In its resolution 18/6, the Human Rights Council established the mandate of the Independent Expert on the promotion of a democratic and equitable international order and requested the Independent Expert to report annually to the Council and the General Assembly. The mandate of the Independent Expert, and the Council’s request for annual reporting to both bodies, was most recently renewed by Council resolution 36/4.

In his third report to the Human Rights Council (A/HRC/45/28), the Independent Expert, Livingstone Sewanyana, looks at some of the effects of international financial institutions’ policies on good governance at the local level. To this end, he focuses on a number of issues pertaining to public participation, transparency, reprisals, the State’s responsiveness to the needs of the people and the fight against corruption, while reflecting on the challenges brought about by the coronavirus disease (COVID - 19) pandemic in these areas.

In the light of the current situation linked to the pandemic, the Independent Expert intends for his report to the Human Rights Council to also be a submission to the General Assembly. The Secretariat therefore has the honour to refer the Assembly to that report.