National human rights institutions

The growth of NHRIs has been encouraged by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) which has provided advisory and support services, and facilitated access for NHRIs to the UN bodies and other committees.

Afghanistan:

The Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC)is a national human rights institution. The AIHRC holds the state accountable to its international human rights obligations, monitors the human rights situation in Afghanistan and protects human rights defenders. The institute was closely involved in establishing the AIHRCandwe have conducted training for members of the AIHRC in Civil and Political Rights.

Albania:

Avokati i Popullit (the AP)is an ombudsman institution that has both the classical ombudsman mandate (the focus on administrative justice) and the national human rights institution mandate (the focus on human rights). It is an A-accredited member of the International Coordinating Committee of NHRIs as well as a member of the International Ombudsman Institute.Since 2012 we have provided capacity building support with respect to strategic planning, prison monitoring, human rights education and the setting up of a human rights library to the AP under a project financed under Denmark’s neighbourhood programme as well as providing the substantial project management of this entire project.

Burkina Faso:

The National Human Rights Commissiondoes not conform to the Paris Principles with regard to composition, mandate and funding structure. The current political transition is an opportunity to initiate a reform process for a more independent Commission with a strong mandate as part of the on-going reconciliation process and democratic reforms. In 2015, we entered into a formal partnership with the main goal being a reform of the NHRI legislation, a process supported by the government; we provide various technical and logistic support and expect to continue the partnership beyond the reform of the legislation.

Egypt:

The National Council of Human Rights (NCHR) has been known for its lack of independence as an NHRI. Since 2014, the institute has therefore been in dialogue with the re-established NCHR to reform the institution and its practices. The aim has been to review its role as an actor in the national human rights system of Egypt, with a focus on securing popular input to its work and interaction with state agencies with a crosscutting human rights mandate. We have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the NCHR, which will allow a partnership built around mutual respect during the implementation of joint activities.

Libya:

The National Council of Civil Liberties and Human Rights (NCCLHR) is Libya's newly established national human rights institution (NHRI) and signed a memorandum of understanding with us in 2013. The partnership aimed to support the NCCLHR in building an organisation with the necessary skills to fulfil its mandate as part of the Libyan human rights infrastructure and to function as initiator and coordinator of dialogue between government and civil society on improving human rights in Libya. Due to the current highly politicised and very unstable security situation in Libya, the NCCLHR is not functioning.

Kyrgyzstan:

The Ombudsman Institutionis the national human rights institution of Kyrgyzstan.

Mali:

The National Human Rights Commission (CNDH)is currently being reformed with the goal being a National Human Rights Commission that is independent, strong and conform to the Paris Principles. The CNDH receives complaints, using the complaint procedure developed with our support; it visits detainees in prison; its documentation centre, supported by us, is open to the public etc. The CNDH published regular human rights reports throughout the Mali crisis and continues to gather human rights defenders each month for updates on the situation. Today, it is regularly consulted by the state and international partners on human rights issues in Mali. We have had a formal partnership with the CNDH since late 2009.

Nepal:

The National Human Rights Commission of Nepal (NHRC) was established by a statute in 2000 and was transformed into a constitutional body through the Interim Constitution of Nepal in 2007. We were engaged with the NHRC from 2002-2005, providing expertise, material assistance and institutional support to develop the capacity of the recently established commission.We are in dialogue with the newly elected commissioners with the aim to engage in a partnership to strengthen the capacity of the National Human Rights Commission of Nepal.

Niger:

The National Human Rights Commission (CNDH)has just been reformed so it is independent and has a strong human rights mandate. We started a formal partnership with the CNDH in 2015. The goal is a National Human Rights Commission able to fulfil its missions of regular human rights reporting and monitoring. We will continue to support the CNDH’s efforts to produce well-documented human rights reports and reflect on its role in relation to other human rights actors to enable it to become a catalyst for human rights change in Niger.

Tajikistan:

The Ombudsman Institutionis battling poor infrastructure and low income of the rural population that makes it challenging for the public to gain access to the Ombudsman Institution. Therefore, special attention was given to the establishment of and strengthening the regional centres of the Ombudsman. The institute and the Ombudsman Institution have been working closely on strengthening its analytical capacity, including training regional staff; improving the system of individual case handling and developing strategic priorities for the institution.

Tunisia:

The current High Committee for Human Rights and Fundamental Liberties does not comply entirely with the Paris Principles in regard to composition, mandate and funding structure. The 2014 Constitution of Tunisia created the basis for the establishment of a Human Rights Instance that could be more independent and stronger. In 2014, we contributed to the initial debates on the new legislative framework. As the transition from committee to instance continues, we provide various strategic, technical and logistical support in order to create as autonomous an instance as possible.

Zimbabwe:

Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission was established by law in 2012. The Commission is headed by a chair person and a group of eight appointed commissioners. The secretariat became operationalized in 2013. Today the Commission is carrying out case handling, monitoring and awareness raising activities and in the process of formulating and starting up other mandate areas such as prison inspection, international reporting, human rights education and research.