The United Nations may support the effective participation of persons belonging to minorities by ensuring: • Their participation in the development, design, implementation and evaluation of United Nations programmes, particularly through civil society advisory or consultative bodies to the United Nations; • The promotion of their participation in decision-making through inclusion in public and political life, at the national, regional or local level, particularly through advisory or consultative bodies; • Participation in electoral processes; • The promotion of their participation in cultural decision-making bodies or religious advisory bodies; • Their participation in the sharing of the benefits of development and economic progress on an equal footing with the rest of society; • Affirmative action programmes are in place to increase access for persons belonging to minorities to jobs and internships or fellowship programmes. Efforts should be made, inter alia, to: • Ensure access to the United Nations work by minority groups, including by making information available in minority languages; • Ensure ownership by minorities through participation; • Ensure the participation of persons belonging to non-dominant groups in programme planning and analysis of situations affecting women and children; • Assess the efficiency of existing consultation mechanisms before establishing new ones; • Promote joint initiatives with minority organizations, when possible; • Facilitate collaborative efforts and better coordination as much as possible. F. What activities is the United Nations currently undertaking to provide human rights capacity-building to representatives of minorities and minority communities? Many United Nations entities undertake capacity-building activities. Efforts should be made to include participants belonging to minorities in these activities. Below are examples of some of these initiatives. 42