Protocol Watch

The position as of 1st of December, 2023

Not Signed

Egypt, Morocco

Signed but not Ratified

Burundi, Chad, Eritrea, Madagascar, Niger, Somalia, Sudan

Ratified

Algeria, Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Rep., Cape Verde, Côte d’Ivoire, Comoros, Congo, Djibouti, Democratic Rep. of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, Kenya, Libya, Lesotho, Liberia, Mali, Malawi, Mozambique, Mauritania, Mauritius, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, South Sudan, Sao Tome & Principe, Eswatini, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe

Please note that the Central African Republic (CAR) ratified the Maputo Protocol on the 10th of May 2012 but is yet to deposit the original instrument of ratification to the African Union Commission.

What is ratification? 

Ratification is formal act of a State through which it establishes at the international level its consent to be bound by a treaty it has signed. At the national level it refers to an act prescribed within the law or constitution which a state takes to express intention and consent to be bound by an international instrument. Likewise, ‘accession’ is the formal act of a State accepting to become a Party to a treaty and to be bound by it.

Article 28 of the Maputo Protocol provides for countries to sign, ratify or accede to the Protocol in accordance with their constitutional procedures. The laws of a country determine how a treaty is to be ratified or acceded to by the executive or by parliament, and the procedure to be followed.

At the continental level, the instrument of ratification or accession to the Protocol must be deposited by a government with the Chairperson of the Commission of the African Union. To that end, the African Union has embarked on sensitising Member States about the importance of signing, ratifying or acceding to the Maputo Protocol.

State

Signed

Ratified

Deposited

Algeria
Signed

29/12/2003

Ratified

20/11/2016

Deposited

10/01/2017

Angola
Signed

22/01/2007

Ratified

30/08/2007

Deposited

09/11/2007

Benin
Signed

11/02/2004

Ratified

30/09/2005

Deposited

13/10/2005

Botswana
Signed

13/10/2023

Ratified

23/10/2023

Deposited

01/12/2023

Burkina Faso
Signed

26/02/2004

Ratified

09/06/2006

Deposited

09/08/2006

Burundi
Signed

03/12/2003

Ratified

-

Deposited

-

Cameroon
Signed

25/07/2006

Ratified

13/09/2012

Deposited

28/12/2012

Central African Rep.
Signed

17/06/2008

Ratified

10/05/2012

Deposited

Not yet deposited

Cape Verde
Signed

-

Ratified

21/06/2005

Deposited

22/07/2005

Chad
Signed

06/12/2004

Ratified

-

Deposited

-

Côte d’Ivoire
Signed

27/02/2004

Ratified

05/10/2011

Deposited

09/03/2012

Comoros
Signed

26/02/2004

Ratified

18/03/2004

Deposited

16/04/2004

Congo
Signed

27/02/2004

Ratified

14/12/2011

Deposited

06/08/2012

Djibouti
Signed

18/12/2003

Ratified

02/02/2005

Deposited

04/02/2005

Democratic Rep. of Congo
Signed

05/12/2003

Ratified

09/06/2008

Deposited

09/02/2009

Egypt
Signed

-

Ratified

-

Deposited

-

Equatorial Guinea
Signed

30/01/2005

Ratified

27/10/2009

Deposited

29/06/2011

Eritrea
Signed

25/04/2012

Ratified

-

Deposited

-

Ethiopia
Signed

01/06/2004

Ratified

18/07/2018

Deposited

17/09/2019

Gabon
Signed

27/01/2005

Ratified

10/01/2011

Deposited

10/02/2011

Gambia
Signed

11/09/2003

Ratified

25/05/2005

Deposited

06/09/2005

Ghana
Signed

31/10/2003

Ratified

13/06/2007

Deposited

20/07/2007

Guinea-Bissau
Signed

08/03/2005

Ratified

19/06/2008

Deposited

14/10/2008

Guinea
Signed

16/12/2003

Ratified

16/04/2012

Deposited

17/09/2012

Kenya
Signed

17/12/2003

Ratified

06/10/2010

Deposited

13/10/2010

Libya
Signed

05/11/2003

Ratified

23/05/2004

Deposited

30/06/2004

Lesotho
Signed

27/02/2004

Ratified

26/10/2004

Deposited

05/11/2004

Liberia
Signed

16/12/2003

Ratified

14/12/2007

Deposited

15/07/2008

Madagascar
Signed

28/02/2004

Ratified

-

Deposited

-

Mali
Signed

09/12/2003

Ratified

13/01/2005

Deposited

03/02/2005

Malawi
Signed

-

Ratified

20/05/2005

Deposited

29/06/2005

Morocco
Signed

-

Ratified

-

Deposited

-

Mozambique
Signed

15/12/2003

Ratified

09/12/2005

Deposited

30/12/2005

Mauritania
Signed

-

Ratified

21/09/2005

Deposited

14/12/2005

Mauritius
Signed

29/01/2005

Ratified

16/06/2017

Deposited

23/06/2017

Namibia
Signed

09/12/2003

Ratified

11/08/2004

Deposited

26/08/2004

Nigeria
Signed

16/12/2003

Ratified

16/12/2004

Deposited

18/02/2005

Niger
Signed

06/07/2004

Ratified

-

Deposited

-

Rwanda
Signed

19/12/2003

Ratified

25/06/2004

Deposited

01/07/2004

South Africa
Signed

16/03/2004

Ratified

17/12/2004

Deposited

14/01/2005

Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic
Signed

20/06/2006

Ratified

19/03/2022

Deposited

27/05/2023

Senegal
Signed

26/12/2003

Ratified

27/12/2004

Deposited

30/01/2005

Seychelles
Signed

24/01/2006

Ratified

09/03/2006

Deposited

25/04/2006

Sierra Leone
Signed

09/12/2003

Ratified

03/07/2015

Deposited

30/10/2015

Somalia
Signed

23/02/2006

Ratified

-

Deposited

-

South Sudan
Signed

24/01/2013

Ratified

24/02/2023

Deposited

07/06/2023

Sao Tome & Principe
Signed

01/02/2010

Ratified

18/04/2019

Deposited

27/06/2019

Sudan
Signed

30/06/2008

Ratified

-

Deposited

-

Eswatini
Signed

07/12/2004

Ratified

05/10/2012

Deposited

06/11/2012

Tanzania
Signed

05/11/2003

Ratified

03/03/2007

Deposited

07/05/2007

Togo
Signed

30/12/2003

Ratified

12/10/2005

Deposited

26/10/2005

Tunisia
Signed

30/01/2015

Ratified

23/08/2018

Deposited

27/09/2018

Uganda
Signed

18/12/2003

Ratified

22/07/2010

Deposited

22/07/2010

Zambia
Signed

03/08/2005

Ratified

02/05/2006

Deposited

07/06/2006

Zimbabwe
Signed

18/11/2003

Ratified

15/04/2008

Deposited

05/09/2008