The African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACRWC/the Charter) was adopted by the Organisation of African Unity on 11 July 1990 and came into force on 29 November 1999. The Charter is a regional human rights instrument addressing issues of particular interest and importance to children in Africa.

To date 50 AU Member States have ratified the Charter and 5 Member States have not ratified it. These are Morocco, Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, Somalia, South Sudan and Tunisia.

Three (3) Member States have entered reservations to some provisions of the Charter namely, Egypt, Mauritania, and Sudan.