FOLLOW-UP TO THE CONCLUDING OBSERVATIONS

USING CONCLUDING OBSERVATIONS AT NATIONAL LEVEL

The concluding observations of the Committee can be an unparalleled tool for NGOs to stimulate a discussion at the national level, to exert pressure on the government to follow up on the recommendations of the Committee, and to lobby for changes in legislation and practice.
NGOs and child rights coalitions are increasingly making use of the concluding observations in their programmes, advocacy and monitoring. The Working Group on National Coalitions conducted a basic analysis describing the ways in which national coalitions publicize the concluding observations in their country and monitor the implementation of these recommendations. An earlier study on the use of concluding observations for monitoring the implementation of the CRC looked at how nine countries were monitoring the implementation of the concluding observations at national level.

NGOs can play a key role in the short and long term to assist the government in following up on the concluding observations. Child Rights Connect has drawn up a list of potential activities that NGOs may carry out in relation to the concluding observation. Child Rights Connect welcomes receiving information on how NGOs and national coalitions are using the concluding observations in their work so that these experiences may be shared with other NGOs. Please submit any relevant information to the Child Rights Connect Secretariat.

SUB-REGIONAL FOLLOW-UP MEETINGS

The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights has organized a series of workshops to follow-up on the implementation of the concluding observations of the Committee. The workshops focus on a limited number of countries in a sub-region and participants include governmental officials, representatives of national human rights institutions, non-governmental organizations and UN agencies. Child Rights Connect has assisted OHCHR in the planning of the meetings and has actively participated in the meetings since 2005. Workshops have been held in:

• Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso (November 2008) for Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire, Guinea, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo.
• San José, Costa Rica (November 2006) for Belize, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, and Panama.
• Suva, Fiji (February 2006) for Fiji.
• Buenos Aires, Argentina (November 2005) for Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Chile, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, and Venezuela.
• Doha Qatar (June 2005) for Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabic, United Arab Emirates and Yemen.
• Bangkok, Thailand (November 2004) for Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam.
• Damascus, Syria (December 2003) for Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria.