I put significant emphasis on finding ways to work with specialized agencies. I had ongoing
collaboration with UNDP to further enhance their policy and programming interventions on
minority issues. One tangible outcome of that collaboration was the publication Marginalised
Minorities in Development Programming: A UNDP Resource Guide and Toolkit2, which was
launched and distributed to UNDP offices and staff globally on 26 May 2010. I also developed a
highly productive relationship with UNICEF.
Additionally, of course, I had the honor to guide the work of the first three Forums on Minority
Issues. The first Forum focused on Minorities and the right of Equal Access to Quality Education.
The second Forum considered the topic of Minorities and Effective Political Participation.
The third Forum discussed Minorities and Participation in Economic Life. The Forums benefited
from the participation and expertise of a wide range of stakeholders. The over 500 participants in
each Forum included delegates from over 70 Member States from all regions, United Nations
mechanisms including treaty bodies, United Nations specialized agencies, funds and programmes,
regional intergovernmental bodies, civil society and representatives of minority communities. The
Recommendations of those first three Forums have been widely disseminated and very well
received.
II. Positive Aspects
The Mandate has been an unparalleled mechanism to extend the reach of the Declaration out of
the elite chambers of international norm-setting into the real world where exclusion and
marginalization are daily facts on the ground. The high-level access given during my country
visits to cabinet ministers and even heads of state created an opportunity to bring the Declaration
to the attention of national governments as never before.
Those in-country visits also afforded opportunities to build relationships with civil society actors
who may have been previously unaware of the Declaration and the associated UN mechanisms
that can be used to further and strengthen their work at the local level.
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