paid at all stages of the humanitarian situation to the needs of particularly vulnerable and at-risk groups. They include minority communities, as well as people within minority groups who face multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination, such as peoples with disabilities, women and children. It is essential that humanitarian actors and coordination mechanisms put protection of the rights of all victims at the centre of humanitarian response. Not every victim is easily visible, and it is precisely those who are most likely to be ignored who may face the greatest risk – requiring assistance to identify and amplify their voices and concerns. It is also crucial that our advocacy, guidance, technical assistance and efforts to monitor facts on the ground help to generate the swift international and national responses which can prevent massive eruptions of violence against minority communities and others. The Secretary-General's Human Rights Up Front action plan aims to heighten the focus of every UN entity on protection and prevention, particularly in response to warning signals of escalating human rights crises. It has spurred action to defuse some situations, demonstrating that it is sometimes possible to avert potentially massive violence. In several countries, Human Rights Up Front has galvanized the attention of UN Country Teams to long-standing human rights concerns, including pervasive discrimination against minorities. It has also created opportunities to integrate human rights analysis more deeply into the UN Development Assistance Framework, including analysis of discrimination against minorities. My Office works continuously with UN and other humanitarian actors in a range of countries to establish deeper, clearer and more accurate systems for early warning. And last year my staff and the UN Department of Political Affairs began deployment of fast-moving “light teams” to boost responses to situations of strong human rights concern. The first light teams were sent to Burkina Faso, Lesotho and the Republic of the Congo. However, I believe we in the UN can and must do better. Protecting minorities amid escalating crises is a task that needs much deeper and broader engagement. Humanitarian emergencies require coordinated and effective responses from governments, UN entities, regional organizations and NGOs. This Forum provides a key opportunity to clarify the roles and responsibilities of these various humanitarian actors to advance minority rights. I hope we can also promote the involvement of national human rights actors, especially NHRIs, with humanitarian coordination structures. And I must emphasise the need to involve civil society at every level of decision-making, including the voices of minority communities. We need to continue our strong advocacy for accountability, and for the rights of victims to protection and effective remedy. On that point, I want to pay tribute to the invaluable work of the Special Rapporteur on minority issues, Ms. Rita Izsák-Ndiaye as the end of her term approaches. . To prevent and resolve conflicts, reduce risk, build resilience and sustain peace, the only sustainable solutions stem from the protection of human rights – among them, the rights of all members of all minority groups to participate in public life, retain their cultural identity and live alongside others in equality and dignity.