Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

Fift y- second session

28 April–23 May 2014

Item 1 of the provisional agenda

Adoption of the agenda

Provisional agenda and annotations

Note by the Secretary-General

1.The fifty-second session of the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, established in accordance with Economic and Social Council resolution 1985/17, will be held at the United Nations Office at Geneva (Palais Wilson) from 28 April to 23 May 2014. The first meeting will be convened on Monday, 28 April at 10 a.m.

2.The attached provisional agenda and annotations for the fifty-second session of the Committee have been prepared by the Secretary-General in accordance with rule 4 of the rules of procedure of the Committee.

3.The attention of States parties is drawn, in particular, to the annotations to item 6 containing the list of reports that will be before the Committee at its fifty-second and future sessions.

Provisional agenda

1.Adoption of the agenda.

2.Organization of work.

3.Substantive issues arising in the implementation of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

4.Follow-up to the consideration of reports under articles 16 and 17 of the Covenant.

5.Relations with United Nations organs and other treaty bodies.

6.Consideration of reports:

(a)Reports submitted by States parties in accordance with articles 16 and 17 of the Covenant;

(b)Reports submitted by specialized agencies in accordance with article 18 of the Covenant.

7.Submission of reports by States parties in accordance with articles 16 and 17 of the Covenant.

8.Formulation of suggestions and recommendations of a general nature based on the consideration of reports submitted by States parties to the Covenant and by the specialized agencies.

9.Miscellaneous matters.

Annotations

1.Adoption of the agenda

Under rule 5 of the Committee’s rules of procedure, the first item on the agenda of any session shall be the adoption of the agenda, except when the election of officers is required under rule 14. In accordance with rule 6, the Committee may revise the agenda during a session and may, as appropriate, add, delete or defer items.

2.Organization of work

In accordance with rule 8 of its rules of procedure, at the beginning of each session, the Committee shall consider appropriate organizational matters, including the schedule of its meetings. In this connection, attention is drawn to the tentative programme of work for the session set out in the present document, which was prepared by the Secretary-General in consultation with the Chairperson of the Committee in accordance with established practice.

3.Substantive issues arising in the implementation of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

In accordance with rule 65 of its rules of procedure, the Committee may prepare general comments based on the various articles and provisions of the Covenant with a view to assisting States parties in fulfilling their reporting obligations. The Committee decided at its fourteenth session (28 April–17 May 1996) that as from its fifteenth session its discussions relating to the implementation of the Covenant (days of general discussion, consideration and adoption of general comments, methods of work, submissions by non-governmental organizations, etc.) would be conducted under this agenda item.

During the session, the Committee will discuss methods of work, general comments under preparation and other matters.

4.Follow-up to the consideration of reports under articles 16 and 17 of the Covenant

The Committee has been discussing follow-up consistently at its sessions, and maintains the issue of follow-up to previous concluding observations as an item of discussion during dialogues with delegations, when considering subsequent periodic reports.

5.Relations with United Nations organs and other treaty bodies

Under this agenda item, the Committee will continue to consider, as required, matters emanating from the Meetings of Chairpersons of Human Rights Treaty Bodies, the most recent of which was held from 20 to 24 May 2013. Documentation relating to that meeting is being made available to Committee members. Members will also be informed of activities undertaken by other treaty bodies as they relate to their work.

6.Consideration of reports

(a)Reports submitted by States parties in accordance with articles 16 and 17 of the Covenant

In accordance with rule 61, paragraph 2, of its rules of procedure, the Committee shall normally consider the reports submitted by States parties under article 16 of the Covenant in the order in which they have been received by the Secretary-General. Representatives of the reporting States are entitled to be present at the meetings of the Committee when their reports are examined; such representatives should be able to make statements on the reports submitted by their Governments and reply to questions which may be put to them by the members of the Committee.

In accordance with rule 62, paragraph 2, of the Committee’s rules of procedure, the Secretary-General informed the States parties, through notes verbales, of the opening date and duration of the fifty-second session of the Committee, and invited them to send representatives to attend the meetings of the Committee at which their reports would be considered. A tentative timetable for consideration of those reports was prepared by the Secretary‑General in consultation with the Chairperson of the Committee.

As at 1 February 2014, 40 reports as listed below had been received by the Secretary‑General and were pending consideration by the Committee. Reports of the States parties which are tentatively scheduled for consideration at the fifty-third (November 2014) and fifty-fourth (May 2015) sessions of the Committee are set out in the last columns of the tables that follow. The reports to be scheduled for consideration by the Committee at its fifty-fourth and subsequent sessions, subject to approval by the Committee, will be the next seven to eight reports to be received by the Committee, generally in chronological order of receipt.

The following tables do not include States parties that were requested to submit reports by a specific deadline, failing which the Committee would proceed to examine the enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights in their territories in the absence of a report.

Initial reports	Symbol	Date received	Date due	Scheduled for consideration at
1. Burundi	E/C.12/BDI/1	16 Jan. 2013	30 June 1992
2. Gambia	E/C.12/GMB/1	9 May 2012	30 June 1990
3. Indonesia	E/C.12/IDN/1	20 Jan. 2012	22 May 2007	Fifty-second session (Apr./May 2014)
4. Montenegro	E/C.12/MNE/1	26 Dec. 2011	30 June 2008	Fifty-third session (Nov./Dec 2014)
5. Thailand	E/C.12/THA/1	22 Aug. 2012	30 June 2002
6. Uganda	E/C.12/UGA/1	6 Dec. 2012	30 June 1990

Second periodic reports	Symbol	Date received	Date due	Scheduled for consideration at
7. Armenia	E/C.12/ARM/2-3	18 July 2011	30 June 2000	Fifty-second session (Apr./May 2014)
8. China (second report) Hong Kong, China (third report) Macao, China (second report)	E/C.12/CHN/2 E/C.12/CHN-HKG/3 E/C.12/CHN-MAC/2	30 June 2010	30 June 2010	Fifty-second session (Apr./May 2014)
9. Czech Republic	E/C.12/CZE/2	30 Nov. 2010	30 June 2007	Fifty-second session (Apr./May 2014)
10. Greece	E/C.12/GRC/2	31 Aug. 2012	30 June 2009
11. Guyana (second to fourth periodic reports)	E/C.12/GUY/2-4	10 Sept. 2012	30 June 2000
12. Kenya (second to fifth periodic reports)	E/C.12/KEN/2-5	1 July 2013	30 June 2013
13. Kyrgyzstan (second and third periodic reports)	E/C.12/KGZ/2-3	3 Apr. 2012	30 June 2005 30 June 2010
14. Lithuania	E/C.12/LTU/2	1 Feb. 2010	30 June 2009	Fifty-second session (Apr./May 2014)
15. Monaco (second and third periodic reports)	E/C.12/MCO/2-3	26 May 2011	30 June 2009	Fifty-second session (Apr./May 2014)
16. Serbia	E/C.12/SRB/2	24 Mar. 2011	30 June 2010	Fifty-second session (Apr./May 2014)
17. Slovenia	E/C.12/SVN/2	22 June 2011	30 June 2010	Fifty-third session (Nov./Dec. 2014)
18. Sudan	E/C.12/SDN/2	27 July 2012	30 June 2003
19. Tajikistan (second and third periodic reports)	E/C.12/TJK/2-3	22 Sept. 2011	30 June 2011
20. Uzbekistan	E/C.12/UZB/2	2 July 2010	30 June 2010	Fifty-second session (Apr./May 2014)
21. Viet Nam (second to fourth periodic reports)	E/C.12/VNM/2-4	15 Sept. 2011	30 June 1995 30 June 2000 30 June 2005	Fifty-third session (Nov./Dec. 2014)

Third periodic reports	Symbol	Date received	Date due	Scheduled for consideration at
22. El Salvador (third to fifth periodic reports)	E/C.12/SLV/3-5	5 Jan. 2011	30 June 2010	Fifty-second session (Apr./May 2014)
23. Guatemala	E/C.12/GTM/3	16 Dec. 2011	30 June 2008	Fifty-third session (Nov./Dec. 2014)
24. Ireland	E/C.12.IRL/3	7 May 2012	30 June 2007
25. Nepal	E/C.12/NPL/3	12 July 2011	30 June 2011	Fifty-third session (Nov./Dec. 2014)
26. Romania (third to fifth periodic reports)	E/C.12/ROU/3-5	15 Nov. 2011	30 June 1994 30 June 1999 30 June 2004	Fifty-third session (Nov./Dec. 2014)
27. Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of)	E/C.12/VEN/3	29 May 2012	30 June 2006
28. Yemen	E/C.12/YEM/3	11 July 2013	30 June 2013

Fourth periodic reports	Symbol	Date received	Date due	Scheduled for consideration at
29. Chile	E/C.12/CHL/4	21 March 2012	30 June 2009
30. France	E/C.12/FRA/4	23 May 2013	30 June 2011
31. Iraq	E/C.12/IRQ/4	22 May 2013	30 June 2000
32. Mongolia	E/C.12/MNG/4	22 Feb. 2012	30 June 2009
33. Morocco	E/C.12/MAR/4	24 Jan. 2013	30 June 2009
34. Paraguay	E/C.12/PRY/4	6 October 2011	30 June 2011
35. Portugal	E/C.12/PRT/4	28 Jan. 2011	30 June 2005	Fifty-third session Nov./Dec. 2014

Fifth periodic reports	Symbol	Date received	Date due	Scheduled for consideration at
36. Italy	E/C.12/ITA/5	9 Aug. 2012	30 June 2009

Sixth periodic reports	Symbol	Date received	Date due	Scheduled for consideration at
37. Canada	E/C.12/CAN/6	17 Oct. 2012	6 June 2010
38. Finland	E/C.12/FIN/6	15 July 2011	30 June 2010	Fifty-third session (Nov./Dec. 2014)
39. Sweden	E/C.12/SWE/6	26 July 2013	30 June 2013
40. Ukraine	E/C.12/UKR/6	21 June 2011	30 June 2011	Fifty-second session (Apr./May 2014)

(b)Reports submitted by specialized agencies in accordance with article 18 of the Covenant

In accordance with rule 67 of its rules of procedure, the Committee is entrusted with the task of considering the reports submitted by specialized agencies pursuant to article 18 of the Covenant.

In accordance with rule 68 of the rules of procedure, the representatives of the specialized agencies concerned may make statements on matters falling within the scope of the activities of their respective organization. The Secretary-General has invited the specialized agencies concerned to designate representatives to provide information.

Any report which may be received from the specialized agencies under article 18 of the Covenant will be made available to the Committee in due course.

7.Submission of reports by States parties in accordance with articles 16 and 17 of the Covenant

In accordance with rule 59, paragraph 1, of its rules of procedure, the Committee shall at each session consider the status of submission of reports under articles 16 and 17 of the Covenant and may make appropriate recommendations to the Council, including recommendations to the effect that the Secretary-General should send reminders to States parties from which reports have not been received. The Committee will have before it under this item the following document:

Note by the Secretary-General on the States parties to the Covenant and the status of submission of reports (E/C.12/52/2).

8.Formulation of suggestions and recommendations of a general nature based on the consideration of reports submitted by States parties to the Covenant and by the specialized agencies

Pursuant to rule 64 of its rules of procedure, the Committee may wish to make suggestions and recommendations of a general nature on the basis of its consideration of reports submitted by States parties and reports submitted by specialized agencies, in order to assist the Council to fulfil, in particular, its responsibilities under articles 21 and 22 of the Covenant. The Committee may also wish to make suggestions for consideration by the Council with reference to articles 19, 22 and 23 of the Covenant.

9.Miscellaneous matters

At its twenty-first session (1999), the Committee decided to include in its agenda a standing item, “miscellaneous matters”, under which it may consider any issue falling outside the scope of other standing agenda items.

Tentative programme of the fifty-second session of the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (28 April–23 May 2014)

First week: 28 April–2 May 2014

Monday, 28 April
1st meeting	(public)	Item 1	Adoption of the agenda
	(private)	Item 2 Item 7 Item 9	Organization of work Submission of reports by States parties in accordance with articles 16 and 17 of the Covenant Miscellaneous matters
		Items 3 and 5	Relations with United Nations organs and other treaty bodies
2nd meeting	(public/private)	Items 3 and 5	Meetings with partners
Tuesday, 29 April
3rd meeting	(public)	Item 6	Consideration of reports: Ukraine
4th meeting	(public)	Item 6	Consideration of reports: Ukraine (continued)
Wednesday, 30 April
5th meeting	(private)	Items 3 and 8	Closed meeting
6th meeting	(public)	Item 6	Consideration of reports: Indonesia
Thursday, 1 May
7th meeting	(public)	Item 6	Consideration of reports: Indonesia (continued)
8th meeting	(public)	Item 6	Consideration of reports: Indonesia (continued)
Friday, 2 May
9th meeting	(public)	Item 6	Consideration of reports: Monaco
10th meeting	(public)	Item 6	Consideration of reports: Monaco (continued)

Second week: 5–9 May

Monday, 5 May
11th meeting	(public/private)	Items 3 and 5	Meetings with partners
12th meeting	(private)	Items 3 and 8	Closed meeting
Tuesday, 6 May
13th meeting	(public)	Item 6	Consideration of reports: Lithuania
14th meeting	(public)	Item 6	Consideration of reports: Lithuania (continued)
Wednesday, 7 May
15th meeting	(public)	Item 6	Consideration of reports: Armenia
16th meeting	(public)	Item 6	Consideration of reports: Armenia (continued)
Thursday, 8 May
17th meeting	(public)	Item 6	Consideration of reports: People’s Republic of China
18th meeting	(public)	Item 6	Consideration of reports: People’s Republic of China (continued)
Friday, 9 May
19th meeting	(public)	Item 6	Consideration of reports: Czech Republic
20th meeting	(public)	Item 6	Consideration of reports: Czech Republic (continued)

Third week: 12–16 May

Monday, 12 May
21st meeting	(public/private)	Items 3 and 5	Meeting with partners
22nd meeting	(private)	Items 3 & 8	Closed meeting
Tuesday, 1 3 May
23rd meeting	(public)	Item 6	Consideration of reports: Uzbekistan
24th meeting	(public)	Item 6	Consideration of reports: Uzbekistan (continued)
Wednesday, 14 May
25th meeting	(public)	Item 6	Consideration of reports: El Salvador
26th meeting	(public)	Item 6	Consideration of reports: El Salvador (continued)
Thursday, 1 5 May
27th meeting	(public)	Item 6	Consideration of reports: Serbia
28th meeting	(public)	Item 6	Consideration of reports: Serbia (continued)
Friday, 16 May
29th meeting	(private)	Items 3 and 8	Closed meeting
30th meeting	(private)	Items 3 and 8	Closed meeting

Fourth week: 19–23 May

Monday, 19 May
31st meeting	(private)	Item 6	Closed meeting
32nd meeting	(private)	Item 6	Closed meeting
Tuesday, 2 0 May
33rd meeting	(private)	Item 6	Closed meeting
34th meeting	(private)	Item 6	Closed meeting
Wednesday, 2 1 May
35th meeting	(private)	Item 6	Closed meeting
36th meeting	(private)	Item 6	Closed meeting
Thursday, 2 2 May
37th meeting	(private)	Item 6	Closed meeting
38th meeting	(private)	Item 6	Closed meeting
Friday, 2 3 May
39th meeting	(private)	Item 3	Substantive issues arising in the implementation of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
		Item 4	Follow-up to the consideration of reports under articles 16 and 17 of the Covenant
Noon	(public)	Item 6	Briefing for States
		Item 10	Miscellaneous matters
40th meeting	(private)	Item 10	Miscellaneous matters (continued)
	(public)		Close of session