Good arguments need the right format to reach decision makers. RFLD’s report Lifting the Reservations: nine country briefs on the Maputo Protocol includes an advocacy toolkit with five model texts that civil society organisations can adapt for their own State. This article presents them and explains how each fits into a campaign for withdrawal.
The five models
- Model 1: a letter to the minister
- Model 2: a parliamentary question
- Model 3: a paragraph for a shadow report
- Model 4: a request to a national human rights institution
- Model 5: a notification of withdrawal
Each model uses placeholders such as [State], and [X] for the article concerned. The report’s twelve-month plan shows when to use each one.
Model 1: the letter to the minister
The letter is the opening move, sent in months five and six of the plan. Its subject line reads: “Withdrawal of the reservation of [State] to Article [X] of the Maputo Protocol”. It opens on a positive note, written on behalf of an RFLD member organisation: “We welcome the commitment of [State] to the rights of women, shown by its ratification of the Maputo Protocol in [year].”
The letter then sets out the issue. It notes that the State maintains a reservation, and that the African Commission adopted the Advocacy Framework for Withdrawing Reservations, which calls on all States to review their reservations. A paragraph headed “Why now” invites the writer to cite a recent legal change or concluding observation, and concludes that “the reservation no longer reflects the law and practice of [State]”.
The ask is direct: “We respectfully ask the Ministry to start the review of the reservation and to notify its withdrawal to the Chairperson of the African Union Commission.” The letter ends with an offer of help: “We are ready to share data and to support consultations with women’s organisations.”
Model 3: the shadow report paragraph
The shadow report paragraph is designed for the African Commission, submitted in months nine and ten before the State’s report is examined. It describes the reservation and the obligation it excludes, then what has changed in law or practice since ratification. It adds data on the effect of the reservation on women and girls, with sources.
It ends with a precise request. It invites the Commission “to recommend that [State] withdraw the reservation, in line with the Advocacy Framework for Withdrawing Reservations adopted at the 86th Ordinary Session, and to request information on the timetable for withdrawal in the next periodic report”. That last element matters: a request for a timetable gives the next reporting cycle a clear point of follow-up.
Model 5: the notification of withdrawal
The final model is the document a government would actually send. It is written as a note from the Minister of Foreign Affairs to the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, in the capacity of depositary of the Protocol. The key sentence notifies “that the Government of [State] withdraws the reservation made upon ratification of the Protocol with respect to Article [X]”. It closes: “This withdrawal takes effect on the date of receipt of this notification.”
Advocates are asked to propose this model to the ministry in months eleven and twelve. Offering a ready text removes a practical obstacle. It also shows how simple the legal step is: under the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, a withdrawal does not require the consent of other States Parties.
Models 2 and 4
The parliamentary question asks the government what it has done to review the reservation and when it will notify withdrawal. The request to a national human rights institution seeks an advisory opinion on whether the reservation is compatible with the Constitution and with the object and purpose of the Protocol. Both are covered in more detail in RFLD’s articles on parliaments and national institutions.
Using the models well
The models work best when combined with the country brief for the State concerned, which sets out the reservation and the latest recommendation of the African Commission. Organisations preparing a full submission can also draw on RFLD’s manual on shadow reports under the Maputo Protocol.
About the report
This article draws on RFLD’s report Lifting the Reservations: nine country briefs on the Maputo Protocol, published on 4 October 2026. Read the summary, download the English edition or the French edition.
