The West African Network for Human Rights Defenders (WANHR) is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year. This is a milestone for an organization that has successfully brought together and protected human rights defenders across 16 countries in West Africa.
To mark this anniversary, the members of the Board of Directors (BoD) held a meeting in Lomé from November 28 to 29, 2025. They reviewed ROADDH's master plan, analyzed the organization's strategy, and outlined ways to improve collaboration with member coalitions.
Prior to this meeting, a session of experts was held to review and finalize alert and response tools adapted to the subregion's context and to map the actors to be involved in the subregional early warning and response system. A ROADDH project implemented by the Ivorian Coalition of Human Rights Defenders (CIDDH) and funded by the Open Society Foundation (OSF).
Created in May 2005, ROADDH (West African Human Rights Defenders Network – WAHRDN) has its secretariat based in Lomé, Togo. It brings together national coalitions and focal points in 16 French-, English-, and Portuguese-speaking countries in the region.
Its mission is to promote a West Africa that respects human rights and fundamental freedoms, with a civic space conducive to the work of human rights defenders.
Celebrating its 20th anniversary, it embodies the resilience and solidarity of human rights defenders in West Africa. Despite the challenges, its role remains vital: to protect those who protect others. The future of the network will depend on its ability to adapt to emerging threats while consolidating its political and social influence in the region.
