African court commends Tanzania for construction of its permanent premises

PRESIDENT of the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights (AfCHPR) Lady Justice Imani Daud Aboud, has commended the Tanzanian government for fulfilling its promise to construct the permanent premises of the Pan-African Judicial body in the city of Arusha.

On June 2, Tanzanian officially handed over the construction site to the appointed constructors.

Demonstrating its commitment, Tanzanian government allocated a budget of 4bn/- in June 2022, and this month made an additional budgetary contribution of 2 million US dollars (about 4.8bn/-) towards the construction.

The estimated total cost for the project is 61bn/-.

During the site handing over ceremony at LakiLaki area, on the outskirts of Arusha town, Justice Imani Daud Aboud emphasised Tanzania’s dedication to fulfilling its promise of constructing the African Court’s permanent premises.

She expressed optimism that the Court would be ready for occupation within the next 24 months.

“The construction of the African Court’s permanent premises in Arusha signifies a significant milestone towards enhancing the Court’s institutional capacity and promoting the rule of law within the African continent,” she explained.

Presently, the African Court operates from temporary offices located at the Tanzania National Parks (TANAPA) buildings, pending the completion of the permanent premises.

AfCHPR 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.

It was established 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 Organisation 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.