The African Charter, in common with all other international human rights treaties, prohibits discrimination in enjoyment of the other rights the Charter sets out. In the case of nationality, however, the law assumes some level of discrimination – because one of the criteria for acquisition of nationality is based on descent – and this is permitted by international law. However, certain types of discrimination are impermissible.
The most common form of discrimination in nationality laws is that men and women have different rights to transmit their nationality to their children. Although discrimination based on gender is rapidly reducing, there are still more a dozen countries in Africa that give a woman reduced rights to transmit nationality to a child, and more who limit transmission to her husband. In Africa, discrimination on the basis of race, ethnicity and (in North Africa) religion, is also in place in around a dozen countries.
The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (Article 18) also prohibits discrimination against disabled people in relation to the right to a nationality. Several countries have requirements for good health in relation to naturalisation that would not be in compliance with this provision.
In many countries there is no discriminatory element in the law itself but discrimination is pervasive in practice.
Ten people of African descent officially reconnected with their Beninese roots by receiving their nationality certificates at a ceremony held on Saturday, at the Cotonou Judicial Complex. The ceremony took place in the presence of the Minister of Justice and […]
Recently, Juma Witonze Kisekka, a member of Abavandimwe, was appointed State minister of Internal Affairs, thus getting directions from President Museveni to sort out the citizenship questions that have faced the community. We had an interface with Frank Gashumba, the […]
By Roger A. Agana Ghana’s Constitution grants men and women equal rights to pass citizenship to their children. In practice, thousands of Ghanaians still struggle to prove it. NewsGhana spoke with Cassadee Yan, author of “The Gendered Politics of Belonging: […]
by Kirstie Kwarteng Highlights West African governments are offering citizenship to descendants of enslaved Africans and other diaspora members as both a symbolic act of reparative justice and a practical strategy to attract investment, skills, and tourism. Benin, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, […]
MONROVIA – A 178-year-old constitutional clause restricting citizenship to persons of Negro descent has returned to center stage. Dr. Robtel Neajai Pailey, an LSE scholar, brought a decade of research on the clause to the House of Representatives Tuesday. Her […]
By Leroy Maxwell Sonpon III The nation’s decades-old constitutional debate over citizenship, identity, and land ownership has resurfaced with renewed intensity following a caution from renowned Liberian political economist and scholar Robtel Neajai Pailey, who has urged lawmakers to proceed […]
By John Sharp Cassandra Lewis’s path to citizenship in the African country of Benin began decades ago. As the youngest of nine children, she grew up listening to her father recount stories that were not fantasy tales of slave ships […]
By Nelson Naturinda What began as a routine government formation process after President Yoweri Museveni’s swearing-in for a new term on May 12 has thrust Uganda’s long-running citizenship debate into the national spotlight. Among the names submitted for ministerial jobs […]
By Edgar Muvunyi Tabaro The debate surrounding Banyarwanda citizenship in Uganda has once again resurfaced, this time in the wake of recent public appointments. As has often been the case, the discussion has generated more heat than light, with ethnicity, […]
By Abdihakim Siyad Among the many announcements made during the historic Madaraka Day celebrations in Wajir, none carried as much political and emotional significance as President William Ruto’s defence of reforms to the registration and issuance of national identity cards […]
Décret N° 2026-013 du 28 janv. 2026 portant création de l’Agence pour l’assistance au retour des afro-descendants et approbation de ses statuts. Télécharger: https://sgg.gouv.bj/doc/decret-2026-013/ Décret N° 2026-053 du 04 mars 2026 portant nomination des commissaires aux comptes titulaire et suppléant près l’Agence […]
Reportage · Il y a bientôt quinze ans, le Soudan du Sud proclamait son indépendance. Depuis, l’administration tarde à régulariser ses ressortissants : selon le HCR, 90 % des Sud-Soudanais ne seraient pas encore enregistrés sur les bases de données […]