A/HRC/54/71 Panama,27 Peru,28 Portugal,29 Spain,30 Sweden,31 Switzerland,32 the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland33 and the United States.34 18. During its country visits, the Working Group assessed the human rights situation of people of African descent and gathered information on the forms of contemporary racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia, Afrophobia and related intolerance that they face. It studied the official measures taken and mechanisms intended to prevent structural racial discrimination and protect victims of racism, and responses to multiple forms of discrimination according to the concept of intersectionality. 19. To this end, the Working Group considered the historical and the present contexts and reviewed closely the legal frameworks and steps taken for the protection of the human rights of people of African descent, including institutional and policy measures. For the consideration of the manifestations of racial discrimination, the Working Group investigated criminal justice systems, representation, negative racial stereotypes and how the media publicized information regarding people of African descent. 20. The Working Group also investigated disparities in access to education, health care, housing and employment, and multiple forms of discrimination. 21. In addition to opportunities for investigation and analysis by the Working Group, country visits provided an opportunity for the Governments concerned to showcase positive policies and practices already in place and, in some cases, to advance policies or legislation following the visit that had been in an early stage during the visit. The country visits and related reports also allowed the Working Group to share good practices. A compendium of the positive policies and practices displayed by countries during the visits is contained in annex II. 22. In the preparation of the present report, the Working Group requested updates from countries on the implementation of the recommendations made pursuant to its visits. The Working Group welcomes the cooperation and replies of Australia, Brazil, Ecuador, Guyana, Italy, Netherlands (Kingdom of the), Portugal, Sweden and Switzerland. C. Technical visits 23. Since its establishment, the Working Group has engaged closely with international organizations, including those focusing on development, and with specialized agencies of the United Nations. Technical visits allow the Working Group to offer technical assistance to stakeholders in an effort to ensure that their stated commitments to racial justice have realworld impact. The Working Group has conducted three technical visits. In addition, it has engaged with the World Bank and the Statistics Division and other specialized agencies to encourage a stronger focus on the protection of the human rights of people of African descent in development programming. 24. From 13 to 16 December 2021, the Working Group conducted a technical visit to Paris, hosted by the United Nations Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization as part of its project entitled “Routes of Enslaved Peoples: Resistance, Liberty and Heritage”. The visit was focused on culture and knowledge production as drivers of economic development, consistent with the Sustainable Development Goals. The Working Group emphasized that 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 6 See A/HRC/24/52/Add.2 and A/HRC/24/52/Add.4. See A/HRC/45/44/Add.2 and A/HRC/45/44/Add.3. See A/HRC/21/60/Add.1 and A/HRC/51/54/Add.2. See A/HRC/39/69/Add.2 and A/HRC/39/69/Add.4. See A/HRC/30/56/Add.2. See A/HRC/51/54/Add.1. See A/HRC/24/52/Add.1 and A/HRC/24/52/Add.3. See also https://www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/documents/issues/racism/wgeapd/statements/2023-0127/eom-statement-UK-WGEPAD-2023-01-27.pdf. See A/HRC/15/18 and A/HRC/33/61/Add.2. GE.23-15301