Abdi Jibril Ali’s research examines the interpretation of economic and social rights in the regional human rights protection system of the African Union, based on the African Charter of Human and Peoples’ Rights. The focus is specifically on the scope of general legal obligations, i.e. those obligation that apply across the entire Charter. Concretely, the study includes the obligation of ‘progressive realisation’ the concept of minimum core obligations, the principle of non-discrimination/equality, the limitations on economic, social and cultural rights and the importance of participation of individuals and groups in the implementation of their economic, social and cultural rights.
The study concludes that the African Commission and Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights have articulated a narrow conception of economic, social and cultural rights. It recommends that the Commission and the Court should avoid any interpretation that erodes the substantive content of economic, social and cultural rights guaranteed in the African Charter.
