A/HRC/40/64 provide a platform for promoting dialogue and cooperation on issues pertaining to national or ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities, as well as to provide thematic contributions and expertise to the work of the Special Rapporteur on minority issues. The Special Rapporteur is tasked with guiding the work of the Forum, preparing its annual meetings and reporting to the Human Rights Council on its thematic recommendations. The Forum meets annually in Geneva for two working days allocated to thematic discussions. It brings together an average of 500 participants, including minorities, Member States, United Nations mechanisms, regional intergovernmental bodies and NGOs. 92. The eleventh session of the Forum was held on 29 and 30 November 2018, with the topic “Statelessness: A Minority Issue”. This year’s number of participants far exceeded the average level of previous years, with more than 600 being counted. 93. Rita Izsák-Ndiaye, former Special Rapporteur on minority issues, was appointed as Chair of the eleventh session by the President of the Human Rights Council. A total of 12 experts and members of minorities from different parts of the world presented the four main panel discussions: the root causes and consequences of statelessness affecting minorities; statelessness resulting from conflicts, forced population movements and migration affecting minorities; ensuring the right to a nationality for persons belonging to minorities through facilitation of birth registration, naturalization and citizenship for stateless minorities; and minority women and children affected by statelessness – advancing gender equality in nationality laws. The Forum was opened on Thursday 29 November 2018 by the President of the Human Rights Council, Vojislav Šuc, followed by a video statement by the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, a statement by the Special Rapporteur and remarks by the Chair. 94. In an effort to improve dialogue among stakeholders and better focus the exchanges on the topic, the session was comprised of four panel discussions, each introduced by three experts or minority activists. Four moderators guided the discussions, which helped to keep floor interventions more focused on the topic at hand and to maintain a high level of engagement by participants throughout the two-day programme. 95. The Special Rapporteur reiterates the crucial importance of the Forum on Minority Issues, which represents the only avenue for a number of minority rights activists to advocate for change at the international level, but also a positive and unique platform for promoting dialogue and cooperation on issues pertaining to national or ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities. He noted the extremely high levels of participation in 2018, including more than 200 declarations and 100 written statements made during the two-day Forum, as evidence of the timeliness and relevance of this year’s topic for many minorities around the world, but also of the vital role the Forum continues to play as a unique focal point of discussions and exchanges at the United Nations for minorities, civil society organizations and Member States. 96. He notes in particular, among the many recommendations made at the Forum, a call made by Member States and other participants for an international day for the eradication of statelessness, as well as for a General Assembly resolution solemnly recognizing, as a binding rule of customary international law, that a State in which a child is born must grant nationality to that child if otherwise he or she would be stateless. 97. Another suggestion at the 2018 Forum is the proposal to hold, initially, three regional forums in 2019 on education and the languages of minorities, before the November 2019 Forum in Geneva, to provide more accessible and flexible platforms to encourage more contextualised discussions of regional realities and gain more regional insights and suggestions that would subsequently be taken into account at the 2019 Forum and be part of a larger debate. At the time of writing of the present report, the final report on the 2018 Forum is not yet finalized. 98. Although the Forum achieved a number of its objectives, the Special Rapporteur reiterates his view that there remains a need to consolidate the Forum as a space for interactive dialogue and to increase the engagement of States, United Nations bodies, regional organizations and other stakeholders. Additionally, from a procedural viewpoint, the increasingly large number of participants continues to create frustration as not everyone is able to take the floor under the desired agenda item and to delve into specific thematic 14