A/60/358 challenges faced by indigenous people and communities in Africa not only represents a milestone in the promotion and protection of the human rights of indigenous people in the region, but also promises to help advance the debate on the challenges faced by millions of indigenous people throughout the world with regard to human rights. 26. The conceptualization and analysis of the situation carried out by the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, as set out in the report of the Working Group of Experts on Indigenous Populations/Communities (E/CN.4/Sub.2/AC.5/2005/WP.3), is a key contribution to the recognition of indigenous people in Africa and of the grave human rights violations which they suffer. One of the challenges in Africa is to define the term “indigenous”; in this context, the Working Group identified important elements for clarifying the term. To this end, it is necessary to pay more attention than ever to the specific historical characteristics of the continent arising from its particular historical, political and social context. Another issue of concern to the Special Rapporteur and the members of the Working Group is the security of indigenous people in Africa, especially the worrying situation of some communities that are particularly vulnerable as a result of conflict situations. 27. The Special Rapporteur is aware of African Governments’ concern about the situation of these people, who are not involved in the conflicts but are often their most vulnerable victims. This is an issue that requires the urgent attention of the international community and of the region’s Governments. The members of the Working Group and the Special Rapporteur identified areas of common interest and possible ways of addressing indigenous groups’ urgent need for protection, and agreed to exchange information on a regular basis for the purpose of establishing an early-warning mechanism with regard to indigenous people and conflicts that could affect them in Africa. Another way in which both mechanisms could strengthen their capabilities would be to ensure that the follow-up to the Special Rapporteur’s visits to the countries of the region is as effective as possible. 28. The Special Rapporteur also took part in various international conferences and workshops, including a workshop on forced evictions, held in Berlin in June by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Germany in cooperation with the German Institute for Human Rights and the Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living and on the right to non-discrimination in this context. He also took part in an international seminar on the implementation of laws regarding the rights of indigenous people, held in Geneva in July by OHCHR and IPU to support the Special Rapporteur in the preparation of his annual thematic report to the sixty-second session of the Commission on Human Rights. This seminar, in which deputies from a number of parliaments in all regions of the world took part, also served to emphasize the need to collaborate with national legislatures to strengthen mechanisms for monitoring and following up the implementation of laws regarding the human rights of indigenous people, as well as the need to take existing international standards into account in formulating new standards in this area. 9