The Forums also offer new opportunities to gain the involvement of the treaty bodies, the regional organizations and the specialized agencies. III. Future Opportunities There were, of course, a number of factors that limited the Mandate’s ability to realize fully its potential. Those factors were primary the same that bedeviled all mandates that made up the Special Procedures: limited resources, insufficient staffing, less than stellar cooperation from States, no systematic way to follow-up on the recommendations. Perhaps at this stage it is more useful to list the ways in which the potential of the Mandate might be maximized in the future: • The recommendations put forward in the mission reports and in the thematic reports should be collated and analyzed along with the communications and all government responses. This may be a job best suited for an outside independent scholar. • There should be much closer coordination between the Mandate and the Unit on Minorities and Indigenous Peoples. • Given the fact that approximately 70% of current armed conflicts around the world raise and aspect of minority rights, the Mandate should report annually to the General Assembly. • The OHCHR and all organs of the UN and specialized agencies should have a policy on minority rights and staff should all receive training. • The Mandate should focus considerable attention on the development of strong interactions with regional bodies and mechanisms, in additional to its current good relations with the HCNM of the OSCE. • Further attention should be placed on strengthening cooperation and coordination with the Treaty Bodies. • Austria has been an important and faithful supporter of the Mandate. It would be extremely useful to broaden that support to other regional groups. A five member support group should be established which would include a Member State from each of the 5 regions. 8