Human Rights Council

Sixty-second session

15 June–8 July 2026

Agenda item 3

Promotion and protection of all human rights, civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to development

Resolution adopted by the Human Rights Council on 7 July 2026

6 2 / 28. Extreme poverty and human rights

The Human Rights Council,

Guided by the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations,

Recalling that, in accordance with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenants on Human Rights, the ideal of a world in which all human beings can enjoy freedom from fear and want can be achieved only if conditions are created whereby everyone may enjoy his or her economic, social and cultural rights, as well as his or her civil and political rights, and reaffirming in this regard the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,

Recalling also all previous resolutions on the issue of human rights and extreme poverty adopted by the General Assembly, including resolutions 75/175 of 16 December 2020, 77/223 of 15 December 2022 and 79/178 of 17 December 2024, and by the Commission on Human Rights, as well as Human Rights Council resolutions, including Council resolutions 2/2 of 27 November 2006, 7/27 of 28 March 2008, 8/11 of 18 June 2008, 12/19 of 2 October 2009, 15/19 of 30 September 2010, 17/13 of 17 June 2011, 21/11 of 27 September 2012, 26/3 of 26 June 2014, 35/19 of 22 June 2017, 44/13 of 16 July 2020 and 53/10 of 12 July 2023, and noting the Declaration on the Right to Development,

Recalling further that, in its resolution 74/234 of 19 December 2019, the General Assembly proclaimed the Third United Nations Decade for the Eradication of Poverty (2018–2027) in order to maintain the momentum generated by the first and second Decades and to support, in an efficient and coordinated manner, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its Sustainable Development Goals, and the commitment therein to ending poverty in all its forms, including by eradicating extreme poverty by 2030, and the objective of leaving no one behind and reaching the furthest behind first,

Recalling that, in its resolution 67/164 of 20 December 2012, the General Assembly took note with appreciation of the guiding principles on extreme poverty and human rights, adopted by the Human Rights Council in its resolution 21/11, as a useful tool for States in the formulation and implementation of poverty reduction and eradication policies, as appropriate,

Reaffirming in this regard the commitments made at relevant United Nations conferences and summits, including those made at the World Summit for Social Development, held in Copenhagen in 1995, at the Millennium Summit, and at the 2005 World Summit,

Recalling the proposals of the Secretary-General’s High-level Expert Group on Beyond GDP, the request contained in the Pact for the Future, reiterated in the Sevilla Commitment and in the Doha Political Declaration of the Second World Summit for Social Development, that the proposals of the High-level Expert Group on Beyond GDP on indicators of sustainable development, which complement and go beyond gross domestic product, be followed by a United Nations-led intergovernmental process,

Deeply concerned that extreme poverty persists in all countries of the world, with projections suggesting that 590 million people may remain in extreme poverty by 2030, regardless of their economic, social and cultural situation, and that its extent and manifestations are particularly severe in developing countries,

Deeply concerned also that progress towards ending extreme poverty has been reversed at the global level by, inter alia, the increasing adverse impact of climate change, rising inequalities and increasing debt servicing costs, health challenges, including the consequences of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, the lack of access to inclusive and equitable quality education, armed conflicts and situations of occupation, with a disproportionate impact on all women’s and girls’ enjoyment of civil, political, social, economic and cultural rights,

Recognizing that those living in extreme poverty and in situations of vulnerability were disproportionately affected by these challenges, which reversed hard-won development gains and hampered progress towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals,

Reaffirming that the existence of widespread extreme poverty inhibits the full and effective enjoyment of human rights and that its immediate alleviation and eventual eradication must remain a high priority for the international community, and that the efforts towards the achievement of this goal should be strengthened, including by considering measures of progress that complement growth,

Acknowledging that social protection floors facilitate the enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights, including the rights to education, social security, work, including just and favourable conditions of work, the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health, an adequate standard of living, including adequate food, clothing and housing, and safe drinking water and sanitation, in accordance with the human rights obligations of States, and in this regard underlining the importance of acting consistently to establish and/or further develop such floors in compliance with the principles of non-discrimination and equality, gender equality and inclusion of persons with disabilities, transparency, participation and accountability,

Acknowledging alsothe impact of non-take-up of rights in the context of social protection on efforts to promote and protect human rights, eradicate poverty, reduce inequalities and encouraging States to take appropriate action to address this phenomenon as a priority in the fight against poverty,

Stressing that respect for all human rights – civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights – which are universal, indivisible and interdependent and interrelated, is of crucial importance for all policies and programmes to effectively fight extreme poverty at the local and national levels,

Recalling its resolutions 5/1, on institution-building of the Human Rights Council, and 5/2, on the Code of Conduct for Special Procedures Mandate Holders of the Council, of 18 June 2007, and stressing that the mandate holder shall discharge his or her duties in accordance with those resolutions and the annexes thereto,

1.Welcomes the work of the Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, including his report and its addendum containing the Roadmap on Eradicating Poverty Beyond Growth, and his country visits;

2.Decides to extend, for a period of three years, the mandate of Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, as set out in Human Rights Council resolution 8/11;

3.Requests the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to continue to give high priority to the issue of extreme poverty and human rights, including by supporting efforts to combat poverty and reduce inequalities, inter alia, through the use of measures of progress that complement gross domestic product, aligned with obligations under international human rights law, and by promoting the adoption of rights-based national anti-poverty strategies to pursue further work in this area in full cooperation with the Special Rapporteur in the various activities, and to continue to provide the Special Rapporteur with all the human and budgetary assistance necessary for the effective fulfilment of the mandate;

4.Requests the Special Rapporteur to submit an annual report on the implementation of the present resolution to the Human Rights Council, and, on a biennial basis, to the General Assembly, as of its eighty-first session, and, in accordance with their programmes of work;

5.Also requests the Special Rapporteur to participate in relevant international dialogues and policy forums relating to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and to undertake thematic research with a view to advising States and relevant State institutions on the eradication of extreme poverty in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda, including with reference to targets 1.1, 1.3, 1.4 and 1.5 of the Sustainable Development Goals and other goals and targets related to extreme poverty;

6.Calls upon all Governments to cooperate with and assist the Special Rapporteur in her task, to supply all necessary information requested by the mandate holder, and to respond favourably to the requests of the Special Rapporteur to visit their countries to enable the effective fulfilment of the mandate;

7.Calls up on States, in the design of their national strategies against poverty and in the development of measures of progress that complement gross domestic product, to ensure that they are consistent with applicable obligations under international human rights law, and also to take into consideration, as appropriate, the Roadmap for Eradicating Poverty Beyond Growth presented by the Special Rapporteur at the current Human Rights Council session;

8.Requests the Secretary-General to ensure that the Roadmap for Eradicating Poverty Beyond Growth and related reports are brought to the attention of relevant United Nations entities;

9.Invites relevant United Nations agencies, funds and programmes, the treaty bodies, other relevant mandate holders, and civil society actors, including non-governmental organizations, as well as the private sector, to cooperate fully with the Special Rapporteur in the fulfilment of the mandate;

10.Decides to continue its consideration of the issue of extreme poverty and human rights in accordance with its programme of work.

3 4th meeting

7 July 2026

[Adopted without a vote.]