Kairaba Beach Hotel in The Gambia to participate in the Forum on the Participation of NGOs preceding the 56th Ordinary Session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’Rights (ACHPR) next Friday.The information is contained in a press release issued by the African
Centre for Democracy and Human Rights Studies.
According to the release, the participants at the Forum will discuss
the current human rights and democracy challenges in Africa as well as
review corresponding strategies to address the identified challenges.
The Forum is organized and hosted by the African Centre for Democracy
and Human Rights Studies (African Centre) – the Secretariat of the
NGOs Forum and the Forum Steering Committee, in collaboration with the
African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (African Commission).
It will be officially opened by the Attorney General and Minister of
Justice of the Republic of The Gambia. Other speakers to address the
Forum during the opening ceremony will include The Chairperson of the
African Commission, H.E. Sylvie Kayitesi, Chairperson of the Governing
Council of the African Centre and former Commissioner of the African
Commission, Mr. Andrew Chigovera as well as the NGO Forum Steering
Committee.
The Forum provides an important platform for stakeholders to address
challenges; exchange views and explore practical approaches and
experiences with the objective of fostering cooperation among and
between NGOs as well as with the African Commission and of course,
States and other stakeholders in promoting and protecting human rights
in Africa.
The release further states that the forum will discuss reports
assessing the human rights situation in Africa, particularly in
Djibouti, Ethiopia, Malawi, Nigeria, Niger, Senegal, Sierra Leone and
Uganda, whose State reports will be reviewed by the African Commission
at the 56th session in fulfillment of Article 62 of the African
Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.
Resource Persons and Facilitators during the Forum will be Experts in
the field of human rights and democracy, primarily from the African
continent, who will be facilitating a series of presentations and or
panel discussion amongst others including: Accountability for torture
and related violations of the African Charter: challenges, best
practices and the role of the African Commission, Statelessness in
Africa and the Right to Nationality, The Situation of Women Human
Rights Defenders in Africa, The Right to Freedom of Association and
Assembly in the African Context, The Role of Youths in Democracy and
Governance in Africa,
The 30th African Human Rights Book Fair will run concurrently with the
Forum, with the objective of giving human rights NGOs the opportunity
to share their publications, working tools and other materials with
other NGOs, and to promote networking on the continent and beyond.
At the end of the three-day deliberations, recommendations emanating
from the sessions will be forwarded to the African Commission for its
consideration during the 56th Ordinary Session, which is also
scheduled to take place at the same venue from 21st April to 7th May,
2015.]]>
