Committee on EconomicSocial and Cultural Rights

Report on the seventy-third and seventy-fourth sessions

(13 February–3 March and 25 September–13 October 2023)

United Nations • N ew York and Geneva, 2024

Not e

Symbols of United Nations documents are composed of letters combined with figures. Mention of such a symbol indicates a reference to a United Nations document.

[15 February 2024]

Contents

Chapter Page

I.Organizational and other matters1

A.States parties to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and its Optional Protocol1

B.Sessions and agendas1

C.Membership and attendance1

D.Election and replacement of officers1

E. Pre-sessional working group2

F.Organization of work2

G.Next sessions2

H.Reports of States parties scheduled for consideration by the Committee at its upcoming sessions3

II.Overview of the working methods of the Committee4

A.Impact of measures adopted to address the backlog of reports pending consideration4

B.General reporting guidelines and simplified reporting procedure (pilot phase)4

C.Predictable review cycle and simplified reporting procedure5

D.Examination of State party reports6

E.Follow-up procedure in relation to the consideration of reports8

F.Procedure in response to non-reporting States parties and considerably overdue reports8

G.Submission of several reports in one document9

H.Action by the Committee with regard to information on economic, social and cultural rights received from sources other than States parties9

I.Day of general discussion10

J.Other consultations10

K.Participation of non-governmental organizations in the work of the Committee12

L.General comments13

M.Statements adopted and letters written by the Committee14

III.Submission of reports by States parties under articles 16 and 17 of the Covenant15

IV.Consideration of reports submitted by States parties under articles 16 and 17 of the Covenant15

V.Activities of the Committee under the Optional Protocol17

A.Progress of work concerning individual communications submitted to the Committee17

B.Follow-up to the Committee’s Views on individual communications17

VI.Substantive issues arising from the implementation of the Covenant18

VII.Additional decisions adopted and matters discussed by the Committee at its seventy-third and seventy-fourth sessions18

A.Participation in intersessional meetings18

B.Future general comments18

C.Working methods of the Committee18

VIII.Other activities of the Committee in 202319

IX.Adoption of the report19

Annex

Members of the Committee20

I.Organizational and other matters

A.States parties to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and its Optional Protocol

As at 13 October 2023, the closing date of the seventy-fourth session of the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, 171 States were parties to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. The Covenant was adopted by the General Assembly in its resolution 2200 (XXI) A of 16 December 1966 and was opened for signature and ratification in New York on 19 December 1966. It entered into force on 3 January 1976, in accordance with the provisions of its article 27. The Optional Protocol to the Covenant was adopted by the General Assembly in its resolution 63/117 on 10 December 2008 and was opened for signature and ratification in New York on 24 September 2009. It entered into force on 5 May 2013, three months after the date of the deposit with the Secretary-General of the United Nations of the tenth instrument of ratification. The following 28 States have ratified or acceded to the Optional Protocol: Argentina, Armenia, Belgium, Bolivia (Plurinational State of), Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cabo Verde, Central African Republic, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador,1 Finland,1 France, Gabon, Germany, Honduras, Italy, Luxembourg, Maldives, Mongolia, Montenegro, Niger, Portugal,1 San Marino,1 Serbia, Slovakia, Spain, Uruguay and Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of).

B.Sessions and agendas

In 2023, the Committee held two sessions: its seventy-third session, from 13 February to 3 March, and its seventy-fourth session, from 25 September to 13 October. Both sessions were held in person, with remote participation facilitated as required. The agendas for the sessions are contained in documents E/C.12/73/1 and E/C.12/74/1, respectively.

An account of the deliberations of the Committee at its seventy-third and seventy‑fourth sessions is contained in the relevant summary records.

C.Membership and attendance

A list of the members of the Committee is included in the annex to the present report. All the members attended the seventy-third and the seventy-fourth sessions, with the exception of Mohammed Amarti, who did not attend the seventy-third session.

D.Election and replacement of officers

In accordance with rule 19 of its rules of procedure, at the 1st meeting of its seventy‑third session, on 13 February 2023, the Committee elected two Vice-Chairs to replace, until the election of the Bureau at the 1st meeting of the seventy-fourth session, the two Vice‑Chairs whose terms had ended on 31 December 2022. The two Vice-Chairs thus elected were Lydia Carmelita Ravenberg and Preeti Saran.

In accordance with rule 14 of its rules of procedure, at the 1st meeting of its seventy‑fourth session, on 25 September 2023, the Committee elected the members of its Bureau, as follows:

Chair: Laura-Maria Crăciunean-Tatu

Vice-Chairs: Peters Sunday Omologbe Emuze

Ludovic Hennebel

Karla Vanessa Lemus de Vásquez

Preeti Saran

Rapporteur: Peters Sunday Omologbe Emuze

E. Pre-sessional working group

The Economic and Social Council, in its resolution 1988/4 of 24 May 1988, authorized the establishment of a pre-sessional working group, composed of five members of the Committee to be appointed by the Chair of the Committee, to meet for up to one week prior to each session. By its decision 1990/252 of 25 May 1990, the Council authorized the meetings of the working group to be held one to three months prior to a session of the Committee.

The Chair of the Committee, in consultation with the members of the Bureau, designated the following individuals as members of the pre-sessional working group:

Seventy-second pre-sessional working group:

Aslan Abashidze

Peters Sunday Omologbe Emuze

Karla Vanessa Lemus de Vásquez

Mikel Mancisidor de la Fuente

Seree Nonthasoot (Chair)

Seventy-third pre-sessional working group:

Santiago Manuel Fiorio Vaesken (Chair)

Mohamed Ezzeldin Abdel-Moneim

Laura-Maria Cr ă ciunean-Tatu

Ludovic Hennebel

Shen Yongxiang

The pre-sessional working group held its meetings from 6 to 10 March 2023 and from 16 to 20 October 2023. The working group identified additional issues that could be addressed to the reporting States.

F.Organization of work

In accordance with rule 5 of its rules of procedure, at the 2nd meeting of each session, the Committee considered the provisional agenda and tentative programme of work for its seventy-third and seventy-fourth sessions and approved them, as amended during the discussions.

G.Next sessions

In accordance with the established schedule, taking into account the meeting time allocated pursuant to General Assembly resolution 68/268, the seventy-fifth and seventy‑sixth sessions of the Committee are tentatively scheduled to be held at the United Nations Office at Geneva from 12 February to 1 March 2024 and from 9 to 27 September 2024, respectively.

H.Reports of States parties scheduled for consideration by the Committee at its upcoming sessions

In accordance with rule 61 (2) of the Committee’s rules of procedure, the reports submitted by States parties under article 16 of the Covenant are, in principle, scheduled for consideration in the order in which they are received by the Secretary-General. As at 13 October 2023, the closing date of the seventy-fourth session, the Committee had received the reports outlined below, which it decided to consider at its seventy-fifth and seventy-sixth sessions.

Seventy-fifth session (2024)
Indonesia	E/C.12/IDN/2
Iraq	E/C.12/IRQ/5
Ireland	E/C.12/IRL/4
Mauritania	E/C.12/MRT/2
Romania	E/C.12/ROU/6
Sweden	E/C.12/SWE/7

Seventy-sixth session (2024)
Albania	E/C.12/ALB/4
Cyprus	E/C.12/CYP/7
Honduras	E/C.12/HND/3
Iceland	E/C.12/ISL/5
Kyrgyzstan	E/C.12/KGZ/4
Malawi	E/C.12/MWI/1
Poland	E/C.12/POL/7

The Committee continues to be seized of the situation of long-overdue initial reports. As at 13 October 2023, 26 States parties had initial reports overdue for submission to the Committee. Of those reports, those of the following 17 States parties were more than 10 years overdue: Bahamas, Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Dominica, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ghana, Grenada, Guinea-Bissau, Lesotho, Liberia, Maldives, Papua New Guinea, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Seychelles, Somalia and Timor-Leste. The Committee noted the situation of long-overdue periodic reports. As at 13 October 2023, 58 States parties had overdue periodic reports. Of those reports, those of the following 14 States parties were more than 10 years overdue: Barbados, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Hungary, India, Jordan, Libya, Malta, Nigeria, San Marino, Solomon Islands, Suriname, Syrian Arab Republic, Trinidad and Tobago, and Zambia.

As at 13 October 2023, reports from 34 States parties had been submitted and were pending consideration by the Committee. The States parties, in the order of receipt of the reports, are: Mauritania, Romania, Ireland, Iraq, Kyrgyzstan, Indonesia, Albania, Iceland, Poland, Sweden, Cyprus, Honduras, Peru, Rwanda, Philippines, Chile, Croatia, Malawi, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Kingdom of the Netherlands, Kenya, Russian Federation, Colombia, Zimbabwe, Uruguay, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Georgia, Namibia, Sierra Leone, Pakistan, Angola, Mexico, North Macedonia and Turkmenistan.

II.Overview of the working methods of the Committee

The present chapter is aimed at providing an overview and explanation of the way in which the Committee carries out its various functions, including information about recent developments in its working methods. It is also intended to make the current practice of the Committee more transparent and readily accessible by States parties and other stakeholders interested in the implementation of the Covenant.

The Committee has been making a concerted effort to devise appropriate working methods that adequately reflect the nature of the tasks with which it has been entrusted. In the course of its 74 sessions, it has sought to modify and develop those methods in the light of its experience and to respond to developments regarding the functioning of the treaty body system as a whole. Those methods will continue to evolve, taking into account General Assembly resolution 68/268, on strengthening and enhancing the effective functioning of the human rights treaty body system, adopted on 9 April 2014. In the course of 2023, the Committee discussed the outcomes of the meetings of the Chairs of the human rights treaty bodies held in 2022 and 2023, in particular as they related to the harmonization and alignment of the working methods of all the treaty bodies. The Committee also discussed modalities of optimizing its methods of work with a view to improving the efficiency and effectiveness of the State party review procedure. The Committee agreed on a methodology for the process of developing general comments, which is outlined further below (see para. ‎96).

A.Impact of measures adopted to address the backlog of reports pending consideration

Additional meeting time granted to the Committee in 2013 and 2014 and measures adopted by the Committee have resulted in a continued reduction of the backlog, as reported in 2015. However, the Committee would again require additional meeting time to fulfil the mandate entrusted to it. During 2023, the Committee considered 12 State party reports.

At the time of adoption of the present report, a new backlog of 34 reports pending consideration by the Committee was therefore building up. The Committee cannot anticipate with certainty the number of reports that will be submitted annually and the backlog that may result therefrom.

The Committee thus very much looks forward to the introduction of an eight-year predictable review cycle and the generalization of the simplified reporting procedure, as soon as the resources required to do so are secured. It would be necessary for the Committee to hold a third annual session, with the resources required.

B.General reporting guidelines and simplified reporting procedure (pilot phase)

The Committee attaches great importance to the need to structure the reporting process and the constructive dialogue with the representatives of each State party in such a way as to ensure that the issues of principal concern regarding the implementation of the Covenant are dealt with in a methodical and informative manner. For this purpose, in 2008, the Committee adopted revised reporting guidelines on treaty-specific documents to be submitted by States parties under articles 16 and 17 of the Covenant, with a view to assisting States parties in the reporting process and improving the effectiveness of the monitoring system as a whole, in particular by emphasizing the need for States parties to report on the impact of the measures taken to respect, protect and fulfil the rights enshrined in the Covenant.

The Committee decided in 2015 to make the simplified reporting procedure available to States parties on a pilot basis, as the General Assembly, in its resolution 68/268, had encouraged States parties to consider the possibility of using the simplified reporting procedure to facilitate the preparation of their reports and the constructive dialogue on the implementation of their treaty obligations. At its sixty-third session, the Committee considered the first reports submitted under the simplified procedure. The Committee decided to conduct the dialogue on the basis of the questions included in the lists of issues prior to reporting, aiming for a more focused dialogue.

Given the positive feedback received from States on those first constructive dialogues, held during its sixty-third session, the Committee decided to extend the pilot exercise. In 2018, the Committee invited 13 States parties to avail themselves of the procedure.

The Committee decided, at its sixty-seventh session, that it would generalize the use of the simplified reporting procedure and that, subject to available resources, it would offer it to all States parties that had not indicated that they wished to opt out. That would be linked to the introduction of the predictable review cycle (see paras. ‎25–‎30 below).

However, until the Committee is able to offer the simplified reporting procedure to all States parties, it encourages all States parties to continue reporting in accordance with the standard procedure. It is important to highlight that the Committee is not in a position to prepare the lists of issues prior to reporting for all the outstanding reports at this point in time and thus has decided to focus, in the limited time available to it, on reviewing reports that have been submitted.

C.Predictable review cycle and simplified reporting procedure

As noted above (see para. ‎23), at its sixty-seventh session, the Committee decided to introduce an eight-year predictable review cycle for the review of State party reports, and to generalize the use of the simplified reporting procedure. At the same session, the Committee decided to discuss the modalities of doing so at its sixty-eighth session. The introduction of an eight-year predictable review cycle and the generalization of the use of the simplified reporting procedure would be subject to additional resources (which would result, in practice, in a third annual session).

During its sixty-eighth session, the Committee decided to introduce the predictable review cycle as of 2022, subject to available resources, and to offer the simplified reporting procedure to all States parties, allowing them to opt out if they so wished. With this decision, the Committee looks forward to engaging with all 171 States parties in a predictable fashion while reducing the reporting burden and facilitating engagement with all stakeholders. The Committee believes that this will also contribute to a higher level of enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights.

The Committee has requested the secretariat to inform States parties of this decision and compile information for States parties that may wish to opt out of the simplified reporting procedure. However, the predictable review cycle for all treaty bodies is now being introduced, pending discussions among States on how best to proceed with it, taking into account also the resources required to do so.

In its meeting with States on 10 October 2023, during its seventy-fourth session, the Committee provided an overview of the next steps with respect to the treaty body reporting process. The Committee highlighted that States should continue to report according to the standard procedure until such a time that a decision was made within the context of the treaty body strengthening, or additional resources were otherwise provided for the Committee.

The Committee has already developed its own working methods for the development of lists of issues prior to reporting, which is the State party reporting process under the simplified reporting procedure, including rules for flexibility to take up new issues. Such rules are already harmonized with those of the Human Rights Committee and will form the basis for further work by the treaty bodies to harmonize their working methods. One of the conclusions endorsed by the Chairs of the human rights treaty bodies was the proposal to establish an inter-Committee structure to further coordinate and harmonize the working methods of the treaty bodies. In line with the decision taken by the Chairs of the human rights treaty bodies at their thirty-fourth and thirty-fifth meetings, held in 2022 and 2023, that work of coordination and harmonization is to be further pursued.

Further developments will be dependent on the response of the General Assembly to the report of the Secretary-General on the status of the human rights treaty body system to be issued in 2024 and the proposal on the future financing of the treaty body system, including the need of the Committee for a third full annual session, an additional pre-sessional working group and pre-sessional working group for individual communications and additional time for the secretariat and corresponding secretariat resources. This would also improve the capacity of the secretariat to work on individual communications.

D.Examination of State party reports

1.Work of the pre-sessional working group

The pre-sessional working group meets for five days following each session of the Committee, prior to the sessions it is preparing for. It is composed of five members of the Committee who are nominated by the Chair, taking into account the desirability of a balanced geographical distribution and other relevant factors, such as language requirements.

The main purpose of the pre-sessional working group is, following the receipt of a report, to identify additional questions in advance in order to assist the Committee in preparing for the dialogue with the representatives of the reporting State party. The aim is to improve the efficiency of the system and to ease the task of the representatives of States parties by facilitating more focused preparations for the discussion. The seventy-second and seventy-third pre-sessional working groups, during their meetings, adopted 12 lists of issues.

With regard to its working methods, and following the proposal of the Bureau of the Committee, the pre-sessional working group, in the interests of efficiency, allocates to each of its members initial responsibility for undertaking a detailed review of a specific State party report and for putting a preliminary list of issues before the working group. The Committee member allocated that task is the country rapporteur for the specific State party report. A task force is identified to work closely with each country rapporteur. Each draft by a country rapporteur is revised and supplemented on the basis of observations by the task force members and other members of the working group, and the final version of the list of issues is adopted by the working group as a whole. This procedure applies to both initial and periodic reports. However, during its sixtieth session, the Committee decided, on a temporary basis, not to use that procedure for long-overdue initial reports, with a view to avoiding further delays in the long-awaited dialogues. Similarly, reports submitted under the simplified reporting procedure were not considered by the pre-sessional working group, as they did not require the drafting of a separate list of issues. Following the temporary measure, lists of issues are again being prepared for all State party reports received.

In preparation for the meetings of the pre-sessional working group, the Committee has asked the secretariat to place at the disposal of its members all pertinent documents containing information relevant to each of the reports and countries to be examined. In addition, the Committee has requested that documents from other treaty bodies, including lists of issues, lists of issues prior to reporting and information on follow-up or other relevant information, be considered with a view to avoiding unnecessary overlap or duplication. For this purpose, the Committee invites all concerned individuals, bodies and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to submit relevant and appropriate documentation to the secretariat.

2.Consideration of reports

In accordance with the established practice of the human rights treaty monitoring bodies, representatives of the reporting States should be present at the meetings of the Committee when their reports are examined, in order to ensure a constructive dialogue. Under the procedure that is generally observed, the representative of the State party is invited to make a brief opening statement. Next, the Committee’s country rapporteur for the particular State party introduces the dialogue, giving a concise appreciation of the report, signalling gaps and advancing a set of initial questions. The Committee then considers the report by clusters of articles (usually arts. 1–5, 6–9, 10–12 and 13–15), taking particular account of the replies furnished in response to the list of issues, when one is available.

In accordance with the practice of appointing a task force for each State party report, the Committee members responsible for each of the four clusters lead the dialogue. The Chair also invites questions or comments from other members of the Committee, then invites the representatives of the State party to reply to questions. Members of the Committee are free to pursue specific issues in the light of the replies thus provided, but are expected to avoid repeating questions that have already been posed or answered. All speakers should adhere to the speaking times agreed in advance.

The final phase of the examination of the report by the Committee consists of the drafting and adoption of its concluding observations. With the assistance of the secretariat, the country rapporteur prepares a draft set of concluding observations for consideration by the Committee, which is circulated for comments among the members prior to adoption. At a later stage, the Committee discusses the draft, in private session, with a view to adopting it by consensus.

The concluding observations, once formally adopted, are forwarded to the State party concerned and made public.

At its forty-sixth session, in May 2011, the Committee agreed, in principle and on a temporary basis, to devote only two meetings to the consideration of periodic reports, with a view to preventing the backlog of reports pending consideration from growing. Following the conclusions agreed at the meetings of the Chairs of the human rights treaty bodies held in 2019 and 2023, the Committee has introduced the practice of considering all State party reports, including initial reports, over two meetings. Accordingly, all constructive dialogues with States parties at the seventy-third and seventy-fourth sessions were held over two meetings.

3.Comments by States parties on concluding observations

Once adopted by the Committee, the concluding observations on the report of a State party and any comments submitted thereon to the Committee by the State party are made public, as submitted, and are listed in the Committee’s annual report. Comments from States parties are published for information purposes only.

During the reporting period, the Committee received comments from China with respect to its third periodic report, including the reports of Hong Kong, China, and Macao, China, which had been considered by the Committee during its seventy-third session. The comments are posted on the web page of the Committee. Any comments received after the date of adoption of the present report will be reflected in the next report of the Committee.

4.Postponement of the consideration of reports

Last-minute requests by States to postpone the consideration of reports that have been scheduled for examination at a particular session are extremely disruptive for all concerned and have, in the past, caused major problems for the Committee. Accordingly, the long‑standing policy of the Committee is not to grant such requests and to proceed with its consideration of all scheduled reports, even in the absence of a representative of the State party concerned. Postponement of the dialogue may be agreed to only in exceptional situations, including those related to force majeure, such as natural disasters.

E.Follow-up procedure in relation to the consideration of reports

The follow-up procedure decided upon by the Committee at its twenty-first session, held in 1999, has already been applied in relation to two States parties, and the Committee considers the experience to have been very positive in both instances.

During its fifty-ninth session, held in 2016, the Committee decided to reconsider its follow-up procedure, taking into account the working methods of the other treaty bodies and on the basis of its experience relating to the implementation of its concluding observations. At its sixty-first session, held in 2017, the Committee adopted a new follow-up procedure.

At its sixty-fourth session, held in 2018, the Committee decided to extend the period for follow-up to concluding observations to 24 months. Moreover, at its sixty-sixth session, held in 2019, it decided to align the deadline for the submission of information related to the follow-up by national human rights institutions, NGOs and other organizations with that set for the submissions for the session at which the follow-up report was scheduled to be considered.

At its seventy-third session, the Committee did not consider follow-up reports.

At its seventy-fourth session, the Committee pursued work on follow-up under the guidance of the follow-up rapporteurs, Asraf Ally Caunhye and Mr. Mancisidor de la Fuente. The Committee considered the information received on follow-up to the concluding observations of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Finland and Latvia and submitted its assessments to the States concerned. It continued to apply the assessment categories as modified on the basis of its experience to date. The categories are “sufficient progress”, “partial progress”, “no progress”, “lack of sufficient information to make an assessment” and “no response”.

At its seventy-fourth session, the Committee decided that Santiago Manuel FiorioVaesken would also serve as follow-up rapporteur, starting in 2024.

F.Procedure in response to non-reporting States parties and considerably overdue reports

Considering that persistent non-reporting by States parties undermines the foundations of the Covenant, at its thirty-sixth session, the Committee adopted a procedure to deal with non-reporting States parties and long-overdue reports.

At its fifty-ninth session, the Committee discussed the situation of non-reporting States and long-overdue reports, which it considers a serious issue. The Committee decided to devote one meeting during its sixtieth session to that specific issue, in consultation with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and the States parties concerned, to the extent possible, in order to assess how best to encourage and support States in fulfilling their reporting obligations under the Covenant.

On 23 February 2017, during its sixtieth session, the Committee invited representatives of all non-reporting States and States with long-overdue reports to discuss the challenges they faced. The Committee was aware that the treaty body capacity-building programme established pursuant to General Assembly resolution 68/268 had already given support to those States to build capacity in that regard.

During the sixty-seventh session of the Committee, the Committee focal point for non‑reporting States, Ms. Crăciunean-Tatu, held meetings with representatives of six such States: Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Lesotho, Liberia, Malawi, Seychelles and Timor‑Leste. The readiness of those States to engage and to discuss reporting challenges was very much welcomed by the Committee. The Committee will continue to engage with non‑reporting States with a view to encouraging them to report, which it has also indicated with its plan to expand the simplified reporting procedure to all States parties, once resources are available to do so, in the context of the eight-year predictable calendar.

The Committee welcomed the submission of three long-overdue initial reports; namely, those of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic and Malawi in 2022 and Sierra Leone in 2023.

G.Submission of several reports in one document

At its thirty-seventh session, held in 2006, the Committee reviewed the situation of overdue reports, including recent submissions of several long-overdue reports, and decided that it would accept, from States parties that had never submitted a report under the Covenant, a one-time submission of up to three reports consolidated into a single document, in order to bring them up to date with their reporting obligations. It also decided that the consolidated report should contain a general overview of important developments relating to the implementation of the Covenant over the entire period covered by the report and present up‑to‑date, detailed information on the current situation.

At its forty-eighth session, held in 2012, the Committee reviewed the situation regarding combined reports and decided that such reports would be considered as one report. The Committee also decided to specify the due date of the State party’s next periodic report as five years following the date on which the Committee adopted its concluding observations, instead of every five years as of the submission of the initial report, irrespective of the date of submission of the previous report. Each report is subject to the same word limits, namely those set out in General Assembly resolution 68/268.

H.Action by the Committee with regard to information on economic, social and cultural rights received from sources other than States parties

1.Information provided in connection with the Committee’s consideration of a State party report

The Committee takes into account information provided to it by sources other than the State party, in connection with its consideration of a State party report. That information, which may be considered an integral part of the constructive dialogue with a State party, is made available by the secretariat to the State party concerned through the OHCHR website, in advance of the Committee’s consideration of the State party’s report. The fact that such information is posted on the OHCHR website does not imply that the Committee associates itself with the content of the information.

2.Information received following consideration by the Committee of a State party report and the adoption of concluding observations

On several occasions in the past, the Committee has received information, mainly from NGOs, after its consideration of a State party report and the adoption of concluding observations thereon. In practice, this has generally been follow-up information on the conclusions and recommendations of the Committee. Not being in a position to consider and act upon such information without reopening its dialogue with a State party, the Committee will consider information received from sources other than a State party only in cases where such information has been specifically requested in its concluding observations.

The Committee considers that, following its consideration of a State party report and the adoption of its concluding observations, the primary responsibility for the implementation thereof lies with the State party, which is bound to report to the Committee in its next periodic report on the measures taken in this respect. The Committee therefore recommends that the information referred to in the preceding paragraph be submitted directly to the competent national authorities with a view to assisting them in implementing the concluding observations of the Committee.

3.Information provided regarding non-reporting States parties

The Committee has also received information from international and national NGOs on the status of the implementation of economic, social and cultural rights by:

(a)States parties that have not submitted a report since their ratification of the Covenant and its entry into force;

(b)States parties with long-overdue periodic reports.

In both cases, the failure of States parties to comply with their obligations under the Covenant and, in particular, with their reporting obligations, has made it impossible for the Committee to monitor effectively the implementation by those States of the economic, social and cultural rights set forth in the Covenant, in accordance with the mandate conferred on the Committee by the Economic and Social Council.

At its thirtieth session, in May 2003, the Committee, in a spirit of open and constructive dialogue with States parties, decided that, in both of the cases referred to above, the Committee may, through a letter from the Chair, bring to the attention of the State party concerned the information received and urge the State party to submit its overdue report without further delay and to address therein the issues raised in the submissions of NGOs. That letter would also be made available to the NGOs concerned, upon request.

I.Day of general discussion

The Committee may decide to devote one day of a session to a general discussion of a particular right or aspect of the Covenant. The purpose of such a general discussion is threefold: (a) it assists the Committee in developing in greater depth its shared understanding of the issue under discussion; (b) it enables the Committee to encourage inputs into its work from all interested parties; and (c) it helps the Committee to lay the basis for a future general comment or provides the opportunity to discuss a draft general comment.

On 24 February 2023, the Committee held a day of general discussion on sustainable development. Committee members and a wide range of external experts shared views on the subject and expectations for the general comment on sustainable development to be drafted by the Committee. The issues raised in four panel discussions were: (a) the implications of sustainable development on key doctrines and State obligations under the Covenant; (b) sustainable development from different perspectives; (c) links between sustainable development and the right to development, labour standards and poverty; and (d) the implications of sustainable development on Covenant rights. Presentations were given by, among others, a number of special rapporteurs of the Human Rights Council and the Chair of the Committee on the Rights of the Child.

J.Other consultations

The Committee has sought to coordinate its work with that of other bodies to the greatest extent possible and to draw as widely as it can on available expertise in the fields of its competence. The Committee has also sought to draw on the expertise of relevant United Nations specialized agencies and bodies, special procedure mandate holders, and Chairs and members of working groups and other bodies of the Human Rights Council. The Committee has further sought to pursue engagement with States parties and with civil society stakeholders.

In the light of the aforementioned engagement and coordination, and at the initiative of Committee member Mr. FiorioVaesken, at its seventy-third session, the Committee adopted a decision to operationalize increased cooperation.

On 14 February 2023, the Committee held a meeting with the Head of the secretariat of the United Nations Inter-Agency Task Force on the Prevention and Control of Non‑communicable Diseases, Nick Banatvala, and a member of the OHCHR secretariat. Mr. Banatvala introduced the work of the Task Force and highlighted the link betweennon‑communicable diseases and the work of the Committee. The members of the Committee expressed appreciation for the briefing and the plan to pursue cooperation with the Task Force, both with respect to the specific issue discussed and in the context of strengthening cooperation with the specialized agencies of the United Nations, as noted above (see para. ‎64).

On 20 February 2023, the Committee held an informal meeting with the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. The opportunity to discuss the importance of economic, social and cultural rights, which OHCHR is also focusing on, was appreciated by all concerned. Matters related to resource requirements for the work of the Committee were also highlighted.

On 20 February 2023, the Committee heard a briefing by OHCHR secretariat staff working on the issue of civic space and reprisals. The Committee was updated on the trends related to civic space and the importance of cooperation between the treaty bodies and the secretariat in preventing and addressing issues when they arise.

On 27 February 2023, the Executive Director of the Geneva Human Rights Platform of the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights, Felix Kirchmeier, provided an update on the work done by the Academy to complement the efforts of OHCHR regarding the treaty body strengthening process.

Also on 27 February 2023, the Committee heard a briefing by the OHCHR secretariat staff leading the treaty body capacity-building programme. The Committee discussed modalities of engagement in the context of activities of the programme, including those related to the establishment of national mechanisms for implementation, reporting and follow-up, with a view to allowing for a more effective and efficient reporting process.

On 3 March 2023, the Committee held its annual meeting with civil society organizations. The purpose of the meeting is to allow for a regular exchange of views and discussion between the Committee and representatives of NGOs. The Committee was able to provide an update on its work, including in the context of meetings held online. It was also an opportunity for the participants to share ideas and concerns with Committee members. Approximately 50 NGOs or coalitions took part in the annual meeting, which was held in a hybrid format. The meeting was facilitated by the Global Initiative for Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, to which the Committee is grateful for its ongoing engagement.

During the seventy-fourth session, the Committee met with a wide variety of stakeholders, both in its meetings and on the margins thereof, with the aim of fostering engagement.

On 28 September 2023, the Committee held an informal exchange with the Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. The unique opportunity for the Commission and the Committee to engage and hold a dialogue was much appreciated; it was a good opportunity for both sides to ask and respond to questions and to share experiences.

On 29 September 2023, the Committee held an informal meeting with a representative of the Scholars at Risk Network and member of the Working Group on Academic Freedom, Jesse Levine, to discuss the issue of academic freedom. Mr. Levine also introduced the working draft of the principles for implementing the right of academic freedom and engaged in a discussion with the Committee members.

On 3 October 2023, the Committee members were invited to an informal exchange on regional human rights mechanisms at the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights, in cooperation with the Global Initiative for Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, in the context of the Geneva Human Rights Platform. The Committee members had the opportunity to hold discussions with representatives of the Working Group on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights of the African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights and the Special Rapporteur on Economic, Social, Cultural and Environmental Rights of the Inter-American Human Rights Commission, Javier Palummo Lantes.

On 5 October 2023, the Committee held a dedicated meeting with Mr. Palummo Lantes. The Committee members expressed great interest in the work of the mechanism of Special Rapporteur on Economic, Social, Cultural and Environmental Rights and in establishing a regular exchange of information. Modalities of disseminating each other’s work were also discussed, among other issues.

On 6 October 2023, the Bureau of the Committee held an informal exchange with the Bureau of the European Committee of Social Rights of the Council of Europe in order to explore modalities of closer collaboration, information exchange and reflection on issues of common concern. The possibility of holding a meeting in 2024 was also discussed.

On 9 October 2023, several Committee members joined a presentation by Jody Heymann from the WORLD Policy Analysis Center, who presented extensive data tools covering policies in 193 countries that are related to the work of the Committee. The tools are available in the public domain.

On 9 October 2023, the Committee held its second meeting with representatives of the United Nations Inter-Agency Task Force on the Prevention and Control of Non‑communicable Diseases. The meetingwas specifically focused on tobacco use, a leading cause of preventable deaths, and the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control as a legally binding instrument.

On 10 October 2023, the Committee held an informal meeting with States. The Committee provided an update on the treaty body strengthening process, reporting and follow-up, the work of the Committee under the Optional Protocol and work on general comments. The Committee members also held a discussion with the representatives of the States present (see also para. ‎28 above). The representatives expressed appreciation for the work of the Committee, highlighted the importance of ratifying the Optional Protocol and asked questions related to the working methods of the Committee. The issue of the limited number of working languages available to the treaty bodies was also raised.

On 13 October 2023, the Committee held a meeting with the Working Group on discrimination against women and girls. The meeting provided an excellent opportunity for the experts to gain a deeper insight into each other’s work and identify opportunities for future collaboration in the light of the focus on the economic, social and cultural rights of women and girls.

Representatives of United Nations specialized agencies, bodies and departments demonstrated great interest in and followed the dialogues held during the seventy-third and seventy-fourth sessions of the Committee.

K.Participation of non-governmental organizations in the work of the Committee

In order to ensure that it is as well informed as possible, the Committee provides opportunities for NGOs to submit relevant information to it. They may do so in writing, prior to the consideration of the report of a given State party. The pre-sessional working group also accepts the submission of information in person or in writing from any NGO, provided that it relates to matters on the agenda of the working group. In addition, as of November 2012, the Committee sets aside part of the first Monday of each of its sessions for representatives of NGOs to provide information orally. Such information should: (a) be focused specifically on the provisions of the Covenant; (b) be of direct relevance to matters under consideration; (c) be credible; and (d) not be abusive.

The Committee has requested the secretariat to ensure that written information formally submitted to it by NGOs in relation to the consideration of a specific State party report is made available as soon as possible to the representatives of the State party concerned. Prior to a session, this is normally done by posting it on the OHCHR website. The Committee therefore assumes that if any of the information is referred to during the dialogue with the State party, the latter will already be aware of it.

Civil society organizations also contribute to the work of the Committee through inputs into the process of preparing its general comments and participation in thematic meetings. As noted, the Committee seeks to consolidate its engagement with civil society organizations, including through regular annual meetings (see para. ‎71 above).

A wide variety of NGOs, including national and international NGOs and coalitions of national NGOs, regularly submit information to the Committee and seek to engage in formal and informal meetings with Committee members. Many NGOs observe the Committee’s dialogues with State party delegations online, for which registration is not necessary. Information submitted by NGOs for the plenary sessions of the Committee and the pre‑sessional working group is available for consultation on the web page of the Committee.

The Committee values the ongoing dialogue it maintains with civil society organizations in addition to the focused engagement that is country-specific or thematic. The annual meetings that take place are an important feature of the Committee’s work, and regularly facilitated by the Global Initiative for Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (see para. ‎71 above).

L.General comments

In response to an invitation addressed to it by the Economic and Social Council, the Committee began, as of its third session, preparing general comments on the various rights and provisions of the Covenant, in particular with a view to assisting States parties in fulfilling their obligations under the Covenant.

Following its seventieth session, the Committee continued the process of regional consultations for a general comment on sustainable development and the Covenant. Three regional consultations (Europe, the Middle East and North Africa, and Asia and the Pacific) and further consultations with stakeholders, including consultations with children, were held in the first quarter of 2023. During the Committee’s seventy-third and seventy-fourth sessions, the members of the drafting group informed the Committee about participation in the three regional consultations and the results that had emerged from them and also updated the Committee on other consultations held with stakeholders.

At its seventy-fourth session, the Committee proceeded with the first reading of the draft general comment on sustainable development and the Covenant, prepared by the drafting group. This provided an opportunity for all the Committee members to discuss the draft text in detail and reflect on its scope and format, taking into account the word limits and other constraints. Feedback was provided during the three meetings devoted to the first reading. A timeline was agreed upon for the working group to revise the draft, with the aim of submitting a second draft to the Committee at its seventy-fifth session, before making the draft available for public consultation and making a call for contributions.

At the same session, the Committee also discussed the work being undertaken by the lead rapporteur of the general comment on drug policies and economic, social and cultural rights. A preliminary outline for the draft general comment was presented to the Committee members and plans for regional consultations were also presented. Also during the session, the Committee was invited to a working dinner hosted by the Global Commission on Drug Policy at the invitation of two of its members, Ruth Dreifuss and Maria Cattani, to discuss matters related to the subject. Committee member Mr. Nonthasoot is the lead rapporteur on the draft general comment and is working closely with Committee members Julieta Rossi and Ms. Saran.

During the seventy-fourth session, Mr. Hennebel, the lead rapporteur for the general comment on economic, social and cultural rights in the context of armed conflict, provided an update on the steps taken and meetings held during the intersessional period. The preliminary work for the general comment was ongoing. A drafting group for the general comment was established, comprising the following members, from all regions: Mr. Hennebel, Joo-Young Lee, Mr. Fiorio Vaesken, Ms. Craciunean-Tatu and Mr. Caunhye.

As at 13 October 2023, the Committee had adopted 26 general comments.

Through its general comments, the Committee endeavours to make the experience gained through its examination of State party reports available for the benefit of all States parties, in order to assist and promote further implementation of the Covenant, to draw the attention of States parties to inadequacies disclosed by a large number of reports, to suggest improvements in the reporting procedures and to encourage States parties and relevant international organizations and United Nations specialized agencies to achieve progressively and effectively the full realization of the rights recognized in the Covenant. Whenever necessary, the Committee may, in the light of the experience of States parties and the conclusions drawn therefrom, revise and update its general comments.

At its twenty-first session, the Committee adopted the outline for drafting general comments on specific rights enshrined in the Covenant. The Committee agreed that the subject matter of a particular general comment would influence its overall structure and observed that the outline was not intended to be strictly adhered to. However, the outline provides useful signposts and a checklist of issues to be considered in the process of drafting a general comment. In this respect, the outline assists in ensuring consistency in the content, format and ambit of general comments to be adopted by the Committee. The Committee emphasized the importance of ensuring that general comments were reader-friendly, of reasonable length and readily understandable by a broad range of readers, in particular States parties to the Covenant. The outline also assists in ensuring consistency and clarity in the structure of the general comments, thus promoting their accessibility and strengthening the authoritative interpretation of the Covenant provided by the Committee through its general comments.

With a view to ensuring clarity and visibility to its procedures, the Committee decided to adopt a paper on the methodology related to the development of general comments so as to facilitate the engagement of a wide variety of stakeholders. The Committee agreed to entrust a small working group, including the current lead rapporteurs of general comments, to produce such a paper for consideration at an upcoming session.

M.Statements adopted and letters written by the Committee

With a view to assisting States parties to the Covenant, the Committee adopts statements to clarify and confirm its position with respect to major international developments and issues that have a bearing on the implementation of the Covenant.

As at 13 October 2023, the Committee had adopted 34 statements. The Chair of the Committee had also addressed open letters to States parties to the Covenant on issues of particular interest, such as economic, social and cultural rights and the economic and financial crisis and related austerity measures.

During its seventy-fourth session, the Committee discussed a number of proposals brought before it, for consideration and adoption. They included proposals from Committee members and from stakeholders. The proposals were discussed in the Bureau and will be further discussed at the seventy-fifth session. The importance of receiving such proposals and/or draft texts from interested stakeholders well in advance of the session was highlighted. However, time constraints did not allow the Committee to consider as many of the issues as it would have liked.

III.Submission of reports by States parties under articles 16 and 17 of the Covenant

In accordance with rule 58 of its rules of procedure, at the 1st meeting of its seventy‑fourth session, on 25 September 2023, the Committee considered the status of submission of reports under articles 16 and 17 of the Covenant.

In that connection, the Committee had before it the following documents:

(a)Note by the Secretary-General on the revised general guidelines regarding the form and content of reports to be submitted by States parties;

(b)Note by the Secretary-General on the status of submission of reports by States parties to the Covenant as at 14 July 2023.

The Secretary-General informed the Committee that, in addition to the reports scheduled for consideration by the Committee at its seventy-third and seventy-fourth sessions (see paras. ‎103 and ‎104 below), between 14 October 2022 and 13 October 2023, he had received reports submitted under articles 16 and 17 of the Covenant from the following States parties (listed in the order of receipt of the reports): Russian Federation, Colombia, Zimbabwe, Uruguay, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Georgia, Namibia, Sierra Leone, Pakistan, Angola, Mexico, North Macedonia and Turkmenistan.

IV.Consideration of reports submitted by States parties under articles 16 and 17 of the Covenant

At its seventy-third session, the Committee examined the following reports submitted by States parties under articles 16 and 17 of the Covenant:

State party	Symbol
Second periodic report
Cambodia	E/C.12/KHM/2
Third periodic report
China	E/C.12/CHN/3
Hong Kong, China	E/C.12/CHN-HKG/4
Macao, China	E/C.12/CHN-MAC/3
Lithuania	E/C.12/LTU/3
Panama	E/C.12/PAN/3
Yemen	E/C.12/YEM/3
Fifth periodic report
Portugal	E/C.12/PRT/5

At its seventy-fourth session, the Committee examined the following reports:

State party	Symbol
Initial report
State of Palestine	E/C.12/PSE/1
Qatar	E/C.12/QAT/1
Third periodic report
Brazil	E/C.12/BRA/3
Fourth periodic report
Armenia	E/C.12/ARM/4
Chad	E/C.12/TCD/4
Fifth periodic report
France	E/C.12/FRA/5

At its eighth session, the Committee decided to discontinue its practice of including in its annual report summaries of its consideration of State party reports. Instead, reference is made to the relevant summary records of the meetings at which the reports were considered. The Committee adopted concluding observations on each report considered. The concluding observations listed below are available from the Official Document System of the United Nations. In accordance with established practice, members of the Committee do not participate in the dialogue with the delegation nor in the drafting or the adoption of the concluding observations relating to the report of their country of nationality. Members can also declare potential conflicts of interest and decide not to participate in or not to contribute to a dialogue, when such a conflict of interest exists or may be perceived to exist.

Concluding observations from the seventy-third session

State party	Symbol
Cambodia	E/C.12/KHM/CO/2
China	E/C.12/CHN/CO/3
Hong Kong, China
Macao, China
Lithuania	E/C.12/LTU/CO/3
Panama	E/C.12/PAN/CO/3
Portugal	E/C.12/PRT/CO/5
Yemen	E/C.12/YEM/CO/3

Concluding observations from the seventy-fourth session

State party	Symbol
Armenia	E/C.12/ARM/CO/4
Brazil	E/C.12/BRA/CO/3
Chad	E/C.12/TCD/CO/4
France	E/C.12/FRA/CO/5
State of Palestine	E/C.12/PSE/CO/1
Qatar	E/C.12/QAT/CO/1

V.Activities of the Committee under the Optional Protocol

A.Progress of work concerning individual communications submitted to the Committee

At the time of adoption of the present report, the Committee had registered 339 communications pursuant to the Optional Protocol since its entry into force. At present, the status of the communications registered is as follows:

(a)Consideration concluded by the adoption of Views under article 9 (1) of the Optional Protocol: 16 (finding of a violation of the Covenant in 13 cases and finding of no violation in 3 cases);

(b)Declared inadmissible: 27;

(c)Discontinued or withdrawn: 75;

(d)Pending consideration: 221.

At its seventy-third session, the Committee adopted its Views on the case Infante Díaz v. Spain, in which it found a violation of the Covenant, and declared inadmissible two cases: Acosta Martínez et al v. Spain and Martínez Cortés v Spain.At its seventy-fourth session, the Committee adopted its Views on Vázquez Guerreiro et al. v. Spain, in which it found a violation of the Covenant. During the two sessions, the Committee also discontinued the examination of 11 individual communications, either because the authors had found a solution to the situation that had led them to submit a complaint, specifically because they had found or had been provided with adequate housing, or because they had lost interest in the communication.

Through its Views on Infante Díaz v. Spainand Vázquez Guerreiro et al. v. Spain,the Committee developed its jurisprudence on the scope of the right to housing under article 11 of the Covenant.

In its decisions of inadmissibility, the Committee continued to clarify the main procedural aspects of the Optional Protocol, in particular the requirements of exhaustion of domestic remedies and sufficient substantiation of individual communications.

B.Follow-up to the Committee’s Views on individual communications

Currently, there are 12 individual communications under the Committee’s follow-up to Views procedure.

VI.Substantive issues arising from the implementation of the Covenant

In addition to its ongoing work on general comments and statements (see paras. ‎88–‎99 above), the Committee continued to reflect on issues affecting its work. As the official meeting time allocated to the Committee offers limited space for in-depth substantive discussions, members have also reached out to partners in order to garner their support in creating the space for and facilitating such discussions. Committee members also conduct background research themselves or with the support of OHCHR, whose capacities are increasingly limited.

VII.Additional decisions adopted and matters discussed by the Committee at its seventy-third and seventy-fourth sessions

A.Participation in intersessional meetings

Members of the Committee continued to participate in, and/or contribute in different capacities to, initiatives taken by different stakeholders for a better understanding and implementation of the Covenant. Requests for such participation are addressed to the Committee through the Chair, to members directly or through the secretariat.

B.Future general comments

The Committee is working on a general comment on sustainable development and the Covenant (see para. ‎63 above). Work on the general comment continued at the seventy-third and seventy-fourth sessions (see paras. ‎89 and ‎90 above). The Committee also discussed its work on two future general comments: on economic, social and cultural rights in the context of conflicts; and on the impact of drug policies on economic, social and cultural rights.

C.Working methods of the Committee

At its sixty-seventh session, the Committee continued to discuss several aspects of its working methods. As indicated in paragraphs ‎21–‎30 above, the Committee decided to introduce an eight-year predictable reporting cycle and to standardize the use of the simplified reporting procedure for States wishing to avail themselves of it. That decision was based on the need to engage with all States parties to the Covenant and to further contribute to the promotion and protection of economic, social and cultural rights globally. In reaching that decision, the Committee was guided by the discussions relating to the 2021 review of the treaty body system, including on the basis of General Assembly resolution 68/268, on strengthening and enhancing the effective functioning of the human rights treaty body system, by the vision of the Chairs of the treaty bodies and by the views presented by States and other stakeholders.

At its sixty-eighth session, the Committee decided on a methodology for the adoption of lists of issues prior to reporting. In doing so, the Committee benefited from the experience of members of other treaty bodies, in particular the Human Rights Committee, with whom it exchanged views and considered common approaches as much as possible.

In this regard, the Committee and the Human Rights Committee decided to coordinate, on an experimental basis, the elaboration of lists of issues prior to reporting concerning the same country, which applies only to States that are party to both Covenants. Such coordination should help reduce unnecessary overlap and repetitions in States parties’ reports and concluding observations, and improve the focus of the constructive dialogues with States parties. The members of the two treaty bodies held an exchange to that end in March 2020. The Committee looks forward to the introduction of the predictable reporting cycle, which would allow it to engage with all 171 States parties and also to provide the predictability that States and all stakeholders require.

During the seventy-third and seventy-fourth sessions, the Committee dedicated time to discussing the 2020 review of the treaty body system, including information from the annual meeting of the Chairs of the treaty bodies. Representatives of the Human Rights Treaties Branch of OHCHR attended those meetings to provide updates and respond to questions from Committee members.

VIII.Other activities of the Committee in 2023

Members of the Committee engaged in activities organized on the margins of and between sessions. Those activities were often organized at the initiative of the members themselves or of various stakeholders, including notably States, national human rights institutions, NGOs and academics.

IX.Adoption of the report

At the 30th meeting of its seventy-fourth session, held on 13 October 2023, the Committee considered the draft report to the Economic and Social Council on the work of the Committee at its seventy-third and seventy-fourth sessions. The Committee adopted the report as amended during the discussions.

Annex

Members of the Committee

Name	Country of nationality	Term expires on 31 December
Aslan Abashidze	Russian Federation	2026
Mohamed Ezzeldin Abdel-Moneim	Egypt	2024
Nadir Adilov	Azerbaijan	2024
Mohammed Amarti	Morocco	2024
Asraf Ally Caunhye	Mauritius	2026
Laura-Maria Crăciunean-Tatu	Romania	2024
Peters Sunday Omologbe Emuze	Nigeria	2026
Santiago Manuel Fiorio Vaesken	Paraguay	2026
Ludovic Hennebel	Belgium	2026
Joo-Young Lee	Republic of Korea	2026
Karla Vanessa Lemus de Vásquez	El Salvador	2026
Mikel Mancisidor de la Fuente	Spain	2024
Seree Nonthasoot	Thailand	2024
Lydia Carmelita Ravenberg	Suriname	2024
Julieta Rossi	Argentina	2026
Preeti Saran	India	2026
Shen Yongxiang	China	2024
Michael Windfuhr	Germany	2024