Executions more than tripled in 2023, while death sentences increased by 66% in the region

Fresh call for abolition on World Day Against Death Penalty, with Kenya, Zimbabwe and Gambia leading the way

‘It’s time for all countries to move away from this cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment once and for all’ - Oluwatosin Popoola

Sub-Saharan African countries on the cusp of abolition must ban the death penalty immediately, paving the way for others around the world to follow in their footsteps, said Amnesty International on World Day Against the Death Penalty (10 October).

Last year, Amnesty documented a sharp increase in the use of the death penalty across sub-Saharan Africa, when recorded executions more than tripled and death sentences increased by 66% from 298 to 494. Somalia was the only country in the region known to have carried out executions.

Death sentences were recorded in 14 African countries, an overall decrease of two compared to 2022.  However, there were increases in recorded death sentences in some countries, including Ghana (seven to 10); Mali (eight to 13); and Nigeria (77 to 246).

Despite these bleak statistics, Kenya and Zimbabwe and Gambia are edging closer towards abolition. Kenya and Zimbabwe currently have bills tabled to abolish the death penalty for all crimes, while Gambia has begun a constitutional amendment process that will effectively abolish the death penalty. So far, 24 out of 53 countries across sub-Saharan Africa have abolished the death penalty for all crimes.

Oluwatosin Popoola, Amnesty International’s legal advisor on the death penalty, said:

“Although the sub-Saharan Africa region saw a surge in both recorded executions and recorded death sentences in 2023, Gambia, Kenya and Zimbabwe have the opportunity to buck that trend in the region.

“Countries that still retain the death penalty in their laws often resort to the death penalty believing the punishment can make their people and communities safer. However, that is a misconception. The death penalty does not have a unique deterrent effect, and it violates the right to life as proclaimed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

“Countries that still retain the death penalty are an isolated minority as the world continues to move away from this cruel punishment. The more countries that abolish the death penalty for all crimes, the more isolated the remaining countries will become and the weaker their position on the death penalty will be. It’s time for all countries to move away from this cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment once and for all.”

Progress in the region: Kenya

Gambia, Kenya and Zimbabwe have not carried out an execution in more than a decade, while each country has commuted multiple death sentences in the same period. The last known execution in Kenya was in 1987, and although the country does not have an official moratorium on executions it has an established practice of not carrying them out. Kenyan courts continue to impose death sentences, but the country continues to make good progress against the death penalty. In 2023, 606 commutations of death sentences were granted, while four bills to abolish the death penalty are currently pending in Parliament.

Progress in the region: Zimbabwe

The last known execution in Zimbabwe was carried out in 2005 even though courts continue to impose death sentences. President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who assumed office in 2017, has also made his opposition to the death penalty clear.

Oluwatosin Popoola explained:

“Zimbabwe’s president was himself sentenced to death for ‘terrorism’ as a young man due to his involvement in Zimbabwe’s liberation struggle. He narrowly avoided execution as he was below the age of 21 at the time and was sentenced to ten years in prison instead. The president knows what it’s like to be facing the death penalty and he now has the opportunity to ensure no one else goes through that.”

Last December, the Death Penalty Abolition Bill was published in the official gazette in Zimbabwe and the Government announced its support for it this February. The bill is currently pending before parliament.

Progress in the region: Gambia

The last execution in Gambia was carried out in 2012, when nine soldiers were executed by firing squad. However, since President Adama Barrow assumed office in 2017, Gambia has made significant progress in abolishing the death penalty: the country has established an official moratorium on executions, become party to an international treaty aiming at the abolition of the death penalty, and regularly commutes death sentences.

The global picture

In 2023, Amnesty recorded a sharp rise in  executions globally, with 1,153 executions, an increase of 31% (270) from the 883 known executions in 2022. This year has continued a disturbing trend with an alarming surge in executions in Iran and Saudi Arabia, a decision in Democratic Republic of Congo to resume executions, and Taiwan’s Supreme Court failing to abolish the death penalty. So far, 113 countries around the world have abolished the death penalty for all crimes.