Kigali Declaration, 2003
The 1st African Union (AU) Ministerial Conference on Human Rights in Africa meeting on 8 May 2003 in Kigali, Rwanda;
SOLEMNLY ADOPTS THIS KIGALI DECLARATION
Reaffirming its commitment to the objectives and principles contained in the Constitutive Act of the African Union,
Lome, Togo 2000, the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, Nairobi, Kenya 1981, the Solemn Declaration
of the Conference on Security, Stability, Development and Cooperation in Africa (CSSDCA), Lome, Togo 2000, the
New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) of the AU, Lusaka, 2001 Zambia, the Declaration on the Code of
Conduct on relations between States adopted in Tunis, Tunisia in June 1994, all relevant AU Declarations and
Decisions as well as the UN Charter 1948 and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Vienna Declarations
of 1989 and 1993.
Recalling the Grand Bay Declaration and Plan of Action adopted by the OAU Ministerial Conference on Human Rights
in Africa held in Grand Bay, Mauritius, from 12 to 16 April 1999, and reaffirming its commitment to the purposes and
principles therein;
Reaffirming that respect for human rights is indispensable for the maintenance of national, regional and international
peace and security and that it constitutes the fundamental bedrock for sustainable development;
Reaffirming further the principles enshrined in the Constitutive Act of the African Union, in particular, the prohibition of
genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity; and determined to fight the ideology of genocide and all its
manifestations;
Recalling the report of the International Panel of Eminent Persons (IPEP) entitled “The Preventable Genocide”
endorsed by the 36th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the OAU held in Lomé,
Togo, in July 2000 and the decision of the Assembly requesting the Secretary General to actively pursue the
implementation of the recommendations contained in the Report;
Deeply concerned by the continuing discrimination against women and girls, as well as harmful traditional practices
in some parts of Africa that endanger the life or health of women and children;
Deeply concerned that in spite of the progress made in resolving conflicts on the Continent, the continuing armed and
civil conflicts in some parts of Africa lead to gross violations of human rights and international humanitarian law, and
create massive movements of refugee populations and internally displaced persons.
The Conference:
1. Reaffirms the principle that all human rights are universal, indivisible, inter-dependent and inter-related.
2. Notes with satisfaction the achievements made by Member States in the promotion and protection of human and
peoples’ rights, especially since the adoption of the Grand Bay Declaration and Plan of Action, and recognizes the
need for Member States to build upon these achievements for the benefit and welfare of all African peoples;
3. Reaffirms the right to development, and calls upon the international community to support Member States in their
continuing efforts to realize this right.