Nigeria has been elected to the United Nations Human Rights Council for a three-year term beginning January 1, 2027, after securing 172 votes at the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
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Nigeria was among 15 countries elected on Tuesday to serve on the 47-member Council from 2027 to 2029, with the election conducted by secret ballot among members of the General Assembly.
The country secured one of the four seats allocated to African states, alongside Zambia, which received 177 votes; Ghana, 173; and Burundi, 160. Nigeria received 172 votes out of the 181 ballots cast.
For the Asia-Pacific group, Kuwait and Nepal each received 173 votes, Jordan secured 171, while Japan received 166.
Brazil and the Dominican Republic each secured 170 votes for the Latin American and Caribbean group, while Uruguay received 165.
Ireland received 165 votes and Germany 163 for the Western European and Other States group, while Moldova secured 168 votes and Ukraine 162 for the Eastern European group.
The newly elected members will serve from January 1, 2027, to December 31, 2029.
However, the election has attracted criticism from international human rights organisations because all five regional groups presented exactly the same number of candidates as the seats available, effectively leaving voters without competing candidates.
It was the second consecutive year in which all regional groups presented uncontested slates for Human Rights Council elections. The arrangement meant that although the General Assembly still conducted a secret ballot, there was no competition for any of the 15 available seats.
Human Rights Watch criticised the process, arguing that competitive elections would give UN member states an opportunity to reject countries whose human rights records fall short of the standards expected of Council members.
“This uncompetitive vote makes a mockery of the word ‘election,’” Louis Charbonneau, UN Director at Human Rights Watch, said.
Human Rights Watch had raised particular concerns about Burundi ahead of the vote, alleging continuing problems involving governance, justice, accountability and restrictions on fundamental freedoms.
The organisation also said Nigeria should ensure accountability for serious crimes allegedly committed by all sides, including security forces, during the conflict with Boko Haram. It separately raised concerns about police killings in Brazil and the prosecution of some Ukrainian civilians living under Russian occupation.
The International Service for Human Rights also criticised the absence of competition, saying states genuinely committed to human rights should put themselves forward for elected positions and give UN members meaningful choices.
According to the organisation, only six of the 15 candidates met a majority of the 17 criteria it used in assessing candidates for membership of the Council.
The Human Rights Council was established by the UN General Assembly in 2006 to replace the former Commission on Human Rights, which had faced criticism over the human rights records of some of its members.
The Geneva-based body has 47 member states elected on the basis of geographical distribution. African and Asia-Pacific states have 13 seats each, Latin America and the Caribbean have eight, Western European and Other States have seven, while Eastern European states have six. Members serve three-year terms and cannot immediately seek re-election after serving two consecutive terms.
The Council is responsible for promoting and protecting human rights globally and periodically reviewing the human rights records of all UN member states through the Universal Periodic Review.
It can also appoint independent experts and special rapporteurs, establish commissions of inquiry and fact-finding missions, convene special sessions on urgent human rights situations, and adopt resolutions addressing alleged violations.
The Council has established or supported investigative mechanisms concerning situations in countries and territories including Ukraine, Sudan, Myanmar, North Korea, Iran, Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories. Its resolutions and recommendations, however, are generally not directly enforceable against governments.
The body has itself faced recurring criticism over the years, particularly over the election of countries accused of serious human rights violations and claims that some governments seek membership to shield themselves or their allies from greater scrutiny.
The United States is currently outside the Council after President Donald Trump announced Washington’s withdrawal following his return to office, accusing the body of bias against Israel. Trump had also withdrawn the United States from the Council during his first term.
Reacting to questions about the uncontested election, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said the nomination and election process was ultimately a matter for the organisation’s 193 member states.
He nevertheless stressed that countries elected to the UN’s highest human rights body carry an additional responsibility to protect human rights domestically and advocate for them internationally.
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