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States’ obligation to protect climate-related human rights heads to African Court on Human Rights

States’ obligation to protect climate-related human rights heads to African Court on Human Rights
People cross a flooded area in Muloza on the border with Mozambique in the aftermath of Cyclone Freddy, about 100km outside Blantyre, Malawi, March 18, 2023. (Photo: Reuters / Esa Alexander)
Kristin Engel
By Kristin Engel
16 May 2025
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A group of lawyers and civic organisations have formally asked the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights to issue an advisory opinion on the obligations of African states to protect climate-related human rights on the continent in a ‘heartfelt plea for justice’.

As climate change wreaks havoc across the African continent, which is heating at a faster rate than the rest of the world with more severe climate and weather disasters, a request has been submitted to the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights.

The court has been asked to provide an advisory opinion on African states’ obligation to protect climate-related human rights in Africa under the African Charter — focusing on the right to life, health, development, and to a general satisfactory environment. 

Groups from across the continent began working on the request as far back as 2022, according to Paul Mulindwa, the advocacy and campaigns officer, and Africa Lead at Civicus.

The formal petition was submitted to the Tanzania-based court on 2 May 2025 by the Pan African Lawyers Union (Palu), in collaboration with the African Climate Platform and other African civil society organisations including the Environmental Lawyers Collective for Africa, Natural Justice, and Resilient.

The petition relays the disproportionate impact of climate change on Africa despite the continent’s minimal historical greenhouse gas emissions, and presents detailed accounts of climate impacts across different African regions.

“We are launching this petition as a heartfelt plea for justice for the communities enduring these harsh realities,” said Alfred Brownell, lead campaigner of the African Climate Platform.

The sharp increase in extreme droughts and floods, together with rising temperatures, was endangering natural habitats and threatening the wellbeing and livelihoods of vast numbers of people across the continent.

Brownell said their mission was to put in place strong protective measures against these environmental harms, to ensure the dignity and resilience of the millions of Africans who were confronting these challenges were upheld.

This is the first time African civil society is using 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. 

Protests, water shortages, flooding and drought across Africa


In North Africa, water scarcity has become a critical issue exacerbated by climate change. Reports indicate that approximately 83% of the population of North Africa faces extremely high water stress. Climate change continues to drive more frequent and intense droughts, lower average precipitation, and increased temperatures, worsening water shortages across the region.

These shortages have triggered social unrest, including “thirst protests” in Morocco, Tunisia, and Algeria. 

In 2017, water shortages in Zagora, Morocco, led to protests, resulting in the arrest of 23 protesters and the imprisonment of eight. Morocco also entered its sixth year of drought in 2024, with the Al Massira Dam — the country's second-largest dam — registering its lowest fill level since its construction in 1976 at less than 6%, compared with almost 99% in May 2013.

A rire rips through the Garden Route on 30 October 2018 near Knysna, South Africa. (Photo: Gallo Images / Netwerk24 / Jaco Marais)



The document states that West Africa has reported changes in weather patterns, including climate-related droughts and flooding that are interrupting agricultural cycles and reducing food production. This extreme weather has affected the region’s agricultural output, including products such as cocoa.

The petition also addresses how climate change disproportionately affects vulnerable groups, including women, children, the elderly, indigenous peoples, and environmental human rights defenders.

In stating these impacts, the applicants request the court to clarify states’ obligations regarding:

  • Legal standards for climate change mitigation, adaptation, resilience, and the redress of loss and damage.

  • The protection of environmental defenders and affected communities from reprisals.

  • Participation, transparency, and accountability in climate-related decision-making.

  • The just and equitable transition to low-carbon energy systems.

  • The regulation of third-party conduct, particularly that of multinational corporations.

  • The decolonisation of natural resource governance frameworks.


Speaking to Lucien Limacher and Nomasango Masiye-Moyo from Natural Justice; lead drafter and international human rights lawyer Dzimbabwe Chimbga; and Brownell, they believe that the African Court is uniquely positioned to interpret the African Charter and issue authoritative legal guidance for all member states of the African Union on the matter. 

Its opinions carry moral and legal weight, particularly on matters of continental concern like climate change, which affects all African countries and disproportionately harms vulnerable populations.

“It [the petition] draws attention to how climate impacts — like droughts, floods, and food insecurity — are already undermining basic rights, especially in poor and marginalised communities,” they said.

Flooding in Muloza on the border with Mozambique in the aftermath of Cyclone Freddy, about 100km outside Blantyre, Malawi, on 18 March 2023. (Photo: Reuters / Esa Alexander)



The petition asks the court to define what African states are required to do under the charter and related international and regional instruments, to prevent, mitigate, and adapt to climate change. 

This includes obligations to reduce emissions, protect vulnerable communities, and ensure inclusive and equitable climate action, to define what a just transition is and to hold third parties accountable. 

The organisations said its goal was to move from aspirational commitments to clear, enforceable standards.

Shaping climate action across the continent


When asked what a favourable opinion would be, Limacher said it should provide legal clarity and a normative framework that African states can rely on to guide climate legislation, policymaking, and international advocacy. 

“It would help integrate human rights-based approaches into climate action and hold states to account for their obligations under the African Charter,” he said.

While advisory opinions like these are not legally binding, Limacher said  they were often used by courts, lawmakers, and regulatory bodies to interpret constitutional rights and shape legal reforms. 
This opinion could empower civil society, courts, and communities to push for stronger climate protections, and influence national climate strategies, environmental laws, and development plans.

Courts, governments, and advocacy groups often use them to guide action, shape jurisprudence, and build legal precedent. 

Leading environmental lawyer Cormac Cullinan told Daily Maverick that an advisory opinion was a form of “soft law”, the idea being that while not actually law, it was often very influential and could become law at some point. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=REeWvTRUpMk

“It’s quite a lot of work to produce an opinion like that; they’ll have to look at the state of international law and the various conventions… If they come out with a statement, I would anticipate that in courts of law in Africa, if something comes up, that the lawyers would probably refer to that opinion if it was helpful and bring it to the attention of judges with the hope that the judges would agree with the opinion and then make a ruling on that basis,” he said. 

Limacher added that on the ground, having a legal opinion on this could help amplify the voices and experiences of communities most affected by climate change, like indigenous peoples, smallholder farmers, women, and youth. It could do this by providing a legal basis to demand protection and redress. 

In practice, the lawyers said they often influenced both domestic and regional norms, especially when backed by public demand and civil society mobilisation.

South Africa, as a state party to the African Charter and a key regional player, for example, would be expected to align its climate and human rights obligations with the court’s guidance. 

The opinion could influence South African courts, Parliament, and policy frameworks, especially in addressing environmental justice, climate litigation, and community rights.


Rooted in regional and global instruments


Donald Deya, the Chief Executive Officer of the Pan African Lawyers Union (Palu), said their request was firmly rooted in a “constellation of binding regional instruments that chart the course for human rights across the continent”.

These include the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, the Protocol on the Rights of Women in Africa (commonly known as the Maputo Protocol), the Kampala Convention on Internally Displaced Persons, the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, and the Revised African Convention on the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources. 

In addition, they also draw on widely ratified international treaties that resonated with African states.

“We remain steadfastly committed to the principle that the rights enshrined in the African Charter must be safeguarded, not just in theory, but in practice not only for the communities of today, but for the generations yet to come,” said Deya.

Expected timeline for the African Court to respond 


If the court confirms admissibility, it will then invite submissions from stakeholders, including states and experts. But the lawyers warned that a ruling could take several months to more than two years, depending on procedural steps and complexity. 

One of the lawyers said that the court could reject the request based on grounds such as lack of jurisdiction, if it was not a human right matter, if the applicant lacked legal standing or if the matter was pending before the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights. However, this seemed unlikely.

“This petition is an historic opportunity for Africa to lead in climate and human rights jurisprudence. It reflects growing recognition that climate justice is not only an environmental issue but a fundamental human rights concern. We hope the African Court will rise to the moment and offer clear, bold guidance for the continent’s future,” said the lawyers.

Cullinan said that he hoped that these would be progressive opinions that would speak to the fact that we were about to breach the 1.5°C level, which the international community found to be the level where climate risks would become unacceptable and would impose increasingly severe limitations on human rights.

“It’s hardly disputable that a range of human rights (to life, to food, women’s rights, many others) are going to be affected by climate change, and what that means is that states mustn’t do anything that is going to unjustifiably limit human rights. In fact, they should be wanting to take measures to protect human rights,” he said.

Parallel to ICJ proceedings


This request for an advisory opinion from the African Court comes as the International Court of Justice (ICJ) is also considering issuing an advisory opinion on climate change obligations for states upon request by the UN General Assembly.

In December 2024, the ICJ held hearings on an advisory opinion request initiated by Vanuatu and supported by more than 100 countries. That request asks the ICJ to clarify states’ obligations under international law to protect the climate system and the legal consequences for states that have caused significant harm to the climate system.

Read more: Landmark legal ICJ opinion expected on state climate obligations – and what SA wants

The ICJ proceedings have been described as “one of the most comprehensive advisory opinion processes in the ICJ’s history”, with 96 states and 11 international organisations presenting their perspectives. The ICJ is expected to deliver its advisory opinion in 2025.

Globally there are other precedents of such climate-related advisory opinions by a human rights court. There have been three other advisory opinion petitions filed before international or regional legal bodies — the Inter-America Court of Human Rights, the International Tribunal for the Law of the Seas, and the International Court of Justice. 

Both the Inter-American Court of Human Rights and the International Tribunal on the Law of the Seas have issued advisory opinions linked to climate change impacts and human rights. DM



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