9 July 2024, 14:00-15:00
Event
Geneva Academy
This side-event to the 56th Human Rights Council session, organized by the Geneva Human Rights Platform, aims to present the findings of the Treaty Body Follow-Up Review Pilot Series, an initiative jointly run with the Commonwealth Secretariat and the Pacific Community - SPC. The event will inform improvements in the follow-up review procedure as part of the new eight-year cycle for full reviews. The initiative, conceived as corollary to the broader treaty body strengthening process, involved pilot follow-up reviews in Sierra Leone (2021), Grenada (2022), and the Pacific Region (2023). Specifically, the objectives included assessing the effectiveness holding follow-up review sessions at the national and regional levels, fostering closer engagement with national and local stakeholders to ensure the practical implementation of human rights obligations, and identifying best practices and challenges in the follow-up process.
These pilots tested two models: national-level and regional-level follow-up reviews. National-level follow-up reviews provided in-depth engagement with local stakeholders, fostering cooperation among national actors and improved understanding of TB expectations. They also allowed TB members to grasp real situations, leading to more relevant and context-specific recommendations. Regional follow-up reviews enhanced broader cooperation and the sharing of best practices among multiple countries. A key aspect of these reviews was the emphasis on maximizing the use of UN regional hubs, which facilitate improved cooperation and accessibility for several countries in the region. This approach not only strengthened accountability but also ensured more context-specific and effectively disseminated TB recommendations.
Discussions will cover the pros and cons of both approaches, guiding the development of a more effective and context-sensitive follow-up review procedure, enhancing the overall efficiency and impact of the UN human rights treaty bodies.
Adobe
Our research brief 'Neurotechnology - Integrating Human Rights in Regulation' examines the human rights challenges posed by the rapid development of neurotechnology.
Adobe
Our new research brief examines the complex relationship between digital technologies and their misuse in surveillance, cyberattacks, and disinformation campaigns.
Adobe Stock
The event, as part of the AI for Good Summit 2025 will explore how AI tools can support faster data analysis, help uncover patterns in large datasets, and expand the reach of human rights work.
Adobe Stock
This side event represents a critical opportunity to reflect on the innovative approaches taken through the treaty body strengthening process and to consider the future direction of the treaty body system.
UN Photo / Jean-Marc Ferré
This training course will explore the origin and evolution of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) and its functioning in Geneva and will focus on the nature of implementation of the UPR recommendations at the national level.
ICRC
Participants in this training course will gain practical insights into UN human rights mechanisms and their role in environmental protection and learn about how to address the interplay between international human rights and environmental law, and explore environmental litigation paths.
Olivier Chamard/Geneva Academy
UN Photo/Violaine Martin
The IHL-EP works to strengthen the capacity of human rights mechanisms to incorporate IHL into their work in an efficacious and comprehensive manner. By so doing, it aims to address the normative and practical challenges that human rights bodies encounter when dealing with cases in which IHL applies.
Geneva Academy
Geneva Academy