@article{2018:abioye:understand,
title = {Understanding the Rule of Law in Africa through the lens of the African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights’ interpretation on the right to development in Africa.},
year = {2018},
note = {The right to development has evolved over the years, and in the
African context, is viewed as a legal right that ensures that the
people are part of the development process. The unpacking of the
content and application of this right by the African Commission on
Human and Peoples Rights has gone a long way in enumerating what
exactly this right means to Africans. The jurisprudence of the African
Commission shows that the commission has adopted a bottom-up approach
to the right to development. An approach that focuses on the
participation of the people in their own development plans and
initiatives, in order to capacitate themselves in their own
development. It focuses on what the people can do to foster their own
development, rather than on what external sources can do. In terms of
the rule of law, it is clear that for law to be able to work and
function among the people, it has to be legitimate. There must be a
sense of ownership by the people, an identification by the people whom
the law seeks to govern, that they are bound by the very law. Thus
such law must come from within, and not be imposed externally. This
article seeks to draw from the African Commission’s grassroots
approach to the right to development in Africa, in order to further
our understanding of the rule of law in Africa, and the way in which
our laws are actually meant to be products of the society. In doing
this, the article will investigate how the unpacking of the right to
development by the African Commission can be used to interpret and
enhance our understanding and application the rule of law in Africa.},
journal = {VRÜ Verfassung und Recht in Übersee},
pages = {269--287},
author = {Abioye, Funmi},
volume = {51},
number = {2}
}