Seventy-eighth session
15–25 February 2021
Item 2 of the provisional agenda
Adoption of the agenda and organization of work
Annotated provisional agenda
Provisional agenda
1.Opening of the session.
2.Adoption of the agenda and organization of work.
3.Report of the Chair on activities undertaken between the seventy-seventh and seventy-eighth sessions of the Committee.
4.Consideration of reports submitted by States parties under article 18 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.
5.Follow-up to the consideration of reports submitted by States parties under article 18 of the Convention.
6.Implementation of articles 21 and 22 of the Convention.
7.Ways and means of expediting the work of the Committee.
8.Activities of the Committee under the Optional Protocol to the Convention.
9.Provisional agenda for the seventy-ninth session of the Committee.
10.Adoption of the report of the Committee on its seventy-eighth session.
Annotations
1.Opening of the session
The seventy-eighth session of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women will be held remotely and will be opened by the Chair of the Committee on 15 February 2021.
2.Adoption of the agenda and organization of work
Rule 9 of the rules of procedure provides that the first substantive item on the provisional agenda for any session shall be the adoption of the agenda. Rule 7 provides that the provisional agenda for each session shall be prepared by the Secretary-General in consultation with the Chair, in conformity with the relevant provisions of articles 17 to 22 of the Convention.
At its seventy-seventh session, the Committee approved the provisional agenda for its seventy-eighth session. In accordance with article 20 (2) of the Convention and rules 2 (2) and 5 of its rules of procedure, the Committee decided to hold its seventy-eighth session remotely in the light of the ongoing coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.
3.Report of the Chair on activities undertaken between the seventy-seventh and seventy-eighth sessions of the Committee
The Chair will provide a briefing to the Committee on activities and events having occurred since the previous session that had a bearing on the work of the Committee.
Documentation
Annotated provisional agenda (CEDAW/C/78/1)
4.Consideration of reports submitted by States parties under article 18 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women
Article 18 of the Convention provides that States parties to the Convention shall submit to the Secretary-General, for consideration by the Committee, a report on the legislative, judicial, administrative or other measures that they have adopted to give effect to the provisions of the Convention and on the progress made in that respect. Reports are to be submitted within one year after the entry into force of the Convention for the State concerned and thereafter at least every four years and, further, whenever the Committee so requests.
The reports of the following States parties were scheduled to be considered at the seventy-eighth session of the Committee: Bahrain, Kyrgyzstan, Maldives, Nicaragua, Russian Federation, South Sudan, Spain and Yemen.
Subsequently, the Committee decided to defer its consideration of those reports to a future session, taking into account that no physical meetings would be held during the seventy-eighth session owing to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The Committee also decided to consider the report of one State party (to be determined) remotely, on a pilot basis, during the seventy-eighth session, using an online meeting platform.
Rule 49 of the rules of procedure provides that, at each session, the Secretary-General shall notify the Committee of the non-receipt of any report required from a State party under article 18 of the Convention. The Secretary-General also regularly provides the Committee with a list of reports submitted by States parties to the Convention, as well as a list of reports submitted by States parties to the Convention that have not yet been considered by the Committee.
A pre-sessional working group of the Committee is convened before each session to prepare lists of issues and questions relating to reports for transmission to States parties before the meetings at which their reports are to be considered. The pre‑sessional working group for the seventy-eighth session met in Geneva from 13 to 17 July 2020. The report of the pre-sessional working group (CEDAW/C/PSWG/78/1) and the replies of States parties to the lists of issues and questions will be before the Committee at a future session when the reports of the aforementioned States parties will be considered.
5.Follow-up to the consideration of reports submitted by States parties under article 18 of the Convention
The Committee will discuss matters relating to follow-up to concluding observations.
6.Implementation of articles 21 and 22 of the Convention
Article 21 of the Convention provides that the Committee may make suggestions and general recommendations based on the examination of the reports and information received from States parties. It also provides that such suggestions and general recommendations shall be included in the report of the Committee to the General Assembly, together with comments, if any, from States parties.
Article 22 of the Convention provides that the specialized agencies shall be entitled to be represented during the consideration of the implementation of such provisions of the Convention that fall within the scope of their activities and that the Committee may invite the specialized agencies to submit reports on the implementation of the Convention in those areas.
Documentation
Reports provided by the specialized agencies of the United Nations system on the implementation of the Convention in areas falling within the scope of their activities
7.Ways and means of expediting the work of the Committee
The Committee will discuss matters relating to its methods of work.
8.Activities of the Committee under the Optional Protocol to the Convention
Both the forty-ninth session of the Working Group on Communications under the Optional Protocol and the eighteenth session of the Working Group on Inquiries under the Optional Protocol will be held remotely on 4 and 5 February 2021.
At its seventy-eighth session, the Committee will continue to implement its mandate under articles 2 and 8 of the Optional Protocol to the Convention.
9.Provisional agenda for the seventy-ninth session of the Committee
Documentation
Annotated provisional agenda for the seventy-ninth session (CEDAW/C/79/1)