Arusha, 03 June 2022: The President of the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights Hon. Lady Justice Imani Daud Aboud has commended the government of Tanzania for approving a budget of Tshs 4,000,000,000 (about US$1.7million) to commence the construction of the Court’s permanent premises in Arusha.
‘’This is a big and bold step in ensuring that the Court gets its permanent premises’’, Hon Lady Justice Aboud said after the Parliament of Tanzania, seating in the capital Dodoma, approved the budget estimates of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and East African Cooperation on Tuesday, 31 May 2022, which, among others, included the costs for the construction of the Court premises.
The Court, which has its permanent seat in Arusha, is currently operating from its temporary offices at the Tanzania National Parks (TANAPA) buildings.
‘’This is a historic move and we are looking forward to its speedy construction,’’ she said, adding that this was yet another demonstration of Tanzania’s commitment to the cause of human rights, and generally, its unconditional support for the objectives of the Pan Africanism.
The government of Tanzania had allocated about 25hectares to the Court in Laki Laki area, on the outskirts of Arusha town, for the construction of the Court permanent premises. The location is in the vicinity of the UN Mechanism for International Tribunals (ex-ICTR and ex-ICTY).
NOTES FOR EDITORS
- The African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights is a continental court established by African countries to ensure the protection of human and peoples’ rights in Africa. It complements and reinforces the functions of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights.
The Court was established by pursuant to Article 1 of the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Establishment of an African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights, (the Protocol) which was adopted by Member States of the then Organization of African Unity (OAU) in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, in June 1998. The Protocol came into force on 25 January 2004. The Court officially started its operations in July 2006 in Addis Ababa and a year later moved to its permanent seat in Arusha, Tanzania. - The Court is composed of 11 Judges, nationals of Member States of the African Union elected in their individual capacity.
- The Court meets four times a year in Ordinary Sessions and may hold an Extra-Ordinary Sessions.
Further information on the Court can be obtained from the Court’s website at www.african-court.org.
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Email: Robert.Eno@african-court.org
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