African Court to elect new President on Monday
What you need to know:
- The election will be held during the Court’s 77th Ordinary Session, which begins its new term on Monday, June 2, 2025.
Arusha. The African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights (AfCHPR) is set to elect a new President on Monday as its panel of judges convenes to select new leadership for the continent’s premier human rights judicial institution.
The election will be held during the Court’s 77th Ordinary Session, which begins its new term on Monday, June 2, 2025.
The current President, Tanzanian Justice Imani Daud Aboud, will officially conclude her four-year term.
Vice President Justice Modibo Sacko of Mali will also step down after completing two consecutive two-year terms.
Justices Aboud and Sacko were first elected to their respective leadership roles during the Court’s 61st Session in 2021.
They completed their first terms in 2023 and were re-elected in line with the Court’s internal regulations, which limit service in leadership to a maximum of two terms.
Justice Aboud made history as the first woman from East Africa to serve as President of the Court.
She succeeded Justice Sylvain Oré of Côte d’Ivoire, while Justice Sacko succeeded Justice Ben Kioko of Kenya.
By the Court’s procedures, the President and Vice President are elected by secret ballot from among the 11 sitting judges.
The judges eligible to vote in the upcoming election are: Lady Justice Imani Daud Aboud (Tanzania), Justice Sacko Modibo (Mali), Justice Rafaâ Ben Achour (Tunisia), Lady Justice Ntyam Ondo Mengue (Cameroon), Lady Justice Tujilane Rose Chizumila( Malawi).
Other are Lady Justice Bensaoula Chafika ( Algeria), Lady Justice Stella Isibhakhomen Anukam ( Nigeria), Justice Blaise Tchikaya (Republic of Congo), Justice Dumisa Ntsebeza (South Africa), Justice Dennis Dominic Adjei ( Ghana), Justice Duncan Gaswaga ( Uganda )
According to a statement from the Court, the incoming President will preside over the delivery of judgments on seven landmark cases deliberated during the 76th and 77th sessions.
Additionally, the new leadership will oversee the implementation of key rulings, including the Court’s landmark judgment on the rights of the Ogiek community against the government of Kenya, and cases concerning the protection of persons with albinism in Tanzania.
