A/HRC/31/56/Add.1 40. Brazil has also taken some important steps to strengthen institutional mechanisms for Roma. The Secretariat for Policies for the Promotion of Racial Equality has developed an interministerial working group on Roma, and Roma are also to be included in the next multi-year plan (2016-2019). The National Human Rights Programme (NHRP-3), established by Decree 7031 of 2009, included the provision that the States “ensure the conditions for Gypsy camps throughout the national territory in order to preserve their traditions, practices and cultural heritage.” (guideline 7, strategic goal III, para. (k)). Outreach is being undertaken to better integrate Roma into the Single Registry System, which provides access to social benefits. Additionally, in recent years, Roma representatives have been included in the National Council for Racial Equality Policies, and the National Commission for the Sustainable Development of Traditional Communities. On February 8, 2014, a Gypsy working group, whose members included Roma representatives, was established within the Department of Literacy, Continuing Education, Diversity and Inclusion at the Ministry of Education. The working group launched the publication “Gypsies – Guidance Document for the Teaching System”, which contains a series of recommendations for educators on expanding Roma access to education. The Secretariat for Policies for Women has also convened the First National Meeting of Roma Women, and committed to supporting the participation of five Roma women in the Fourth National Conference on Policies for Women, to be held in March 2016. 41. The Special Rapporteur acknowledges the overall significant economic progress made by Brazil in recent decades. With an estimated 25 million people brought out of extreme poverty in the last decade, Brazil has largely met the Millennium Development Goals. Noteworthy programmes in this regard have included the cash transfer programmes, Minha Casa, Minha Vida and Bolsa Familia, whereby beneficiaries commit to a series of conditions aimed at guaranteeing the well-being and health of the family. Brazil has also raised the minimum wage from $70 to $400 over the course of several years. While these achievements have certainly assisted many minority communities, inequality, in particular for Afro-Brazilians and other minorities, has remained. 42. Finally, Brazil committed in its universal periodic review to the establishment of a national human rights institution.2 In June 2014, Congress passed Law 12.986, which transformed the Council for the Defence of Human Rights (Conselho de Defesa dos Direitos da Pessoa Humana) into the National Human Rights Council (Conselho Nacional de Direitos Humanos). With a more participative structure and a clearer role for civil society, the new body also has a stronger institutional mandate to promote and protect human rights. Concern remains however, that the legislation does not go far enough to ensure that the new Council is fully independent of the executive functions of government. D. Data collection and affirmative action policies 43. Brazil has a commendable practice of collecting socioeconomic data disaggregated by race. Data collection plays a vital role in revealing inequalities between groups in society and informs appropriate action to address them. 44. In this connection, Brazil has been a regional leader in the development of affirmative action policies. Decree 4886 (2003) and Quota Law 12711 (2012) established quotas of 20 per cent for Afro-Brazilians in various public institutions and universities. Importantly, in April 2012 the Supreme Court unanimously ruled the use of racial quotas in 2 See A/HRC/21/11, recommendation 119.19. 9