EMPLOYING INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS IN ADVANCING THE ENFORCEMENT OF ECONOMIC, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL RIGHTS IN DOMESTIC JURISDICTIONS: NIGERIA IN VIEW

Abstract

The mandate of all democratic governments is fundamentally to ensure the welfare and security of the citizenry. The welfare  of  the  people  is  undoubtedly  determined  by  the  extent  of  guarantees  accorded  the  economic,  social  and cultural (ESC) rights. This ispremised on the fact that ESC rights are the set of rights that seek to satisfy the needs of the people. ESC rights therefore constitute an antidote to poor governance as government everywhere is assessed by its commitment in guaranteeing ESC rights. ESC rights, though impinged in its enforceability vide section 6(6)(c) of  the  Constitution  of  the  Federal  Republic  of  Nigeria,  1999,  are  protected  by  the  International  Covenant  on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) which Nigeria is a signatory to.  This paper is aimed at identifying the  possible  ways  international  standards  can  be  implemented  and  enforced  at  the  domestic  jurisdictions  and  in particular,  Nigeria,  to  bring  to  fruition  the  acclaimed  right  to  ESC  rights  under  the  ICESCR.  The  doctrinal methodology  was  employed  in  course  of  this  research.  The  study  found  that  the  human  rights  norms  so  protected under  the  ICESCR  do  not  enjoy  justiciability  since  the  instrument  is  not  a  domesticated  legislative  instrument  in Nigeria.  Accordingly,  section  12  of  the  Constitution  of  the  Federal  Republic  of  Nigeria  provides  that  no  treaty ratified by the government of Nigeria shall have the force of law except it has been enacted into law by the National Assembly,  i.e.  the  national  legislature.  It  is  recommended  that  the  Government  of  Nigeria  via  the  national legislature  should  domesticate  the  ICESCR  through  legislation  to  enable  the  citizens  to  enforce  their  ESC  rights without  let  or  hindrance.  It  is  further  recommended  that  the  precedents  in  other  jurisdictions  such  as  India  where the enforcement of ESC rights has assailed constitutional bottlenecks be adopted in our jurisdiction to advance the realization of ESC rights. This development will benefit all sectors of the population in a country like Nigeria, which has achieved significant and successful economic growth over the years.