| 28 June 1981 | Adoption of the Charter in Nairobi, Kenya |
| 21 October 1981 | First ratification of the African Charter (Mali) |
| 21 October 1986 | Charter came into force |
| 2 November 1987 | Establishment of the Commission |
| 2 November 1987 | First ordinary session of the Commission |
| 28 April 1988 | First resolution adopted, on the Headquarters of the Commission |
| 28 April 1988 | First Activity Report of Commission adopted |
| 12 June 1989 | Inauguration of Commission’s headquarters in Banjul, The Gambia |
| 21 October 1989 | The Commission at its 5th Ordinary Session held from 3 – 14 April 1989, adopts 21 October as ‘African Human Rights Day’. |
| 13 – 14 June 1989 | First extra-ordinary session of the Commission |
| 10 June 1998 | Adoption of the Protocol on African Human Right Court |
| 22 December 1999 | Last ratification of the African Charter (Eritrea) |
| 11 July 2003 | Adoption of the Protocol on the Right of Women in Africa |
| 25 January 2004 | Court’s Protocol entered into force |
| 25 November 2005 | Women’s Protocol entered into force |
| 15 December 2009 | African Court delivered its first judgment |