Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

Sixty-fourth session

Summary record (partial)* of the 58th meeting**

Held at the Palais des Nations, Geneva, on Friday, 12 October 2018, at 3 p.m.

Chair:Ms. Bras Gomes

Contents

Substantive issues arising from the implementation of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (continued)

Consideration of reports

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

Closure of the session

The discussion covered in the summary record began at 5.45 p.m.

Substantive issues arising from the implementation of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (continued)

1.The Chair, reviewing the activities and meetings that had taken place during the session, said that the Committee had considered the reports of six States parties, namely Argentina, Cabo Verde, Germany, Mali, South Africa and Turkmenistan. The Committee had continued its work under the Optional Protocol to the Covenant, examining one communication, which had been declared inadmissible. It had also discussed its follow-up procedures and had decided to align itself with other treaty bodies by changing its deadline for the submission of follow-up reports to 24 months from the issuance of its concluding observations. In follow-up to the Committee’s first joint meeting with the Human Rights Committee in March 2018, the pre-sessional working group intended to pilot the coordination of the drafting of lists of issues prior to reporting at its sixty-fourth session, in March 2019. At its sixty-third session, in October 2018, the pre-sessional working group would adopt lists of issues regarding the reports of Denmark and Switzerland, and lists of issues prior to reporting regarding the reports of Belarus, Belgium, Norway and Ukraine.

2.The Committee had held its first meeting with the European Committee of Social Rights, as well as a day of general discussion with stakeholders on the right to enjoy the benefits of scientific progress and its applications and other relevant provisions of article 15 of the Covenant. It had also held an informal meeting with States to update them on its work and had met with various national human rights institutions, non‑governmental organizations and other stakeholders to discuss a range of issues. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and the German Institute for Human Rights had briefed the Committee on the latest developments relating to the rights of older persons. The Global Initiative for Economic, Social and Cultural Rights had decided to publish a yearbook relating to the Committee’s activities; the first edition, covering 2017, was already available online.

Consideration of reports (continued)

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

3.The Chair said that, if there were no objections, she would take it that the Committee wished to adopt its concluding observations on the reports of Argentina (E/C.12/ARG/CO/4), Cabo Verde (E/C.12/CPV/CO/1), Germany (E/C.12/DEU/CO/6), Mali (E/C.12/MLI/CO/1), South Africa (E/C.12/ZAF/CO/1) and Turkmenistan (E/C.12/TKM/CO/2).

4. It was so decided.

Closure of the session

5.Following an exchange of courtesies, the Chair declared closed the sixty-fourth session of the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

The meeting rose at 6.05 p.m.