Flagship Projects

AfriRIGHTS collaborated with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and the African Union Commission, to host a webinar ahead of the 4th African Forum on Business and Human Rights The webinar had opening remarks by key business and human rights experts and was moderated by Prof. Uchenna Emelonye, CEO of AfriRIGHTS
The first remark was by Prof. Damilola Olawuyi and commended AfriRIGHTS for hosting the webinar. Prof. Olawuyi is the Vice chairperson of the UN Working Group on BHR. a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (KC) and UNESCO Chair on Environmental Law and Sustainable Development at the College of Law, Hamad Bin Khalifa University Doha. Prof. Olawuyi is also Chair of the BOT of AfriRIGHTS. The other commendatory remarks were by Mr. Issaka Garba Abdou, the Head of Governance and Human Rights Division of the African Union Commission in Addis Ababa and Ms. Victoria de Mello, the Regional Coordinator and Head of UNDP Business and Human Rights Secretariat in Addis Ababa, ably represented by Mr. Ononuju Okwaraogoma, the Programme Officer, BHR. The webinar was formally opened by Mr. Marcel Akpovo, OHCHR’s Regional Director for East and Southern Africa and Representative to the African Union who was represented by Mr. Joseph Noubadoum, OIC of the OHCHR Regional Office in Addis.
There were three key presentations at the webinar. The first presentation was by Commissioner Sandra Makoasha and attempted to situate the 4th African Forum on BHR to Current Challenges of African NHRI’s. Ms. Makoasha is a Commissioner in the South African Human Rights Commission in-charge of BHR, Pro-human rights budgeting and Gender Equality. The Second presentation was by Ms. Ms. Florence Shako. She reflected on the 1st to 3rd African Forums on BHR and attempted to propose actionable points to influence the Outcome of the 4th Forum. Ms. Florence Shako, a legal academic and advocate of the High Court of Kenya is the Founder and Executive Director of the Center for Education Policy and Climate Justice (CEPCJ) and Board Member of AfriRIGHTS. The third presentation by Commissioner Pela Boker Wilson calibrated the challenges in the adoption and implementation of the National Action Plans in Africa and proposed actionable points for the 4th African Forum. Commissioner Pela is a Professor of Law and Member UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. She is also a Commissioner in the Independent National Commission on Human Rights of Liberia.
The plenary session generated reports and targeted advocacy for the 4th African Business and Human Rights Forum, particularly around remedy, reparations, and responsible business conduct. The webinar was formally closed by Mr. Robert Kochani, OHCHR regional Representative in West Africa and ECOWAS

AfriRights is focused on promoting responsible business practices in Africa and ensuring that human rights are respected within the context of economic development, AfriRIGHTS is partnering with the African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights (ACHPR) to conduct a gap analysis of regional business and human rights frameworks and enablers for the adoption of the African Union (AU) Policy Framework on Business and Human Rights. It is also conducting in partnership with ACHPR, a human rights impact assessment of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), a free trade agreement aimed at promoting economic integration and development across the 54 of the 55 African Union nations.

In line with its strategy of working at the national level through collaboration with national human rights institutions, AfriRIGHTS and the Nigeria National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) is collaborating in the thematic area of Business and Human Rights (BHR) and will co-host the 1st National Colloquium on Business and Human Rights, under the theme “Promoting Participatory and Responsible Business Practices in Nigeria”

Building on the gains of successive Africa Business and Human Rights Forums and the adoption of the National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights, (NAPBHR)

The 1st National Colloquium on Business and Human Rights will congregate representatives of business enterprises and associations, labour organisations, regulatory agencies, governments, CSOs and other human rights actors active in business and human rights in Nigeria.

The objective of the colloquium is to convene and foster policy dialogue on the imperativeness of standardizing rights-centric internal business policies alongside strengthening the regulatory landscape and oversight of relevant institutions.

The colloquium will also generate crucial insight on integrating Human Rights Due Diligence into business operations, foster peer-to-peer learning among businesses and promote exchange of rights-centric information and best practices. Ultimately, the event aims to produce actionable recommendations for the adoption of compliant business models and the development of strong regulatory and policy frameworks that promote ethical, sustainable and responsible business practices in line with internationally agreed norms, standards and principles.

As a platform for fostering active engagement and creating opportunities for networking and building constructive relationships, the colloquium will consist of high-level plenary sessions that will feature keynote speeches from high-level political figures, business leaders and subject-matter experts. It will also include panel discussions and interactive breakout sessions that will allow participants to engage in more detailed discussions and brainstorm around specific topics. The colloquium will conclude with the adoption of communiques, recommendations and a road map for the implementation of the NAPBHR.