Africa-Press – Gambia. The Gambia has taken a significant step in the continental fight to end violence against women and girls by signing the African Union Convention on Ending Violence Against Women and Girls (AU-CEVAWG). The signing took place on July 18, 2025, during the African Union’s 7th Mid-Year Coordination Meeting held in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea.
The Gambia joined five other AU member states—Angola, Burundi, Djibouti, Democratic Republic of Congo, and Liberia—in committing to this groundbreaking legally binding framework aimed at eliminating all forms of violence against women and girls across Africa.
Adopted earlier in February 2025 by the AU Assembly of Heads of State and Government, this convention is the first of its kind dedicated exclusively to addressing violence in both public and private spheres. It seeks to confront the root causes of violence, strengthen legal and institutional responses, and promote respect for human rights, gender equality, and the dignity of women and girls continent-wide.
The signing by The Gambia underscores a bold political will to combat structural and deep-rooted patterns of discrimination and abuse, signaling a commitment to protect and fulfill the rights and safety of women and girls. This aligns with The Gambia’s ongoing national efforts to tackle gender-based violence, such as the launch of the “Gambia Says NO MORE” campaign spearheaded by the First Lady and supported by the Commonwealth Secretariat in January 2024. The campaign focuses on raising awareness, empowering survivors, and promoting interventions against domestic and sexual violence.
By joining the AU Convention, The Gambia not only strengthens its national strategies but also commits to harmonising efforts with other African countries to build a safer, equitable future free from violence against women and girls.
This historic signing milestone marks a transformative moment for Africa’s gender equality agenda and calls for the swift ratification and implementation of the convention to translate this political commitment into tangible protections and justice for women and girls across the continent.
In a statement seen by The Standard, the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, commends The Gambia and other Member States of the African Union (AU) for signing the Convention.
The Commission said the groundbreaking instrument represents the first pan-African legally binding framework exclusively focused on eliminating all forms of violence against women and girls across the continent.
“This historic step by these Member States in signing the AU Convention marks a pivotal moment in the continental effort to end violence against women and girls. As the first legal instrument dedicated solely to this cause across public and private spheres, the AU Convention represents a transformative framework for action,” it added.
The Commission said it considers these signatures a powerful signal of political will toward building a continent where the dignity, safety, and rights of all women and girls are fully protected, respected, and fulfilled.
“The Commission, however, recalls that under international law, signing a treaty is an important political signal but does not in itself create binding legal obligations. The full legal effect of the AU Convention will be realised only upon its ratification and domestication into national law.” The Commission encourages the Governments of Angola, Burundi, Djibouti, DRC, Liberia, and The Gambia to proceed without delay in ratifying the AU Convention and take the necessary legislative and institutional measures to ensure its effective implementation.
“The Commission further called upon all Member States of the AU to follow this exemplary step and demonstrate a shared commitment to ending violence against women and girls by signing, ratifying, and implementing the AU Convention, in line with their human rights obligations, including under the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (Maputo Protocol).”
The Commission reaffirms its readiness to support the signatory States and other Member States in the ratification and implementation processes.
“This support includes providing technical guidance, facilitating constructive dialogue, and promoting best practices to ensure that commitments made at the continental level are translated into real, transformative change in the daily lives of women and girls.
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