•Tinubu
A coalition of 24 Nigerian and international civil society organisations has called on the Tinubu-led federal government to grant Nigerians direct access to the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights by making the declaration required under Article 34(6) of the Court’s protocol.
The coalition includes the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP); Amnesty International Nigeria; BudgIT; Accountability Lab Nigeria; the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID); Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC)/Transparency International Nigeria; Enough is Enough (EiE) Nigeria; Paradigm Initiative and Spaces for Change, reports Daily Independent.
Other civil society in the coalition cut across the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism; Global Rights; HEDA Resource Centre; CLEEN Foundation; Public and Private Development Centre (PPDC); Dataphyte Foundation; DIGICIVIC Initiative; Duty Solicitors Network; Social Action; Paradigm Leadership Support Initiative (PLSI); Center for Public Interest Law (CEPIL); CRADESC; the Institute for Human Rights and Development in Africa (IHRDA); the African Centre for Media and Information Literacy (AFRICMIL); and Falana and Falana Chambers.
In a joint statement addressed to President Bola Tinubu’s administration, the organisations urged the government to make and deposit the declaration that would allow Nigerians and eligible non-governmental organisations to approach the African Court directly after exhausting domestic remedies. The appeal followed a letter sent to the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, SAN.
Nigeria ratified the protocol establishing the African Court in 2004 but has not made the optional declaration required for individuals and NGOs to access the Court directly. The groups said the omission continues to deny victims of human rights violations a critical regional avenue for justice.
“Nigeria’s continued refusal to make the Article 34(6) declaration undermines access to justice and effective remedies, as well as weakens accountability, particularly for victims whose cases are stalled, ignored, or inadequately addressed within the domestic legal system,” the organisations said.
Nigeria ratified the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights in 1983 and remains a member of the African Union’s human rights system. Justice Stella Isibhakhomen Anukam of Nigeria currently serves as a judge of the African Court following her re-election in July 2024 and has repeatedly highlighted the importance of Nigeria making the declaration.
The coalition also recalled that the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, at its 62nd Ordinary Session in May 2018, recommended that Nigeria expedite the process to enable Nigerians and NGOs to directly approach the Court in cases involving alleged human rights violations.
According to the organisations, making the declaration would strengthen protection of rights guaranteed under the African Charter, including freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly, digital rights, access to natural resources, and people-centred safety and security. It would also enhance state accountability and oversight of powerful non-state actors, including technology companies.
They noted that several African Union member states, including Ghana, Malawi, Mali, Burkina Faso, Guinea-Bissau, and Niger, have already made the declaration, urging Nigeria to demonstrate leadership by doing the same.
“As one of Africa’s leading democracies, Nigeria must show moral and political leadership by fully subscribing to the jurisdiction of the African Court,” the statement added. “Doing so would strengthen Africa’s human rights architecture at a time when the global rules-based system is under increasing strain.”
The coalition called on the federal government to immediately make and deposit the declaration and to engage civil society and other stakeholders on the legal and administrative steps required for its domestic implementation. It also expressed readiness to work with the government to advance access to justice and reinforce Nigeria’s leadership in promoting human rights across Africa.
The statement was issued in Lagos today, Thursday, February 12, 2026, and signed by SERAP Deputy Director Kolawole Oluwadare.
