Background

The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR) is an independent National Human Rights Institution created by Article 59 if the Constitution of Kenya 2010 and established through the KNCHR Act of Parliament (the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights Act, 2011. It is the state’s lead agency in the promotion and protection of human rights.

International status

The operations of the KNCHR are guided by the United Nations-approved Paris Principles on the establishment and functioning of independent national human rights institutions. The National Commission has been accredited by the International Co-ordinating Committee of National Human Rights Institutions (ICC), which is based in Geneva at the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, as an ‘A status’ institution which means that the Commission has been found to be in compliance with the Principles. The KNCHR is a member of the Network of African National Human Rights Institutions (NANHRI), the ICC's regional grouping for Africa.

Mandate

The Commission plays two key broad mandates;

1. It acts as a watch-dog over the Government in the area of human rights.
2. Provides key leadership in moving the country towards a human rights state.

The main goal of KNCHR is to investigate and provide redress for human rights violations, to research and monitor the compliance of human rights norms and standards, to conduct human rights education, to facilitate training, campaigns and advocacy on human rights as well as collaborate with other stakeholders in Kenya.