The Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria (the Centre), participated in the 45th Ordinary Session of the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACERWC), held in Maseru, Kingdom of Lesotho. In its statement before the ACERWC, the Centre expressed concern over ongoing conflicts in Eastern DRC and Sudan, urging the ACERWC to reframe them as children’s rights emergencies. 

The Centre also indicated its continuous commitment to support the mandate of the Committee. This year, 2025, the Centre will collaborate with the Committee and specifically the working group on the implementation of the decisions of the Committee to host an international conference on implementing the ACERWC’s decisions and also, collaborate  with the Committee’s working group on children’s rights and climate change to facilitate its engagement with children on the growing impact of climate change on children’s rights and welfare.

In furtherance of its participation, the Centre hosted a twin side event on the 7^th of April 2025. The first part of the side event spotlighted the rights of intersex children, building on the 2022 regional study by the Centre and the adoption of Resolution 552 by the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights in 2023. A panel discussion shared lived experiences and highlighted that many violations occur during childhood, infringing on several children’s rights. The panellists called for comprehensive guidelines to protect the rights of intersex children and highlighted good practices such as those implemented in Kenya.

The second part of the event was the launch of the book titled The African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child: A Commentary, edited by Professors Julia Sloth-Nielsen and Elvis Fokala and Dr Godfrey Odongo. This publication, the second in the Pretoria University Law Press (PULP) series on African human rights treaties, offers an article by article analysis of the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child. Editors and some contributing authors provided background and insights during the launch.

For more information, please contact:

Dr Elvis Fokala (he/him)

Manager: Children's Rights Unit
Centre for Human Rights, University of Pretoria

Tel  +27 (0) 12 420 3587
 elvis.fokala@up.ac.za 

Nqobani Nyathi

Researcher: Children's Rights Unit
Centre for Human Rights, University of Pretoria

Tel  +27 (0) 12 420 3587
 elvis.fokala@up.ac.za