territory, the oil spills from oil wells and leaking pipelines. In an example that highlighted the fatal combination of the oil pollution and flooding, it was reported that ‘Unity State’s agriculture minister blames the deaths of more than 100,000 cattle in the last two years on the floods combined with oil pollution.’
53. The flow into the ground and water sources of water released from the ground when oil is extracted and often containing hydrocarbons and other pollutants, constitutes an additional source of environmental pollution in the oil-producing region of South Sudan.
54. In addition to spills, the Niger Delta of Nigeria also suffers from gas flaring. According to data from the gas flare tracker of the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) of Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Environment, from January 2013 to December 2021, the country flared 3.4 billion standard cubic feet (Mscf). It is reported that a minimum of 2 million people live close to gas flaring sites in Nigeria and the Niger Delta.
Biodiversity loss
55. Africa stands out for its major contribution to the world's natural reserves, hosting 17% of the world's natural forests over an area of 675 million hectares. For example, the Congo Basin, the second largest uninterrupted block of tropical forest, covers nearly a third of the continent's natural forest areas, extending over a 4 million km2 area and is home to more than 1,200 species of fish, 400 species of mammals, 1,000 species of birds and more than 10,000 species of vascular plants.
56. Yet biodiversity loss, involving the decline of specific populations, or even the extinction of some species, constitutes a major environmental crisis facing the continent. The most affected regions are in East Africa and surrounding islands, where almost 17% of all living species are threatened, with a worrying 43% for species endemic to the sub-region. However, the Central African region stands out for the highest percentage of endangered endemic species, reaching up to 50%. In contrast, Southern Africa has the lowest proportion of endangered endemic species, with only 23%. With only 9%, North Africa has the lowest percentage of threatened species.
C) Conditions enabling the grave environmental crises in Africa
57. Various factors account for the grave environmental crises facing Africa. Environmental Rights Africa submitted that while recognition of environmental rights is widespread across Africa, persistent barriers, including weak political will, limited institutional capacity, and fragmented sectoral policies, continue to hinder effective implementation. Additionally, from the consultation that the Working Group held on 25 September and the research work of the Chairperson of the Working Group, three factors stand out.
Poor regulatory standards and enforcement
58. The first is poor regulatory standards and a lack of enforcement of applicable standards. In addition to the inadequacy of laws and institutions regulating activities affecting the environment, these relate to, among others, a lack of enforceable standards for corporate accountability, impediments to access to justice and a lack of remedies and guarantees for consultation and participation of affected communities.
The human rights protection vacuum that characterizes the operation of extractive operations on the continent
59. Despite the lip service paid to voluntary corporate responsibility, the reality, both historically and contemporarily, is that extractive industries operated and continue to largely operate in a human rights protection vacuum. The grave environmental crises afflicting the continent, particularly those due to extractive operations and industrial business activities, are, in the main, a product of factors that created this human rights protection vacuum. First, the legal regime that governs the operation of the business operations, particularly extractive industries, principally involves investment law, bilateral investment treaties, commercial, business, and mining law. This situation, against the background of extractive industries’ history of lack of regard for human rights and the environment, created a legal environment in which obligations of human rights received at best a marginal place. Second, and accentuating this environment, are the exemptions from certain obligations that are accorded to these extractive operations as tax and duty-free benefits. Third, the phenomenon of what the High-level Panel on Illicit Financial Flows called ‘the race to the bottom’, in which States Parties engage in loosening of already weak regulatory frameworks. Fourth, human rights instruments primarily impose obligations on states, given the historical consideration that the state is the most powerful entity and bears responsibility for the public interest. However, the emergence of big businesses, including extractive companies, has accentuated the crisis of the human rights protection vacuum and the pre-existing power asymmetry that affects the negotiation of licensing agreements. Fifth, in places such as Unity state of South Sudan, the deliberate or negligent disregard of oil spills by the oil consortium Greater Pioneer Operating Company (GPOC), including by not timely repairing leaking or broken pipelines or by not properly treating polluted water released from the ground when oil is extracted, is to blame for the perpetuation of the environmental damage.
Harassment of affected communities and threats to environmental defenders
60. The second factor enabling the grave environmental crises involves harassment of affected communities and threats to environmental defenders. An overarching concern among stakeholders of the 25 September consultation was the substantial risks faced by environmental, indigenous, and human rights defenders perpetrated by both private and state actors, particularly where corporate actors engage in corruption of local and state officials. Stakeholders observed that defenders face immediate physical threats, including violence and death, intimidation, and harassment, alongside state violations such as criminalisation and arbitrary arrests.
D) Highlights of the Human and peoples’ rights implications of the grave environmental crises
61. These and related manifestations of the environmental crises not only cause enormous damage to land, air, water, fauna and flora but also gravely endanger the physical security, life, health and livelihood of individuals and communities, as well as the existence of some communities. As such, the grave environmental crises facing the continent threaten not only the right to environment under Article 24 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (the African Charter), but also civil and political rights (the right to life, personal security and dignity) and economic, social, and cultural (ECOSOC) rights (rights to health, property, food, and water) as well as collective rights of peoples such as the right to existence and the right to development. In addition, the collective rights of communities to freely dispose of their wealth are also infringed upon. Regrettably, vulnerable groups such as women and children tend to bear the brunt of these challenges.
62. The adverse impact of oil spills and gas flaring on the ecosystem goes far beyond despoiling the land and habitats and poisoning the air and water sources. Oil spills and gas flaring wreak havoc on local communities in, among others, the Niger Delta in Nigeria, Unity State, South Sudan, many provinces in Ghana, precipitating respiratory disorder, eye and skin disease, reproductive health illness, defective childbirth, cancer and other serious health conditions, and destroying the livelihoods of farmers and fishing communities.
63. Signifying the heavy cost of air pollution reported on the continent, including, among others, in Egypt and Tunisia, UNEP characterized air pollution as ‘Africa’s invisible and silent killer’. It was established that, as far back as 2016, about 600,000 deaths every year across the continent are associated with air pollution. The source of pollution includes not just industrial and mining pollution but also the dependence of households on firewood and other biomass as sources of energy. According to research conducted by UNICEF, outdoor air pollution deaths increased by 60% across Africa between 1990 and 2017.
VIII. Conclusion and Recommendations
64. Finally, from the monitoring work of the Working Group during the intersession period, we observe with concern the serious human rights issues associated with natural resources on the continent. The first of these concerns the illicit exploitation of natural resources in parts of the continent suffering from insecurity, the environmental damage and the perpetuation of conflicts this is occasioning in conflict settings, including the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the Sahel and Sudan. In terms of trends in human rights violations in the extractive industries sector, Africa has recorded a significant portion of alleged abuses reported globally, with the DRC and Zambia accounting for the highest number of such incidents. In countries such as Senegal, we note with concern the issues in the extractive industries, including those reported by the National Human Rights Commission, such as expropriation of land without compensation, the right to health and the right to a safe environment, the concerning phenomenon known in local parlance as ‘galamsey’ and similar human rights issues in the sector in Zimbabwe.
65. The Working Group is also concerned by the continuing adverse impacts of the environmental disaster occasioned in Zambia following the collapse of a dam containing waste from the Sino-Metals Leach Zambia copper mine in February 2025. The collapse spilled acidic and toxic waste into the Kafue River ecosystem, endangering agricultural activities, aquatic life and access to safe water, reportedly affecting 60 % of Zambia’s population who rely on the river system as a critical water source. It is reported that exposure to the pollutants that contaminated the river poses significant long-term health risks, including organ damage, birth defects and cancer.
66. A disaster like this experienced in Zambia is a result of both inadequacies in regulatory and enforcement frameworks, hence state failure and the lack of compliance by extractive industries companies with international human and peoples’ rights and environmental standards. This underscores the imperative of binding legal obligations of companies in the extractive industries sector for compliance with human and peoples’ rights. Additionally, this disaster, like the environmental disaster in the Niger Delta of Nigeria, highlights the imperative not only of environmental impact assessment but most importantly of regular, robust inspection of environmental standards compliance and human rights due diligence measures, including but not limited to those in the storage and disposal of mining waste by mining companies in Africa.
67. The other issue that the Working Group wishes to highlight in the context of our monitoring during the intersession period relates to harassment of environmental and land rights advocates and defenders, as well as affected communities. Beyond and above specific issues affecting the Ogiek in Kenya that this Commission is seized with, the Working Group learned from consultation that it held on 19 September, that environmental and land rights defenders are subjected to criminalization, SLAPP lawsuits by companies, extrajudicial killings or enforced disappearance and the branding of activists as members of political opposition.
68. Apart from the various human and peoples’ rights issues that communities hosting extractive activities are subjected to, including dispossession of land and exposure to toxic materials and dangerous mining waste spilled into the land and water sources, as the phenomenon of ‘galamsey’ in Ghana illustrates, local communities are exposed to land grabs and displacement from the implementation of carbon markets. While presented as solutions to the climate emergency, carbon offset markets operate as an enterprise for greenwashing greenhouse gas emissions and for perpetuating colonial-era exploitation through large-scale land-grabs at the expense of the interests and rights of local communities, including indigenous populations/communities and minorities and other members of society. For example, in the Isangi REDD+ project, communities were prevented from farming on their ancestral lands, with the promised development benefits not materializing.
Recommendations
69. The various activities undertaken in relation to the WGEI and the review of the periodic review of states parties during the 85rd session highlight the need for increased engagement in the popularization of the State Reporting Guidelines and Principles on Articles 21 and 24 of the African Charter, not only in the development of periodic reports but also in shaping legal and regulatory institutional frameworks of natural resources governance.
On Environmental Justice
70. As the thematic report of this intersession report highlights, there is a pressing need for according priority to the serious human and peoples’ rights consequences of the grave environmental crises in Africa, not least of all to the right to environment under Article 24 of the African Charter.
71. Apart from according special attention to the situation on a continuous basis, we urge Member States to adopt and enforce legal and institutional frameworks that hold corporations accountable for environmental harm and human rights violations, particularly in extractive industries.
72. We recommend immediate remedial and preventive measures in cases of environmental disaster, such as in Kabwe, Zambia, including suspension of hazardous activities, independent environmental assessments, institutional reform and medical redress for affected populations, and institute in Ghana, urgent measures for addressing the grave environmental disaster and the attendant grave human rights infringements arising from the phenomenon known as ‘galamsey’.
73. We encourage the integration of soft law instruments, particularly the State Reporting Guidelines and Principles on Articles 21 and 24 of the African Charter, into national regulatory systems to strengthen the protection of vulnerable communities from climate and corporate-induced harm.
74. Call on the support of States Parties, NHRIs, CSOs and all stakeholders to the Working Group in its work, addressing the human rights protection vacuum that characterises much of the operating environment of the extractive industries and beyond, including through the implementation of the African Commission’s Resolution 550, particularly the drafting of an African Legally Binding Instrument to Regulate the Activities of Transnational Corporations and Other Business Enterprises.
75. We also call on the collaboration of all stakeholders in the process of the development of the general comment on Article 24 of the African Charter as a key avenue for advancing an effective response to the grave environmental crises facing Africa, with dire consequences not only to the right to environment under Article 24 of the African Charter, but also many other rights of the African Charter.
On Human Rights in Conflict Situations
76. Urge all parties to armed conflicts, especially in Sudan and South Sudan, to cease hostilities immediately and unconditionally, and to comply fully with International Humanitarian Law (IHL) and International Human Rights Law (IHRL), particularly in relation to civilian protection, the prohibition of arbitrary detention, and respect for due process.
77. We also strongly encourage African states to play an active role in the development of the treaty on crimes against humanity, drawing on Africa’s normative resources and historical and contemporary experiences.
