The Commission adopted a participatory, inclusive and iterative approach to the development of the ACHPR Strategy to ensure ownership and legitimacy by the Commission as well as relevant stakeholders. Learning from past experiences and in particular the status of implementation of the 2015-2019 strategy, the process sought to ensure that the goals, outputs and activities are well aligned to the core mandate of the Commission, priorities and pressing needs on human rights protection and promotion in Africa.
The strategy development process was initiated, driven and owned by the Commission under the guidance of the Working Group on Specific Issues Related to the Work of the African Commission. The Working Group developed Terms of References for the process. The Terms of Reference were discussed and deliberated during the 65th Ordinary Session that took place in Banjul from 21 October - 10 November 2019.
The desk analysis entailed a background review and analysis of the previous Strategic Plan 2015-2019 of ACHPR as well as previous assessments by partners and non-State actors of its work and impact. It included a review and analysis of relevant base legal instruments, policies, resolutions of ACHPR. Due attention was paid to the annual activity reports to the Executive Council which provided an overview of its activities, initiatives and deliverables. The review also included various internal and external assessments as well as financial and administration audit reports.
The internal and external environment including the contemporary human rights issues of concern for the Strategic Plan period were also examined. A review of relevant AU policy organs especially on implementation of Agenda 2063 and the 10 Year Implementation Plan as well as the 10 Year Human Rights Action Plan was undertaken to ensure alignment and inspiration. The main guiding legal framework on mandate, priorities and scope of the review was the African Charter and related human rights instruments including the Maputo Protocol and the Protocol to the African Court given the complementary nature of the relationship between the Commission and the African Court. The review also entailed relevant international human rights norms and standards as well as developments in the international human rights system such as the UPR process. The synthesised analysis of the desk review informed the background and contextual basis for the strategic development process, SWOT (see Annex 2) and stakeholder analysis (see annex 3) as well as the overall goal, strategic outcomes, outputs and indicative activities.
To ensure ownership, legitimacy and credibility, the process of developing the strategy was open to contributions from all stakeholders including AU Member States, African citizens, NHRIs, CSOs, international non-governmental organisations, development partners among others (see survey questions in Annex 4).42
Furthermore, consultations included remote interviews via telephone and skype with past and current members of the Commission, ACHPR Secretariat and AGA Platform Members. While some in person consultations were held prior to the onset of COVID19, after the onset, consultations were largely held remotely. Acknowledging regional and linguistic diversity of members of the Commission as well as human rights actors in Africa, consultations were conducted in the four official languages of the AU. Validation of the processes, methodology and Strategy was held in an iterative process during the 27th Extra Ordinary Session (1 March 2020); a dedicated session with the Working Group on Special Issues (28 September 2020); and the 67th Ordinary Session (30 November 2020).
