A/70/335 14. The international normative framework also provides more precise provisions on the collection of disaggregated equality data. 4 In its guidelines for reports to be submitted by States parties under article 9, paragraph 1, of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD/C/2007/1, para. 11), the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination asserted that if progress in eliminating discrimination based on race, colour, descent, or national or ethnic origin was to be monitored, States partie s, while reporting to the Committee, needed to indicate specific information on the number of persons who might be treated less favourably on the basis of those characteristics. In its general recommendation No. 34 (2011) on racial discrimination against people of African descent, the Committee further requested that States parties conduct periodic surveys on the reality of discrimination against people of African descent and document disaggregated data on, inter alia, the geographical distribution and the economic and social conditions of that specific group, including a gender perspective. It also stressed the necessity of taking into consideration the gender variable, as women pertaining to the groups in question often suffered multiple forms of discrimination. 15. In the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action States were invited to design policies aimed at combating racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance that were based on reliable statistical data. They were specifically requested to collect disaggregated data in order to document practices and inform policy. In paragraph 104 of its outcome document ( A/CONF.211/8), the Durban Review Conference recommended that States develop a s ystem of data collection, including equal opportunity and non-discrimination indicators, while in paragraph 103 it recommended that States, that had not yet done so, “establish mechanisms to collect, compile, analyse, disseminate and publish reliable and disaggregated statistical data … to regularly assess the situation of all victims of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance”. Furthermore, in paragraph 59 it invited Governments and their law enforcement agencies “to collect reliable information on hate crimes in order to strengthen their efforts to combat racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance”. 16. A number of special procedures mandate holders working, among others, on minority issues, migrants, human trafficking, food, health and poverty, have addressed the need to collect disaggregated data on human rights indicators related to their respective thematic mandates, in order to delineate the relationship between various forms of discrimination and how it affects the realization of rights, as well as performing stock-taking exercises on the efforts of Member States towards fulfilling their human rights obligations. 17. The Principles and Recommendations for Population and Housing Censuses, developed by the United Nations, stipulate that the decision to collect disaggregated data is dependent upon a number of considerations and national circumstances including, for example, the national needs for such data and the suitability and sensitivity of asking questions relating to ethnicity, which are therefore left to the discretion of the State. However, there appears to be a general opinion in favour of disaggregation from a human rights perspective, insofar as it contributes to addressing inequalities and discrimination. __________________ 4 15-14106 Terminology used by the European Commission to refer to equality- and discrimination-related data. 7/24