A/HRC/59/62 as rural and Indigenous women, women with disabilities, women living in poverty and women facing other forms of marginalization.51 In addition, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples sets out the obligation of States to take special measures to ensure the continuing improvement of the economic and social conditions of Indigenous Peoples. Such measures must take intersecting forms of discrimination affecting Indigenous elders, women, youth, children and persons with disabilities into consideration (art. 21 (2)). 38. Special measures that effectively integrate consideration of intersectionality constitute an important component of an intersectional approach to equality and nondiscrimination. Therefore, the Special Rapporteur is concerned about the lack of special measures that consider intersectionality. 52 One challenge in designing and implementing effective special measures is the lack of disaggregated data on the situation of those with experiences of intersectional discrimination, as elaborated upon below. Another important challenge is growing pushback against special measures, and anti-racism measures more generally, in many parts of the world. This is driven by increasing anti-rights narratives, which have effectively tapped into existing social biases and apathy towards special measures, gender equality and anti-racism policies, often informed by experiences of privilege, to legitimize rollbacks of special measures without consideration of the intersectional impact. 53 States should invest significant additional resources into overcoming such challenges in order to ensure the provision of robust special measures that integrate considerations of intersectionality, as a key element of an intersectional approach to discrimination. Disaggregated data 39. Collecting data that are disaggregated by race, ethnicity, caste and all other identities and grounds for discrimination and are able to capture intersectionality was consistently described as being an important element of an intersectional approach in the submissions.54 Many United Nations human rights entities, including the Special Rapporteur, have also highlighted the importance of the collection and publication of disaggregated data and recommended that States strengthen and expand their efforts in this regard, including by capturing intersectional discrimination. 55 Data that are fully disaggregated, collected according to the principles of consent and self-identification and effectively capture intersectional discrimination play an important role in recognizing the existence, experiences and heritage of racialized persons and groups. Disaggregated and intersectional data are therefore a powerful tool to tackle the “invisibilization” of racialized communities and their experiences. Data can also challenge racial stereotypes and reveal systemic disparities and inequalities affecting marginalized racial and ethnic groups.56 40. Disaggregated and intersectional data can also support effective targeting, monitoring and evaluation of the effectiveness of legislation, policies and programmes to address systemic racism and intersectional discrimination, including special measures, as discussed above. Disaggregated quantitative data can be complemented and contextualized 51 52 53 54 55 56 GE.25-07755 A/HRC/20/28, para. 13. Submissions from Switzerland, African Sovereignty and Reparations Representatives and Geledés. See A/79/316; and submission from African Sovereignty and Reparations Representatives. Submissions from European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, Geledés, Careers in Colour, African Sovereignty and Reparations Representatives, RacismoMX, Ontario Human Rights Commission, Zagros Centre for Human Rights, Human Rights Institute of Catalonia and Prometheus Institute for Democracy and Human Rights. See, for example, A/70/335; A/79/316; A/HRC/23/50; A/HRC/42/59; A/HRC/57/67; CERD/C/ZAF/CO/9-11; CERD/C/PRT/CO/18-19; Committee on the Rights of the Child, general comment No. 26 (2023) on children’s rights and the environment, with a special focus on climate change, para. 15; and OHCHR, “Disaggregated data to advance the human rights of people of African descent: progress and challenges” (2023). See A/70/335, A/77/333 and A/79/316. 13