United Nations · New York, 2017

Report of the Committee on the Eliminationof Discrimination against Women

Sixty-fourth session

(4-22 July 2016)

Sixty-fifth session

(24 October-18 November 2016)

Sixty-sixth session

(13 February-3 March 2017)

ISSN 0255-0970

Note

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.

[30 March 2017]

Contents

Chapter			Page
Letter of transmittal	6
Part One Report of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women on its sixty- fourth session	7
Decisions adopted by the Committee	8
Organizational and other matters	10
States parties to the Convention and to the Optional Protocol	10
Opening of the session	10
Adoption of the agenda	10
Report of the pre-sessional working group	10
Organization of work	10
Membership of the Committee	11
Report of the Chair on intersessional activities	12
Consideration of reports submitted by States parties under article 18 of the Convention	13
Activities carried out under the Optional Protocol	14
Action taken by the Committee in respect of issues arising under article 2 of the Optional Protocol	14
Follow-up to views of the Committee on individual communications	14
Action taken by the Committee in respect of issues arising under article 8 of the Optional Protocol	14
Ways and means of expediting the work of the Committee	16
Implementation of article 21 of the Convention	18
Provisional agenda for the sixty-fifth session	20
Adoption of the report	21
Annex
Documents before the Committee at its sixty-fourth session	22
Part Two Report of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women on its sixty- fifth session	23
Decisions adopted by the Committee	24
Organizational and other matters	26
States parties to the Convention and to the Optional Protocol	26
Opening of the session	26
Adoption of the agenda	26
Report of the pre-sessional working group	26
Organization of work	26
Membership of the Committee	27
Report of the Chair on intersessional activities	28
Consideration of reports submitted by States parties under article 18 of the Convention	29
Activities carried out under the Optional Protocol	31
Action taken by the Committee in respect of issues arising under article 2 of the Optional Protocol	31
Follow-up to views of the Committee on individual communications	31
Action taken by the Committee in respect of issues arising under article 8 of the Optional Protocol	31
Ways and means of expediting the work of the Committee	33
Implementation of article 21 of the Convention	34
Provisional agenda for the sixty-sixth session	36
Adoption of the report	37
Annexes
Documents before the Committee at its sixty-fifth session	38
Membership of the Committee as at 18 November 2016	39
Part Three Report of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women on its sixty- sixth session	40
I.Decisions adopted by the Committee	41
II.Organizational and other matters	43
States parties to the Convention and to the Optional Protocol	43
Opening of the session	43
Adoption of the agenda	43
Report of the pre-sessional working group	43
Organization of work	43
Membership of the Committee	44
Report of the Chair on intersessional activities	45
Consideration of reports submitted by States parties under article 18 of the Convention	46
Activities carried out under the Optional Protocol	47
Action taken by the Committee in respect of issues arising under article 2 of the Optional Protocol	47
Follow-up to views of the Committee on individual communications	47
Action taken by the Committee in respect of issues arising under article 8 of the Optional Protocol	47
Ways and means of expediting the work of the Committee	49
Implementation of article 21 of the Convention	50
Provisional agenda for the sixty-seventh session	51
Adoption of the report	52
Annexes	53
I.Documents before the Committee at its sixty-sixth session
II.Membership of the Committee as at 3 March 2017	54

Letter of transmittal

[31 March 2017]

I have the honour to refer to article 21 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, according to which the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, established pursuant to the Convention, is to, through the Economic and Social Council, report annually to the General Assembly on its activities.

The Committee held its sixty-fourth session from 4 to 22 July 2016, its sixty-fifth session from 24 October to 18 November 2016 and its sixty-sixth session from 13 February to 3 March 2017, at the United Nations Office at Geneva. It adopted its reports on the sessions at its 1430th meeting, on 22 July 2016, its 1469th meeting, on 18 November 2016, and its 1499th meeting, on 3 March 2017. The reports are herewith submitted to you for transmission to the General Assembly at its seventy-second session.

(Signed) Dalia Leinarte

Chair

Part One

Report of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women on its sixty-fourth session

4-22 July 2016

Chapter I

Decisions adopted by the Committee

Decision 64/I

The Committee decided to confirm the time limit for the submission of follow-up information from States parties, which must be submitted within two years, and exceptionally within one year, from the date of adoption of the concluding observations concerned, and to amend decision 54/IX by limiting the number of issues in the concluding observations designated by the Committee for follow-up to a maximum of four issues/subparagraphs.

Decision 64/II

The Committee decided the following, to be read together with decision 59/IV: Only members having submitted comments in writing within 10 days from the receipt, at the beginning of a session, of draft lists of issues prior to reporting prepared under the simplified reporting procedure (see decision 58/II) by the pre‑sessional working group, to be convened after each regular session, shall be able to propose amendments for discussion during the adoption of such lists in plenary at the Committee’s subsequent regular session. Lists of issues prior to reporting shall be limited to a maximum of 25 paragraphs, including one standard paragraph asking States parties to provide information on the measures taken to implement the Committee’s previous concluding observations, and shall not raise more than 75 questions.

Decision 64/III

The Committee, having evaluated as positive the impact of the establishment of country task forces for the constructive dialogue with States parties, in line with its decision 50/I, decided to continue to operate in country task forces on a permanent basis.

Decision 64/IV

The Committee decided to request its secretariat to create a folder entitled “Documents for the constructive dialogue” under “Background information” on the extranet of the Committee, to which members are encouraged to regularly upload questions for use in constructive dialogues, and to upload to that folder the questions contained in the discussion paper on the subdimensions of Sustainable Development Goal indicator 5.1.1, and the checklist of questions for States parties reporting to the Committee, which is contained in table C of the Guidebook on general recommendation No. 30 (2013) on women in conflict prevention, conflict and post-conflict situations and the Security Council resolutions on women and peace and security prepared by the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN-Women).

Decision 64/V

The Committee decided to hold an informal meeting with States parties to the Convention on 17 November 2016, during its sixty-fifth session, to update them on its working methods and thematic priorities.

Decision 64/VI

The Committee confirmed the members of the pre-sessional working group for the sixty-sixth session, namely, Gladys Acosta Vargas, Hilary Gbedemah, Nahla Haidar, Lia Nadaraia and Biancamaria Pomeranzi.

Chapter II

Organizational and other matters

A.States parties to the Convention and to the Optional Protocol

1.As at 22 July 2016, the closing date of the sixty-fourth session of the Committee, there were 189 States parties to the Convention. In addition, 70 States parties had accepted the amendment to article 20 (1) of the Convention concerning the meeting time of the Committee. A total of 126 States parties to the Convention are currently required to accept the amendment in order to bring it into force.

2.As at the same date, there were 107 States parties to the Optional Protocol to the Convention.

B.Opening of the session

3.The Committee held its sixty-fourth session at the United Nations Office at Geneva from 4 to 22 July 2016. The Committee held 20 plenary meetings and also held eight meetings to discuss agenda items 5 to 8. A list of the documents before the Committee is contained in the annex to part one of the present report.

4.At the 1403rd meeting, on 4 July 2016, the session was opened by the Chair.

C.Adoption of the agenda

5.The Committee adopted the provisional agenda (CEDAW/C/64/1) at its 1403rd meeting, on 4 July 2016.

D.Report of the pre-sessional working group

6.The report of the pre-sessional working group (CEDAW/C/PSWG/64/1), which met from 23 to 27 November 2015, was introduced by Theodora Oby Nwankwo at the 1403rd meeting, on 4 July 2016.

E.Organization of work

7.On 4 and 11 July 2016, the Committee held closed meetings with representatives of the specialized agencies, funds and programmes of the United Nations system and other intergovernmental organizations, during which those bodies provided country-specific information and information on their efforts to support the implementation of the Convention.

8.In addition, the Committee held informal public meetings with representatives of non-governmental organizations and national human rights institutions, who provided information on the implementation of the Convention in the States parties whose reports the Committee considered at its session.

9.On 8 July 2016, a representative of Amnesty international provided a briefing on its new policy on sex workers, in an informal private meeting.

10.On 21 July 2016, the Committee and the Committee on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families held a public side event, co-hosted by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and UN-Women, on promoting and protecting the labour and human rights of women migrant workers through the Convention.

F.Membership of the Committee

11.All members, with the exception of Lilian Hofmeister, attended the sixty-fourth session. The following members did not attend on the indicated dates: Ayse Feride Acar, on 4, 11 and 12 and from 18 to 22 July; Nicole Ameline, from 20 to 22 July; Niklas Bruun, on 21 and 22 July; Ruth Halperin-Kaddari, on 8 and 22 July; Ismat Jahan, on 11, 14 and 15 July; and Lia Nadaraia, on 20 July. A list of the members of the Committee, indicating the duration of their terms of office, is contained in annex II to part two of the present report.

Chapter III

Report of the Chair on intersessional activities

12.At the 1403rd meeting, on 4 July 2016, the Chair presented a report on her activities since the sixty-third session.

Chapter IV

Consideration of reports submitted by States parties under article 18 of the Convention

13.The Committee considered the reports of eight States parties submitted under article 18 of the Convention and prepared the following concluding observations thereon:

Albania	(CEDAW/C/ALB/CO/4)
France	(CEDAW/C/FRA/CO/7-8)
Mali	(CEDAW/C/MLI/CO/6-7)
Myanmar	(CEDAW/C/MMR/CO/4-5)
Philippines	(CEDAW/C/PHL/CO/7-8)
Trinidad and Tobago	(CEDAW/C/TTO/CO/4-7)
Turkey	(CEDAW/C/TUR/CO/7)
Uruguay	(CEDAW/C/URY/CO/8-9)

Follow-up procedures relating to concluding observations

14.The Committee considered the follow-up reports received from the following States parties:

Cambodia	(CEDAW/C/KHM/CO/4-5/Add.1)
Finland	(CEDAW/C/FIN/CO/7/Add.1)
Guyana	(CEDAW/C/GUY/CO/7-8/Add.1)
Moldova	(CEDAW/C/MDA/CO/4-5/Add.1)
Pakistan	(CEDAW/C/PAK/CO/4/Add.1)
Syrian Arab Republic	(CEDAW/C/SYR/CO/2/Add.1)
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland	(CEDAW/C/GBR/CO/7/Add.1)

15.The Committee sent first reminders to Cameroon, Kazakhstan and Sierra Leone and second reminders to Cabo Verde, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Dominican Republic, whose follow-up reports were overdue.

16.The Rapporteur on follow-up met with representatives of Equatorial Guinea, given that its follow-up report was overdue.

Chapter V

Activities carried out under the Optional Protocol

17.Article 12 of the Optional Protocol provides that the Committee is to include in its annual report a summary of its activities under the Optional Protocol.

A.Action taken by the Committee in respect of issues arising under article 2 of the Optional Protocol

18.The Committee discussed activities under article 2 of the Optional Protocol on 11 and 19 July 2016.

19.The Committee endorsed the report of the Working Group on Communications under the Optional Protocol on its thirty-fifth session (see https://goo.gl/5lBTPP).

20.The Committee adopted final decisions with regard to three individual communications submitted under article 2 of the Optional Protocol. It adopted decisions of inadmissibility with regard to communications No. 57/2013 (V. v. Denmark) (CEDAW/C/64/D/57/2013), No. 64/2013 (K.S. v. Denmark) (CEDAW/C/64/D/64/2013) and No. 67/2014 (X. v. Austria) (CEDAW/C/64/D/67/2014). All decisions were adopted by consensus.

B.Follow-up to views of the Committee on individual communications

21.The Committee was informed that the Working Group, at its thirty-fifth session, had discussed the follow-up situation in each case where the follow-up dialogue was continuing and agreed on the action to be taken. Of the 10 cases currently under follow-up examination, 1 each relates to Brazil, Canada, Denmark, Georgia, Kazakhstan, the Netherlands, Peru, the Philippines, Spain and the United Republic of Tanzania. In another case (No. 53/2013, A.S. v. Denmark), the Committee decided to put the follow-up dialogue to a close with a finding of a satisfactory resolution of its recommendations.

C.Action taken by the Committee in respect of issues arising under article 8 of the Optional Protocol

22.The Committee discussed its activities under article 8 of the Optional Protocol on 20 and 21 July 2016. It endorsed the report of the Working Group on Inquiries under the Optional Protocol on its fourth session (see https://goo.gl/5lBTPP).

23.The Committee adopted the following recommendations of the Working Group:

(a)To approve certain revisions to the standard operating procedures for inquiries in order to adapt them to the mandate of the Working Group and reflect the recent practice of the Committee in examining information received under article 8 of the Optional Protocol;

(b)In relation to inquiry No. 2014/2, to designate members to conduct an inquiry and to request the consent of the State party concerned to a visit to its territory.

24.The Committee ratified the following decisions made by the Working Group:

(a)In relation to submission No. 2011/4, that the Chair and Vice-Chair of the Working Group should meet with representatives of the State party concerned in the margins of the consideration of its periodic report to discuss the submission of the State party’s observations with regard to the information received by the Committee under article 8 of the Optional Protocol;

(b)In relation to submission No. 2012/1, to request the assistance of three members of the Committee to examine the information received under article 8 of the Optional Protocol and to make a recommendation on the action to be taken for consideration by the Working Group at its fifth session, in October 2016;

(c)In relation to submission No. 2014/1, to arrange a meeting during the sixty-fourth session with representatives of the Permanent Mission of the State party concerned to the United Nations Office and other international organizations in Geneva to follow up on the Committee’s request to conduct a visit to the territory of the State party in September 2016;

(d)In relation to submission No. 2016/1, to request additional information from the source of information and from representatives of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and other United Nations entities in the State party concerned.

25.In relation to inquiry No. 2011/1 concerning Canada, the Committee decided to mandate the designated members to assess information received from the State party pursuant to article 9 (2) of the Optional Protocol on the measures it had taken intersessionally in response to the Committee’s inquiry and to make a recommendation to the Committee at its sixty-fifth session.

Chapter VI

Ways and means of expediting the work of the Committee

26.The secretariat informed the Committee about the status of submission of overdue reports by States parties under article 18 of the Convention.

27.On 4 July 2016, the Chair provided a briefing to the Committee on the twenty-eighth annual meeting of the Chairs of the human rights treaty bodies, held in New York from 30 May to 3 June 2016.

Action taken by the Committee under agenda item 7

Dates of future sessions

28.In accordance with the calendar of conferences, the following dates were confirmed for the Committee’s sixty-fifth and sixty-sixth sessions and related meetings:

Sixty-fifth session (Geneva)

(a)Thirty-sixth session of the Working Group on Communications under the Optional Protocol: 19-21 October 2016;

(b)Fifth session of the Working Group on Inquiries under the Optional Protocol: 20 and 21 October 2016;

(c)Sixty-fifth session: 24 October-18 November 2016;

(d)Pre-sessional working group for the sixty-seventh session: 21-25 November 2016;

Sixty-sixth session (Geneva)

(e)Thirty-seventh session of the Working Group on Communications under the Optional Protocol: 7-10 February 2017;

(f)Sixth session of the Working Group on Inquiries under the Optional Protocol: 9 and 10 February 2017;

(g)Sixty-sixth session: 13 February-3 March 2017;

(h)Pre-sessional working group for the sixty-eighth session: 6-10 March 2017.

Reports to be considered at future sessions

29.The Committee confirmed that it would consider the reports of the following States parties at its sixty-fifth and sixty-sixth sessions:

Sixty-fifth session:

Antigua and Barbuda (in the absence of a report)

Argentina

Armenia

Bangladesh

Belarus (under the simplified reporting procedure)

Bhutan

Burundi

Canada

Estonia

Honduras

Netherlands

Switzerland

Sixty-sixth session:

El Salvador

Germany

Ireland (under the simplified reporting procedure)

Jordan

Micronesia (Federated States of)

Rwanda

Sri Lanka

Ukraine

Chapter VII

Implementation of article 21 of the Convention

Working group on gender-related dimensions of disaster risk reduction in a changing climate

30.The working group met during the session and discussed a first draft of the general recommendation on the gender-related dimensions of disaster risk reduction in a changing climate, which was presented to the Committee on 22 July 2016 and would be shared online with stakeholders intersessionally.

31.The working group requested that the Committee postpone the first reading of the draft general recommendation to the sixty-sixth session.

Working group on the right to education

32.The working group met during the session and discussed the draft general recommendation on the right of girls and women to education.

Working group on working methods

33.The working group met during the session and considered and submitted to the Committee draft decisions concerning the time limit for the submission of follow-up information and the maximum number of follow-up issues, the adoption of lists of issues prior to reporting under the simplified reporting procedure, the continuation of operation in country task forces and a running list of model questions for the constructive dialogue (see decisions 64/I to 64/IV).

Working group on the Inter-Parliamentary Union

34.The working group met during the session and discussed the priorities for its cooperation with the Inter-Parliamentary Union, namely with regard to increasing the representation of women in political and public life, through the Sustainable Development Goals process, in particular the measurement of indicator 5.1.1; the establishment of independent national accountability mechanisms to oversee elections; by delivering technical assistance to countries to better understand the link between development and human rights; and through its recommendations on quotas for political parties.

Working group on the Convention, UN-Women and the Sustainable Development Goals

35.The working group met during the session. It discussed the outcome of the workshop on monitoring Sustainable Development Goal indicator 5.1.1 relating to legislative frameworks to end discrimination against women, hosted by UN-Women on 14 and 15 June 2016 in New York, and decided to continue its cooperation with UN-Women on the matter intersessionally.

Working group on gender-based violence against women

36.The working group met during the session and finalized the first draft of the general recommendation on gender-based violence against women, updating general recommendation No. 19 (1992) on violence against women, which was presented to the Committee on 15 July 2016 and would be shared online with stakeholders intersessionally.

Chapter VIII

Provisional agenda for the sixty-fifth session

37.At its 1430th meeting, on 22 July 2016, the Committee considered and approved the draft provisional agenda for its sixty-fifth session.

Chapter IX

Adoption of the report

38.At its 1430th meeting, on 22 July 2016, the Committee considered and adopted, as orally amended, the draft report on its sixty-fourth session.

Annex

Documents before the Committee at its sixty-fourth session

Document number	Title or description
CEDAW/C/64/1	Annotated provisional agenda
CEDAW/C/64/2	Report of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
Reports of States parties
CEDAW/C/ALB/4	Fourth periodic report of Albania
CEDAW/C/FRA/7-8	Combined seventh and eighth periodic reports of France
CEDAW/C/MLI/6-7	Combined sixth and seventh periodic reports of Mali
CEDAW/C/MMR/4-5	Combined fourth and fifth periodic reports of Myanmar
CEDAW/C/PHL/7-8	Combined seventh and eighth periodic reports of the Philippines
CEDAW/C/TTO/4-7	Combined fourth to seventh periodic reports of Trinidad and Tobago
CEDAW/C/TUR/7	Seventh periodic report of Turkey
CEDAW/C/URY/8-9	Combined eighth and ninth periodic reports of Uruguay

Part Two

Report of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women on its sixty-fifth session

24 October-18 November 2016

Chapter I

Decisions adopted by the Committee

Decision 65/I

The Committee decided to suspend, on a pilot basis at its sixty-sixth session, the presentation of the country briefing note by the country rapporteur, unless new developments that have come to the attention of the country rapporteur after the finalization of the briefing note need to be communicated to the Committee, and to replace it with a 15-minute coordination meeting of the country task force to be held at the end of the day preceding the constructive dialogue with the State party concerned.

Decision 65/II

The Committee decided to amend the standard paragraph on the date for the submission of the next periodic report of the State party concerned in its concluding observations by adding the following sentence: “In case of delay, the report should cover the entire period up to the time of its submission.”

Decision 65/III

The Committee decided to place the standard paragraph on the role of parliament, in its concluding observations, as a new section C, entitled “Parliament”, by which the section entitled “Principal areas of concern and recommendations” would become section D.

Decision 65/IV

The Committee decided to continue its cooperation with the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences in its ongoing work on the update of general recommendation No. 19 (1992) on violence against women and to acknowledge the contribution of the Special Rapporteur in the preamble of the final document.

Decision 65/V

The Committee decided that the following additional States parties that had requested to submit their periodic reports under the simplified reporting procedure and had met the eligibility criteria stipulated in decisions 58/2 and 59/4 would be considered under that procedure: Mauritius (eighth periodic report) and Bulgaria (eighth periodic report). The Committee also decided not to accept any new requests from States parties to submit their periodic reports under the simplified reporting procedure until it had undertaken an assessment of its effectiveness.

Decision 65/VI

The Committee decided to appoint Hilary Gbedemah as Rapporteur on follow-up and Lia Nadaraia as alternate Rapporteur on follow-up, both for a period of two years from 1 January 2017 to 31 December 2018.

Decision 65/VII

On 16 November 2016, the Committee decided, with immediate effect, to hold its biennial informal meetings with States parties to the Convention as public meetings with live webcasting and the proceedings documented in summary records.

Decision 65/VIII

The Committee confirmed the members of the pre-sessional working group for the sixty-seventh session, namely, Barbara Bailey, Louiza Chalal, Dalia Leinarte, Patricia Schulz and Xiaoqiao Zou.

Chapter II

Organizational and other matters

A.States parties to the Convention and to the Optional Protocol

1.On 18 November 2016, the closing date of the sixty-fifth session of the Committee, the ratification status of the Convention (189 States parties) was as it was on 22 July 2016, the closing date of the sixty-fourth session. One additional State party had accepted the amendment to article 20 (1) of the Convention concerning the meeting time of the Committee, bringing the total number of States parties having accepted the amendment to 71.

2.During the same period, one additional State party acceded to the Optional Protocol to the Convention, bringing the total number of States parties to the Optional Protocol to 108.

B.Opening of the session

3.The Committee held its sixty-fifth session at the United Nations Office at Geneva from 24 October to 18 November 2016. The Committee held 27 plenary meetings and also held 12 meetings to discuss agenda items 5 to 8. A list of the documents before the Committee is contained in annex I to part two of the present report.

4.At the 1431st meeting, on 24 October 2016, the session was opened by the Chair.

C.Adoption of the agenda

5.The Committee adopted the provisional agenda (CEDAW/C/65/1) at its 1431st meeting, on 24 October 2016.

D.Report of the pre-sessional working group

6.The report of the pre-sessional working group (CEDAW/C/PSWG/65/1), which met from 7 to 11 March 2016, was introduced by Ismat Jahan at the 1431st meeting, on 24 October 2016.

E.Organization of work

7.On 24 and 31 October and 7 November 2016, the Committee held closed meetings with representatives of the specialized agencies, funds and programmes of the United Nations system and other intergovernmental organizations, during which those bodies provided country-specific information and information on their efforts to support the implementation of the Convention.

8.In addition, the Committee held informal public meetings with representatives of non-governmental organizations and national human rights institutions, who provided information on the implementation of the Convention in the States parties whose reports the Committee considered at its session.

9.On 24 October 2016, Clemencia Muñoz-Tamayo of the UN-Women training centre in Santo Domingo provided a briefing via videoconference on the new online training tool on the Convention developed by UN-Women.

10.On 28 October 2016, the Committee held an informal private meeting with parliamentarians who had attended the 135th Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union in Geneva from 23 to 27 October 2016.

11.On 28 October 2016, the Chief of the Statistical Services Branch of the Statistics Division provided a briefing via videoconference on the development of indicators for monitoring the Sustainable Development Goals, in particular indicator 5.1.1 relating to legislative frameworks to end discrimination against women.

12.On 31 October 2016, the Committee held a meeting with the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences, Dubravka Šimonović, to discuss strengthening cooperation, especially in relation to its draft general recommendation on gender-based violence against women.

13.On 11 November 2016, the Committee held an informal meeting with the Committee against Torture to discuss issues relating to gender-based violence against women.

14.On 17 November 2016, the Committee held an informal public meeting with the States parties to the Convention, which was attended by 71 States parties. The Committee provided a briefing on the implementation of the Convention and the Optional Protocol in the context of General Assembly resolution 68/268 on strengthening and enhancing the effective functioning of the human rights treaty body system, its engagement with UN-Women on Sustainable Development Goal indicator 5.1.1 and its recent work on draft general recommendations.

F.Membership of the Committee

15.All members, with the exception of Bakhita Al-Dosari and Nicole Ameline, attended the sixty-fifth session. The following members did not attend on the indicated dates: Ayse Feride Acar, on 25 October, 2 and 3 November and from 7 to 10 and 14 to 18 November; Barbara Bailey, from 24 to 28 October; Niklas Bruun, on 2 and 3 November; Ruth Halperin-Kaddari, on 24 October, 4 November and from 11 to 18 November; Ismat Jahan, on 3, 4, 7, 17 and 18 November; Theodora Oby Nwankwo, from 24 to 28 October; and Silvia Pimentel, from 14 to 18 November. A list of the members of the Committee, indicating the duration of their terms of office, is contained in annex II to part two of the present report.

Chapter III

Report of the Chair on intersessional activities

16.At the 1431st meeting, on 24 October 2016, the Chair presented a report on her activities since the sixty-fourth session.

Chapter IV

Consideration of reports submitted by States parties under article 18 of the Convention

17.The Committee considered the reports of 11 States parties submitted under article 18 of the Convention and adopted the following concluding observations thereon:

Argentina	(CEDAW/C/ARG/CO/7)
Armenia	(CEDAW/C/ARM/CO/5-6)
Bangladesh	(CEDAW/C/BGD/CO/8)
Belarus	(CEDAW/C/BLR/CO/8)
Bhutan	(CEDAW/C/BTN/CO/8-9)
Burundi	(CEDAW/C/BDI/CO/5-6)
Canada	(CEDAW/C/CAN/CO/8-9)
Estonia	(CEDAW/C/EST/CO/5-6)
Honduras	(CEDAW/C/HND/CO/7-8)
Netherlands	(CEDAW/C/NLD/CO/6)
Switzerland	(CEDAW/C/CHE/CO/4-5)

Follow-up procedures relating to concluding observations

18.The Committee considered the follow-up reports received from the following States parties:

Afghanistan	(CEDAW/C/AFG/CO/1-2/Add.1)
Bahrain	(CEDAW/C/BHR/CO/3/Add.1)
Burkina Faso	(CEDAW/C/BFA/CO/6/Add.1)
Colombia	(CEDAW/C/COL/CO/7-8/Add.1)
Qatar	(CEDAW/C/QAT/CO/1/Add.1)
Serbia	(CEDAW/C/SRB/CO/2-3/Add.1)
Zimbabwe	(CEDAW/C/ZWE/CO/2-5/Add.1)

19.The Committee sent first reminders to India, Lithuania, Mauritania, Swaziland and Uganda and a second reminder to Benin, whose follow-up reports were overdue.

Assessment of the follow-up procedure relating to concluding observations

20.The Committee adopted the assessment of the follow-up procedure (see https://goo.gl/kT2xJl) presented by the Rapporteur on follow-up, in accordance with the recommendation made in the previous assessment of the follow-up procedure adopted by the Committee at its fifty-sixth session (see A/69/38, part two, annex VI). The Rapporteur on follow-up recommended that use of the follow-up procedure should be continued and that the next evaluation process should be carried out at the seventy-first session of the Committee, to be held in October and November 2018.

Appointment of a new rapporteur on follow-up and an alternate rapporteur on follow-up

21.The term of Xiaoqiao Zou as Rapporteur on follow-up and that of Hilary Gbedemah as alternate Rapporteur on follow-up will end on 31 December 2016. The Committee therefore decided to appoint Ms. Gbedemah as Rapporteur on follow-up and Lia Nadaraia as alternate Rapporteur on follow-up, both for a period of two years from 1 January 2017 to 31 December 2018.

Chapter V

Activities carried out under the Optional Protocol

22.Article 12 of the Optional Protocol provides that the Committee is to include in its annual report a summary of its activities under the Optional Protocol.

A.Action taken by the Committee in respect of issues arising under article 2 of the Optional Protocol

23.The Committee discussed activities under article 2 of the Optional Protocol on 7 and 11 November 2016.

24.The Committee endorsed the report of the Working Group on Communications under the Optional Protocol on its thirty-sixth session (see https://goo.gl/XhmGoS).

25.The Committee adopted final decisions with regard to four individual communications submitted under article 2 of the Optional Protocol. It adopted views finding a violation with regard to communication No. 66/2014 (D.S. v. Slovakia) (CEDAW/C/65/D/66/2014). It also adopted decisions of inadmissibility with regard to communications No. 61/2013 (P.H.A. v. Denmark) (CEDAW/C/65/D/61/2013), No.71/2014 (K.S. v. Denmark) (CEDAW/C/65/D/71/2014), and No. 74/2014 (N.K. v. Norway) (CEDAW/C/65/D/74/2014). All decisions were adopted by consensus.

B.Follow-up to views of the Committee on individual communications

26.The Committee was informed that the Working Group, at its thirty-sixth session, had discussed the follow-up situation in each case where the follow-up dialogue was continuing and agreed on the action to be taken. Of the 11 cases currently under follow-up examination, 1 each relates to Brazil, Canada, Denmark, Georgia, Kazakhstan, the Netherlands, Peru, the Philippines, the Russian Federation, Spain and the United Republic of Tanzania. The Committee met with a representative of the Permanent Mission of Denmark to the United Nations Office and other international organizations in Geneva during the sixty-fifth session to discuss follow-up matters.

C.Action taken by the Committee in respect of issues arising under article 8 of the Optional Protocol

27.The Committee discussed its activities under article 8 of the Optional Protocol on 15 and 17 November 2016. It endorsed the report of the Working Group on Inquiries under the Optional Protocol on its fifth session (see https://goo.gl/XhmGoS).

28.The Committee adopted the following recommendations of the Working Group:

(a)To approve certain amendments to the standard operating procedures for inquiries in order to adapt them to the mandate of the Working Group and reflect the recent practice of the Committee in examining information received under article 8 of the Optional Protocol;

(b)In relation to inquiry No. 2010/1 concerning the Philippines, to send a note verbale informing the State party that the follow-up information requested in its concluding observations (CEDAW/C/PHL/CO/7-8, para. 56) in relation to the implementation of the recommendations contained in the report on the inquiry concerning the Philippines (CEDAW/C/OP.8/PHL/1, paras. 49-52) would also constitute the information to be submitted by the State party under article 9 (2) of the Optional Protocol;

(c)In relation to inquiry No. 2011/1 concerning Canada, that the State party should submit an interim follow-up report in November 2018 and a comprehensive follow-up report in November 2020, on measures taken to implement the recommendations of the Committee contained in its report on the inquiry concerning Canada;

(d)In relation to inquiry No. 2014/2, that Pramila Patten and a member to be designated by the Working Group on Inquiries at its sixth session, in February 2017, should act as the designated members for the inquiry.

29.The Committee ratified the following decisions made by the Working Group:

(a)In relation to submission No. 2011/4, that the Chair and another member of the Working Group should meet with representatives of the Permanent Mission of the State party concerned to discuss the delay in the submission of its observations with regard to the information received under article 8 of the Optional Protocol;

(b)In relation to submission No. 2012/1, that the Working Group, with the assistance of other members of the Committee, should assess whether the information received satisfied the conditions under article 8 of the Optional Protocol, and that it should seek further information on the extent of the alleged violations committed throughout the territory of the State party;

(c)In relation to inquiry No. 2016/1, that its secretariat should send a reminder to the United Nations agencies that had been requested to submit information regarding the subject matter of the information received under article 8 of the Optional Protocol, and to defer its preliminary assessment of that information to the sixty-sixth session of the Committee.

Chapter VI

Ways and means of expediting the work of the Committee

30.The secretariat informed the Committee about the status of submission of overdue reports by States parties under article 18 of the Convention.

31.On 24 October 2016, the Chair provided a briefing to the Committee about her presentation of the report of the Committee on its sixty-first to sixty-third sessions to the Third Committee on 10 October 2016.

Action taken by the Committee under agenda item 7

Dates of future sessions

32.In accordance with the calendar of conferences, the following dates were confirmed for the Committee’s sixty-sixth and sixty-seventh sessions and related meetings:

Sixty-sixth session (Geneva)

(a)As indicated in paragraph 28 of part one of the present report;

Sixty-seventh session (Geneva)

(b)Thirty-eighth session of the Working Group on Communications under the Optional Protocol: 28-30 June 2017;

(c)Seventh session of the Working Group on Inquiries under the Optional Protocol: 29 and 30 June 2017;

(d)Sixty-seventh session: 3-21 July 2017;

(e)Pre-sessional working group for the sixty-ninth session: 24-28 July 2017.

Reports to be considered at future sessions

33.The Committee confirmed that, at its sixty-sixth session, it would consider the reports of the States parties listed in paragraph 29 of part one of the present report and that, at its sixty-seventh session, it would consider those of Barbados, Costa Rica, Italy, Montenegro, the Niger, Nigeria, Romania (under the simplified reporting procedure) and Thailand.

Chapter VII

Implementation of article 21 of the Convention

Working group on gender-related dimensions of disaster risk reduction in a changing climate

34.The working group met during the session and discussed a timetable for the finalization and adoption of the draft general recommendation on the gender-related dimensions of disaster risk reduction in a changing climate. It decided to review and consolidate the comments on the draft that are submitted by various stakeholders intersessionally. The working group also decided to hold a half-day retreat during the sixty-seventh session of the Committee to continue to improve the draft. It further decided to send a note verbale inviting States parties to submit comments on the draft recommendation and to extend the deadline for the submission of comments to 31 January 2017 for all stakeholders.

35.The working group agreed to postpone the first reading of the draft general recommendation to the sixty-eighth session of the Committee.

Working group on the right to education

36.The working group met during the session and discussed a timetable for the finalization and adoption of the draft general recommendation on the right of girls and women to education.

Working group on working methods

37.The working group met during the session and considered and submitted to the Committee draft decisions concerning coordination meetings of country task forces and a revised standard paragraph in the concluding observations of the Committee (see decisions 65/I and 65/II). It also revised the guidance note for country rapporteurs.

Working group on the Inter-Parliamentary Union

38.The working group met during the session and discussed the priorities for the cooperation of the Committee with the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), namely with regard to systemizing the holding of a joint meeting of the Committee and the Assembly of IPU on an annual basis; building the capacity of parliaments to assess their own levels of gender sensitivity; and strengthening collaboration on the issues of migration and refugee flows, monitoring the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals, and women and peace and security.

Working group on the Convention, UN-Women and the Sustainable Development Goals

39.The working group met during the session to discuss use of the draft list of questions prepared by UN-Women, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development Social Institutions and Gender Index and the World Bank’s Women, Business and the Law database to test Sustainable Development Goal indicator 5.1.1 relating to legal frameworks to end discrimination against women. The working group recommended that, beginning in 2017, the Committee should start testing the questions through its regular processes, including through references in its lists of issues and questions and its constructive dialogues with States parties. It accordingly recommended a review of the briefing note prepared by country rapporteurs and the Committee’s reporting guidelines. The working group resolved to submit to the Committee, at its sixty-sixth session, a first draft of the substantive input to be submitted to the high-level political forum on sustainable development in 2017.

Working group on gender-based violence against women

40.The working group met during the session and discussed a timetable for the finalization and adoption of the draft general recommendation on gender-based violence against women updating general recommendation No. 19. It also considered comments on the draft that had been received from numerous stakeholders and decided to continue to consider them intersessionally.

41.The Committee endorsed the working group’s proposal to continue its close collaboration with the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences in its ongoing work on the draft general recommendation, until the adoption of the draft.

Chapter VIII

Provisional agenda for the sixty-sixth session

42.At its 1469th meeting, on 18 November 2016, the Committee considered and approved the draft provisional agenda for its sixty-sixth session.

Chapter IX

Adoption of the report

43.At its 1469th meeting, on 18 November 2016, the Committee considered and adopted, as orally amended, the draft report on its sixty-fifth session.

Annex I

Documents before the Committee at its sixty-fifth session

Document number	Title or description
CEDAW/C/65/1	Annotated provisional agenda
CEDAW/C/65/2	Report of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
CEDAW/C/65/3	Report of the International Labour Organization
Reports of States parties
CEDAW/C/ARG/7	Seventh periodic report of Argentina
CEDAW/C/ARM/5-6	Combined fifth and sixth periodic reports of Armenia
CEDAW/C/BGD/8	Eighth periodic report of Bangladesh
CEDAW/C/BLR/8	Eighth periodic report of Belarus
CEDAW/C/BTN/8-9	Combined eighth and ninth periodic reports of Bhutan
CEDAW/C/BDI/5-6	Combined fifth and sixth periodic reports of Burundi
CEDAW/C/CAN/8-9	Combined eighth and ninth periodic reports of Canada
CEDAW/C/EST/5-6	Combined fifth and sixth periodic reports of Estonia
CEDAW/C/HND/7-8	Combined seventh and eighth periodic reports of Honduras
CEDAW/C/NLD/6	Sixth periodic report of the Netherlands
CEDAW/C/CHE/4-5	Combined fourth and fifth periodic reports of Switzerland

Annex II

Membership of the Committee as at 18 November 2016

Name of member	Country of nationality	Term of office expires on 31 December
Ayse Feride Acar	Turkey	2018
Gladys Acosta Vargas	Peru	2018
Bakhita Al-Dosaria	Qatar	2016
Nicole Ameline	France	2016
Magalys Arocha Domínguez	Cuba	2018
Barbara Evelyn Bailey (Vice-Chair)	Jamaica	2016
Niklas Bruun	Finland	2016
Louiza Chalalb	Algeria	2018
Naéla Mohamed Gabr (Vice-Chair)	Egypt	2018
Hilary Gbedemah	Ghana	2016
Nahla Haidar	Lebanon	2016
Ruth Halperin-Kaddari	Israel	2018
Yoko Hayashi (Chair)	Japan	2018
Lilian Hofmeister	Austria	2018
Ismat Jahan	Bangladesh	2018
Dalia Leinarte (Vice-Chair)	Lithuania	2016
Lia Nadaraia	Georgia	2018
Theodora Oby Nwankwo	Nigeria	2016
Pramila Patten	Mauritius	2018
Silvia Pimentel	Brazil	2016
Biancamaria Pomeranzi	Italy	2016
Patricia Schulz (Rapporteur)	Switzerland	2018
Xiaoqiao Zou	China	2016

aOn 4 November 2014, Bakhita Mohammed Al-Dosari was appointed to serve as a member of the Committee for the remainder of the term of Noor Al-Jehani, who had resigned from the Committee on 2 September 2014.

bOn 6 November 2014, Ms. Chalal was appointed to serve as a member of the Committee for the term of Kheira Mahdjoub-Ouiguini (1 January 2015-31 December 2018), who had been elected as a member of the Committee on 26 June 2014 and passed away on 6 September 2014.

Part Three

Report of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women on its sixty-sixth session

13 February-3 March 2017

Chapter I

Decisions adopted by the Committee

Decision 66/I

On 13 February 2017, the Committee elected Dalia Leinarte as Chair of the Committee for a term of two years.

Decision 66/II

On 13 February 2017, the Committee elected officers of the Committee, for a term of two years, as follows: Magalys Arocha Domínguez, Vice-Chair; Ruth Halperin-Kaddari, Vice-Chair; Theodora Oby Nwankwo, Vice-Chair; and Rosario Manalo, Rapporteur.

Decision 66/III

The Committee elected the members of the Working Group on Communications, for a term of two years, as follows: Gladys Acosta Vargas, Yoko Hayashi, Lia Nadaraia, Pramila Patten (Chair) and Patricia Schulz (Vice-Chair).

Decision 66/IV

The Committee elected the members of the Working Group on Inquiries, for a term of two years, as follows: Marion Bethel (Vice-Chair), Gunnar Bergby, Hilary Gbedemah (Chair), Nahla Haidar and Theodora Oby Nwankwo.

Decision 66/V

On 3 March 2017, the Committee adopted a joint statement entitled “Elimination of discrimination against women — an unfinished agenda” issued on the occasion of International Women’s Day, together with the working group on discrimination against women in law and in practice and the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences (see https://goo.gl/5M9mLJ).

Decision 66/VI

On 1 March 2017, the Committee adopted a contribution for submission to the high-level political forum on sustainable development to be held from 10 to 19 July 2017 in New York under the theme “Eradicating poverty and promoting prosperity in a changing world”, subject to comments to be received from Committee members by 15 March 2017.

Decision 66/VII

The Committee decided to revise its treaty-specific reporting guidelines (HRI/GEN/2/Rev.6, chap. V) to reflect the Sustainable Development Goals, and entrusted Gladys Acosta Vargas, Nicole Ameline and Nahla Haidar with identifying areas requiring revision.

Decision 66/VIII

The Committee decided to inform States parties to the Convention that annexes to the documentation submitted to the Committee by States parties should not exceed 8,000 words in the case of common core documents, 6,000 words in the case of initial reports, 4,000 words in the case of periodic reports and 2,000 words in the case of written replies to lists of issues and questions.

Decision 66/IX

Further to decision 65/IV, the Committee decided to invite the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences to participate at the sixty-seventh session of the Committee for the second reading and adoption of its draft general recommendation on gender-based violence against women updating general recommendation No. 19.

Decision 66/X

The Committee confirmed the members of the pre-sessional working group for the sixty-eighth session, namely, Magalys Arocha Domínguez; Nicole Ameline; Naéla Mohamed Gabr; Ismat Jahan; and Pramila Patten, the latter replacing Lia Nadaraia.

Chapter II

Organizational and other matters

A.States parties to the Convention and to the Optional Protocol

1.On 3 March 2017, the closing date of the sixty-sixth session of the Committee, the ratification status of the Convention (189 States parties) and the number of States parties (71) having accepted the amendment to article 20 (1) of the Convention concerning the meeting time of the Committee were as they were on 18 November 2016, the closing date of the sixty-fifth session.

2.During the same period, one additional State acceded to the Optional Protocol to the Convention, bringing the total number of States parties to the Optional Protocol to 108.

B.Opening of the session

3.The Committee held its sixty-sixth session at the United Nations Office at Geneva from 13 February to 3 March 2017. The Committee held 20 plenary meetings and also held 10 meetings to discuss agenda items 5 to 8. A list of the documents before the Committee is contained in annex I to part three of the present report.

4.At the 1470th meeting, on 13 February 2017, the session was opened by the outgoing Chair, Yoko Hayashi.

C.Adoption of the agenda

5.The Committee adopted the provisional agenda (CEDAW/C/66/1) at its 1470th meeting, on 13 February 2017.

D.Report of the pre-sessional working group

6.The report of the pre-sessional working group (CEDAW/C/PSWG/66/1), which met from 25 to 29 July 2016, was introduced by Hilary Gbedemah at the 1470th meeting, on 13 February 2017.

E.Organization of work

7.On 13 February 2017, the Committee elected Dalia Leinarte as Chair of the Committee for a term of two years, pursuant to the rules of procedure of the Committee. The following members were also elected as officers of the Committee for a term of two years: Magalys Arocha Domínguez, Vice-Chair; Ruth Halperin-Kaddari, Vice-Chair; Theodora Oby Nwankwo, Vice-Chair; and Rosario Manalo, Rapporteur.

8.The following newly elected members of the Committee assumed their duties and took the solemn declaration, as provided for in rule 15 of the rules of procedure of the Committee, on 13 February: Gunnar Bergby, Marion Bethel, Rosario Manalo, Bandana Rana, Wenyan Song and Aicha Vall Verges.

9.On 13 and 20 February, the Committee held closed meetings, including via videoconference, with representatives of the specialized agencies, funds and programmes of the United Nations system and other intergovernmental organizations, during which those bodies provided country-specific information and information on their efforts to support the implementation of the Convention.

10.In addition, the Committee held informal public meetings with representatives of non-governmental organizations and national human rights institutions, who provided information about the implementation of the Convention in the States parties considered by the Committee at its sixty-sixth session.

11.On 20 February, the Committee held a private meeting with the Director of the German Institute for Human Rights and Chairperson of the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions, Beate Rudolf, to discuss strengthening cooperation with national human rights institutions.

F.Membership of the Committee

12.All members, with the exception of Lilian Hofmeister, attended the sixty-sixth session. The following members did not attend on the indicated dates: Ayse Feride Acar, from 14 to 17 February; Nicole Ameline, on 2 and 3 March; Ruth Halperin-Kaddari, on 17 and 24 February and 3 March; and Ismat Jahan, from 13 to 17 February. A list of the members of the Committee, indicating the duration of their terms of office, is contained in annex II to part three of the present report.

Chapter III

Report of the Chair on intersessional activities

13.At the 1470th meeting, on 13 February 2017, the outgoing Chair, Yoko Hayashi, presented a report on her activities since the sixty-fifth session.

Chapter IV

Consideration of reports submitted by States parties under article 18 of the Convention

14.The Committee considered the reports of eight States parties submitted under article 18 of the Convention and adopted the following concluding observations thereon:

El Salvador	(CEDAW/C/SLV/CO/8-9)
Germany	(CEDAW/C/DEU/CO/7-8)
Ireland	(CEDAW/C/IRL/CO/6-7)
Jordan	(CEDAW/C/JOR/CO/6)
Micronesia (Federated States of)	(CEDAW/C/FSM/CO/1-3)
Rwanda	(CEDAW/C/RWA/CO/7-9)
Sri Lanka	(CEDAW/C/LKA/CO/8)
Ukraine	(CEDAW/C/UKR/CO/8)

Follow-up procedures relating to concluding observations

15.The Committee considered the follow-up reports received from the following States parties:

Andorra	(CEDAW/C/AND/CO/2-3/Add.1)
Cameroon	(CEDAW/C/CMR/CO/4-5/Add.1)
Dominican Republic	(CEDAW/C/DOM/CO/6-7/Add.1)
Georgia	(CEDAW/C/GEO/CO/4-5/Add.1)
Iraq	(CEDAW/C/IRQ/CO/4-6/Add.1)
Jamaica	(CEDAW/C/JAM/CO/6-7/Add.1)
Lithuania	(CEDAW/C/LTU/CO/5/Add.1)
Peru	(CEDAW/C/PER/CO/7-8/Add.1)
Seychelles	(CEDAW/C/SYC/CO/1-5/Add.1)

16.The Committee sent first reminders to Brunei Darussalam, Ghana, Guinea, Poland and Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of) and a second reminder to Sierra Leone, whose follow-up reports were overdue.

17.The Rapporteur on follow-up met with representatives of Cabo Verde, the Central African Republic and the Congo whose follow-up reports were overdue.

Chapter V

Activities carried out under the Optional Protocol

18.Article 12 of the Optional Protocol provides that the Committee is to include in its annual report a summary of its activities under the Optional Protocol.

A.Action taken by the Committee in respect of issues arising under article 2 of the Optional Protocol

19.The Committee discussed activities under article 2 of the Optional Protocol on 7 and 10 March 2017.

20.The Committee endorsed the report of the Working Group on Communications under the Optional Protocol on its thirty-seventh session (see https://goo.gl/73AdSF).

21.The Committee adopted final decisions with regard to three individual communications submitted under article 2 of the Optional Protocol. It adopted views finding a violation with regard to communication No. 58/2013 (L.R. v. Moldova) (CEDAW/C/66/D/58/2013). It also adopted decisions of inadmissibility with regard to communications No. 54/2013 (E.W. v. Denmark) (CEDAW/C/66/D/54/2013) and No. 69/2014 (T.S. v. Russian Federation) (CEDAW/C/66/D/69/2014). All decisions were adopted by consensus. In addition, the Committee discontinued the consideration of communication No. 72/2014 (M.E.N. v. Denmark), given that the author had been issued a residence permit in the meantime.

B.Follow-up to views of the Committee on individual communications

22.The Committee was informed that the Working Group, at its thirty-seventh session, had discussed the follow-up situation in each case where the follow-up dialogue was continuing and agreed on the action to be taken. Of the 12 cases currently under follow-up examination, 1 relates to each of Brazil, Canada, Denmark, Georgia, Kazakhstan, the Netherlands, Peru, the Philippines, the Russian Federation, Slovakia, Spain and the United Republic of Tanzania.

C.Action taken by the Committee in respect of issues arising under article 8 of the Optional Protocol

23.The Committee discussed its activities under article 8 of the Optional Protocol on 1 March 2017. It endorsed the report of the Working Group on Inquiries under the Optional Protocol on its sixth session (see https://goo.gl/73AdSF).

24.The Committee adopted the following recommendations of the Working Group:

(a)In relation to submission No. 2012/1, to request the State party concerned to submit observations with regard to its entire territory on the subject matter of the information received under article 8 of the Optional Protocol;

(b)In relation to submission No. 2013/1, to designate Pramila Patten to replace Ruth Halperin-Kaddari, who had withdrawn as one of the members designated to conduct the inquiry;

(c)In relation to inquiry No. 2014/2, to refer to the newly composed Working Group on Inquiries the decision on the nomination of an additional designated member to conduct the inquiry together with Ms. Patten.

25.Also in relation to inquiry No. 2014/2, the Committee adopted the recommendation of the newly composed Working Group on Inquiries, which had held a meeting on 23 February 2017 to designate Nahla Haidar as an additional designated member to conduct the inquiry.

Chapter VI

Ways and means of expediting the work of the Committee

26.The secretariat informed the Committee about the status of submission of overdue reports by States parties under article 18 of the Convention.

Action taken by the Committee under agenda item 7

Dates of future sessions

27.In accordance with the calendar of conferences, the following dates were confirmed for the Committee’s sixty-seventh and sixty-eighth sessions and related meetings:

Sixty-seventh session (Geneva)

(a)As indicated in paragraph 32 of part two of the present report;

Sixty-eighth session (Geneva)

(b)Thirty-ninth session of the Working Group on Communications under the Optional Protocol: 18-20 October 2017;

(c)Eighth session of the Working Group on Inquiries under the Optional Protocol: 19 and 20 October 2017;

(d)Sixty-eighth session: 23 October-17 November 2017;

(e)Pre-sessional working group for the seventieth session: 20-24 November 2017.

Reports to be considered at future sessions

28.The Committee confirmed that, at its sixty-seventh session, it would consider the reports of the States parties listed in paragraph 33 of part two of the present report and that, at its sixty-eighth session, it would consider those of Burkina Faso, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Guatemala, Israel (under the simplified reporting procedure), Kenya, Kuwait, Monaco, Nauru, Norway, Oman, Paraguay and Singapore.

Chapter VII

Implementation of article 21 of the Convention

Working group on gender-related dimensions of disaster risk reduction in a changing climate

29.The working group met during the session and reviewed and consolidated comments on the draft general recommendation received intersessionally from numerous stakeholders.

Working group on the right to education

30.The working group met during the session and discussed an advanced draft of the general recommendation.

Working group on working methods

31.The working group met during the session and submitted to the Committee draft decisions concerning the revision of its treaty-specific reporting guidelines and word limits for annexes to the documentation submitted to the Committee by States parties (see decisions 66/VII and 66/VIII).

Working group on the Inter-Parliamentary Union

32.The working group met during the session and continued its discussion on the priorities for its cooperation with the Inter-Parliamentary Union, namely with regard to monitoring the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals.

Working group on the Convention, UN-Women and the Sustainable Development Goals

33.The working group met during the session and prepared a contribution on the theme “Eradicating poverty and promoting prosperity in a changing world” for submission to the high-level political forum on sustainable development to be held in 2017. It also identified questions on Sustainable Development Goal indicator 5.1.1 for inclusion in the lists of issues and questions by the pre-sessional working group of the Committee.

Working group on gender-based violence against women

34.The working group met during the session. Its Chair provided a briefing on the second expert group meeting organized by the Centre for Women, Peace and Security of the London School of Economics and Political Science, which had been attended by Ms. Acar, Ms. Gabr, Ms. Haidar, Ms. Hayashi, Ms. Leinarte, the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences, Ms. Šimonović, and external experts. The working group discussed the final draft general recommendation on gender-based violence against women, updating general recommendation No. 19, as refined at the expert group meeting.

35.On 27 February 2017, the Committee completed its first reading of the draft general recommendation.

Chapter VIII

Provisional agenda for the sixty-seventh session

36.At its 1499th meeting, on 3 March 2017, the Committee considered and approved the draft provisional agenda for its sixty-seventh session.

Chapter IX

Adoption of the report

37.At its 1499th meeting, on 3 March 2017, the Committee considered and adopted, as orally amended, the draft report on its sixty-sixth session.

Annex I

Documents before the Committee at its sixty-sixth session

Document number	Title or description
CEDAW/C/66/1	Annotated provisional agenda
CEDAW/C/66/2	Report of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
CEDAW/C/66/3	Report of the International Labour Organization
Reports of States parties
CEDAW/C/SLV/8-9	Combined eighth and ninth periodic reports of El Salvador
CEDAW/C/DEU/7-8	Combined seventh and eighth periodic reports of Germany
CEDAW/C/IRL/6-7	Combined sixth and seventh periodic reports of Ireland
CEDAW/C/JOR/6	Sixth periodic report of Jordan
CEDAW/C/FSM/1-3	Combined initial to third periodic reports of the Federated States of Micronesia
CEDAW/C/RWA/7-9	Combined seventh to ninth periodic reports of Rwanda
CEDAW/C/LKA/8	Eighth periodic report of Sri Lanka
CEDAW/C/UKR/8	Eighth periodic report of Ukraine

Annex II

Membership of the Committee as at 3 March 2017

Name of member	Country of nationality	Term of office expires on 31 December
Ayse Feride Acar	Turkey	2018
Gladys Acosta Vargas	Peru	2018
Nicole Ameline	France	2020
Magalys Arocha Domínguez (Vice-Chair)	Cuba	2018
Gunnar Bergby	Norway	2020
Marion Bethel	Bahamas	2020
Louiza Chalala	Algeria	2018
Naéla Mohamed Gabr	Egypt	2018
Hilary Gbedemah	Ghana	2020
Nahla Haidar	Lebanon	2020
Ruth Halperin-Kaddari (Vice-Chair)	Israel	2018
Yoko Hayashi	Japan	2018
Lilian Hofmeister	Austria	2018
Ismat Jahan	Bangladesh	2018
Dalia Leinarte (Chair)	Lithuania	2020
Rosario Manalo (Rapporteur)	Philippines	2020
Lia Nadaraia	Georgia	2018
Theodora Oby Nwankwo (Vice-Chair)	Nigeria	2020
Pramila Patten	Mauritius	2018
Bandana Rana	Nepal	2020
Patricia Schulz	Switzerland	2018
Wenyan Song	China	2020
Aicha Vall Verges	Mauritania	2020

aOn 6 November 2014, Ms. Chalal was appointed to serve as a member of the Committee for the term of Kheira Mahdjoub-Ouiguini (1 January 2015-31 December 2018), who had been elected as a member of the Committee on 26 June 2014 and passed away on 6 September 2014.

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