By George Ozalla
The Network of National Human Rights Institutions in West Africa, NNHRI-WA, has called for stronger independence, adequate funding and closer regional collaboration among National Human Rights Institutions, NHRIs, to tackle rising insecurity, shrinking civic space and barriers to justice across the ECOWAS region.
The call was made at the end of the Network’s Eighth Regional Conference and Annual General Assembly held in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, from September 7 to 8, 2026.
The conference was hosted by the Commission Nationale des Droits de l’Homme de Côte d’Ivoire, CNDH-CI, with support from the ECOWAS Commission, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, West Africa Regional Office, OHCHR-WARO, United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel, UNOWAS, and UNAIDS.
Twelve National Human Rights Institutions from Benin, Cabo Verde, Côte d’Ivoire, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo participated in the conference alongside regional and international partners.
Declaring the conference open, President of NNHRI-WA and Executive Secretary of Nigeria’s National Human Rights Commission, NHRC, Dr. Tony Ojukwu, OFR, SAN, said human rights, democracy, development, peace and good governance were “mutually reinforcing pillars.”
Ojukwu noted that while West Africa had made progress in democratic governance, the region continued to face serious challenges, including unconstitutional changes of government, violent extremism, poverty, displacement and declining public trust in institutions.
He urged NHRIs to strengthen their preventive role by moving beyond responding to violations after they occur and paying greater attention to prevention and early warning.
Representing the ECOWAS Commission, Mr. Ebenezer Asiedu reaffirmed the regional body’s commitment to keeping human rights at the centre of the ECOWAS architecture and encouraged NHRIs to be “bold and innovative” in carrying out their responsibilities.
The OHCHR-WARO Regional Representative, Mr. Robert Kotchani, said NHRIs had an important responsibility in protecting women, children, persons with disabilities and other vulnerable groups whose rights are often at greater risk.
The conference also reviewed implementation of the 2025 Abuja Communique, with member institutions presenting progress made in OPCAT detention monitoring, transitional justice, migration, climate change and election observation.
On detention and access to justice, almost all the institutions reported overcrowding in correctional facilities and prolonged pre-trial detention as continuing challenges.
Ghana reported that overcrowding in its remand facilities had exceeded 130 per cent of capacity and also highlighted the passage of a new Community Service Act aimed at expanding the use of non-custodial sentencing.
Nigeria reported the use of its toll-free human rights line, 6472, as well as criminal justice committees to identify cases of wrongful detention and facilitate appropriate intervention. Sierra Leone and Togo also reported nationwide prison monitoring exercises.
The meeting further examined the role of NHRIs in protecting political and electoral rights, with The Gambia, Côte d’Ivoire and Senegal presenting models of NHRI involvement throughout the electoral cycle.
Their interventions included election monitoring, tracking of hate speech and voter education, while delegates called for greater inclusion of women, young people, persons with disabilities and members of the diaspora in democratic processes.
On business and human rights, Nigeria reported that the NHRC Act had been amended to give the Commission an express mandate on business and human rights.
Senegal disclosed that it was finalising a draft National Action Plan on business and human rights, which it said would make the country the first francophone country in the region to adopt such a framework.
The Gambia, on its part, reported that it was still at an early stage of developing its framework after commencing consultations with relevant stakeholders.
Delegates also identified persistent difficulties with intra-regional free movement despite the ECOWAS Protocol, as well as unresolved questions surrounding eligibility and cut-off points in reparations processes.
At the end of the conference, the institutions resolved to deepen peer learning, conduct joint monitoring missions and strengthen engagement with ECOWAS, the African Union and the United Nations in advancing human rights protection and democratic governance in West Africa.
In his closing remarks, Ojukwu said the legitimacy of NHRIs should be judged by the difference they make in the lives of ordinary citizens rather than by the offices occupied by their officials.
“The legitimacy of NHRIs is measured not by the offices we occupy, but by the difference we make in the lives of ordinary citizens,” he said.
The Ninth Regional Conference and General Assembly of NNHRI-WA will be convened in 2027.
