“Climate Justice Activists to Submit Petition to ACHPR”, May 2, 2025

In a landmark move for environmental justice and human rights in Africa, the African Climate Platform, Resilient40, Natural Justice and Environmental Lawyer Collective for Africa in collaboration with the Pan African Lawyers Union (PALU), will submit a petition to the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) on May 2, 2025, in Arusha, Tanzania. The petition requests an Advisory Opinion on the human rights obligations of African States in the context of climate change. This unprecedented initiative marks the first time African civil society is utilizing the Court’s advisory jurisdiction to address the climate crisis - a development described by legal experts and climate activists as a transformational moment for African jurisprudence on climate justice and intergenerational equity. "Africa, which contributes only a small fraction of global greenhouse gas emissions, is facing overwhelming challenges due to the climate crisis,” asserted Alfred Brownell, Lead Campaigner of the African Climate Platform. “The alarming rise in the frequency and severity of droughts and flooding, along with escalating temperatures, poses grave threats to both natural ecosystems and the livelihoods of countless individuals.

Recognizing the urgency of this situation, Brownell noted that the petition is being launched as a heartfelt plea for justice for the communities enduring these harsh realities. “Our mission is to put in place strong protective measures against environmental harm, ensuring that the dignity and resilience of the millions of Africans confronting these challenges are upheld. We are deeply committed to ensuring that their fundamental rights are acknowledged and that their voices resonate in discussions regarding the government's responsibilities toward past, present, and future generations.” The petition seeks the Court’s interpretation of States’ obligations under key regional legal instruments, including the Maputo Protocol, the Kampala Convention, and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child… In the lead-up to the submission, legal professionals, climate justice advocates, environmental defenders, and human rights activists from across the continent have been gathered in Arusha since April 27 to finalize this historic petition.

The initiative is being hailed as a milestone in Africa’s evolving legal response to climate injustice, calling on the continent’s highest human rights court to play a defining role in shaping climate-resilient governance and law. More than a legal act, the Arusha gathering is a powerful expression of solidarity from activists and frontline defenders across Africa’s five regions. Their voices, rooted in lived experience, highlight the urgency of the climate crisis: “From the drying dams of Morocco to the thirst protests in Algeria and the disaster of Derna in Libya, North Africa is a stark reminder that climate change is not a future threat—it is a present human rights crisis, unfolding through water scarcity, displacement, and economic instability,” said Ahmad Abdallah, an Egyptian Human Rights Defender. Lucien Limacher from Natural Justice, South Africa, added: “Southern Africa is confronting its most severe drought in over a century, with widespread crop failures and a hunger crisis affecting 61 million people. Women and girls bear the brunt—facing disrupted education, increased domestic burdens, and heightened exposure to gender-based violence.” “Environmental defenders and land rights activists, including Indigenous Peoples, often face severe repression while standing between powerful interests and vulnerable ecosystems. Their work to protect natural resources and indigenous territories frequently puts them at extraordinary risk, with inadequate protection from the very institutions meant to safeguard human rights,” Dr Paul Mulindwa – CIVICUS… The African Climate Platform (ACP) is a broad coalition of African civil society organizations, grassroots climate defenders, legal professionals, Indigenous communities, women’s groups, and youth movements working to amplify African voices in climate policy and justice.