A/HRC/62/35 rights violations, human rights risk assessments are understood as systematic processes for identifying and evaluating the potential and actual impacts of policies or projects on the enjoyment of human rights, with a view to preventing or mitigating adverse effects and informing decision-making in line with States’ human rights obligations. 116 Special procedures of the Human Rights Council and treaty bodies regularly call upon States to conduct human rights impact assessments in the context of international trade and investment agreements.117 In the same vein, migration cooperation agreements, given their inherent risks to migrants’ human rights, should be subject to ex ante and periodic human rights risk assessments. The need to conduct an impact assessment is particularly acute where non-State actors, including business enterprises, are involved in the implementation of projects under such arrangements, as their involvement may further diffuse responsibility and exacerbate existing accountability gaps. In line with their human rights due diligence responsibilities as set out in the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, business enterprises should likewise carry out their own risk assessments. 118 47. Human rights risk assessments should include clear, publicly available criteria for suspending contracts and funding in the event of violations. 119 Where such assessments identify a real risk of breaching human rights obligations, migration cooperation agreements should incorporate safeguards to ensure that these risks are mitigated effectively. For example, European Union financial instruments supporting migration management in third countries, including the Neighbourhood, Development and International Cooperation Instrument, are formally required to comply with human rights standards, the rule of law and due diligence standards. However, available information suggests that certain European Union-funded migration activities in Libya and Tunisia have not been subject to comprehensive human rights risk assessments, nor have they identified adequate mitigation measures.120 B. Human rights monitoring 48. Human rights monitoring should be integral to any migration and border governance, in particular when elements of it are externalized. Human rights monitoring is a central tool in identifying and documenting human rights violations and abuses, understanding their patterns and causes, developing possible solutions, contributing to transparency and accountability and helping to prevent further harm. To do so, monitors should be institutionally, financially and personally independent of State authorities and be endowed with an adequate budget, resources, and a mandate. 121 It is essential to ensure that all migration cooperation agreements and arrangements are subject to genuinely independent monitoring mechanisms. Such mechanisms should draw on a combination of national human rights institutions and oversight bodies in the States concerned, as well as civil society organizations with relevant expertise. Clear provisions should be included to guarantee access to relevant locations and affected populations, including through the facilitation of entry visas for monitors. Adequate funding for such monitoring should be ensured, including through support provided by externalizing States. 122 49. Monitoring border areas where pushbacks and interceptions are likely to occur can significantly enhance transparency and accountability. To be effective, border monitoring mechanisms should be granted unhindered access to border areas, including checkpoints and places of detention, and be able to observe operations, including border surveillance and 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 16 Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, principle 17; and see A/HRC/19/59/Add.5. A/HRC/19/59/Add.5, para. 2. Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, principle 17. European Ombudsman, Decision on how the European Commission intends to guarantee respect for human rights in the context of the European Union-Tunisia Memorandum of Understanding (OI/2/2024/MHZ), para. 38. Ibid., conclusion. A/HRC/60/67, paras. 4, 5, 19–23 and 47–50. Submission from Quaker United Nations Office; and see European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, “Planned return hubs in third countries: EU fundamental rights law issues”, 6 February 2025, para. 124. GE.26-06322