A/HRC/15/36 reviewing its work and functioning pursuant to General Assembly resolution 60/251 and welcomed any input or contribution from the Expert Mechanism on the review. 22. In his remarks on behalf of the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Indigenous Populations Mr. Melakou welcomed the beneficiaries of the Fund and expressed support for the proposal to expand the mandate of the Fund to cover the treaty bodies and sessions of the Human Rights Council. He also thanked those who have been contributing to the Fund and appealed for more contributions in view of the decline in the amount received last year. D. Election of officers 23. The outgoing Chairperson-Rapporteur of the Expert Mechanism invited the members to nominate a Chairperson-Rapporteur for its third session. Ms Odimba Kombe announced that the members had decided, by consensus, to nominate Mr. Morales Morales and Mr. Mencio Molintas as Chairperson-Rapporteur and Vice-Chairperson-Rapporteur respectively. Thereafter, the outgoing Chairperson-Rapporteur declared the two members elected by acclamation. 24. In his statement, the new Chairperson-Rapporteur, welcomed all observers, including the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights and fundamental freedoms of indigenous people, as well as the Chair of the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. He also thanked the High Commissioner for her presence and the support provided by her Office. He then recalled that the mandate given by the Human Rights Council to the Expert Mechanism is to provide thematic expertise to the Council on the rights of indigenous peoples. He further highlighted that the Expert Mechanism, given its thematic mandate, offers a forum for discussing the content and scope of the provisions of the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. 25. The Chairperson then indicated that the main agenda items to be discussed during the third session of the Expert Mechanism, namely the study on indigenous peoples and the right to participate in decision-making, the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and the proposals to be submitted to the Council for its consideration and approval. With regard to the study, he welcomed all the written contributions made by States, indigenous peoples, NHRIs, NGOs, universities and United Nations agencies. He emphasized that these contributions were extremely useful in the preparation of the progress report on the study on indigenous peoples and the right to participate in decisionmaking, to be submitted to the Council at its fifteenth session. 26. The Chairperson also highlighted the intersessional activities of the Expert Mechanism, in particular the collaboration with the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues and the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights and fundamental freedoms of indigenous people, and recognized the support and cooperation of OHCHR in this context. Referring to the practice of the first two sessions and recalling that the Expert Mechanism does not have the mandate to address country situations or allegations of human rights violations, he welcomed the arrangements made during the session for indigenous representatives to have parallel meetings with the Special Rapporteur, providing the possibility to submit information related to allegations of human rights violations, in accordance with the mandate of the Special Rapporteur. 27. Finally, he concluded by inviting all participants to contribute to the third session of the Expert Mechanism in a spirit of collaboration and dialogue, in order to ensure productive and successful discussions that contribute to the promotion and protection of the rights of indigenous peoples. 8