A/HRC/39/50 I. Introduction 1. The present report is submitted by the Independent Expert on the enjoyment of all human rights by older persons, Rosa Kornfeld-Matte, pursuant to Human Rights Council resolution 33/5. She examines, to the extent possible, social exclusion concepts and their various manifestations, as well as related challenges and protection gaps in the exercise of all human rights by older persons. The Independent Expert considers that this is a key issue, which requires further consideration, and stresses the need for a human rights-based approach in addressing any related protection gaps. II. Activities of the Independent Expert 2. During the reporting period, the Independent Expert visited Georgia from 12 to 22 March 2018 (see A/HRC/39/50/Add.1) and Montenegro from 23 to 30 April 2018 (see A/HRC/39/50/Add.2). She expresses her appreciation to the Governments of those countries for their excellent cooperation before, during and after her visits and the fruitful and constructive dialogue. 3. On 3 and 4 October 2017, the Independent Expert held her first global consultation in Santiago on the theme of “The human rights of older persons and non-discrimination — putting older persons on an equal footing with others”. The deliberations can be found in the summary of the event.1 The meeting was organized in collaboration with the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile, the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, the Group of Friends of Older Persons in New York and the Group of Friends of the Human Rights of Older Persons in Geneva, 2 and with the support and presence of the Chair of the Open-ended Working Group on Ageing and the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General on Disability and Accessibility. The Independent Expert also wishes to express her gratitude to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and its Special Procedures Branch for the support it provided in relation to the global consultation. 4. The consultation brought together an array of actors and stakeholders, including numerous representatives from States, civil society, national human rights institutions and experts from academia, regional human rights mechanisms and international organizations. Some 300 participants attended the plenary sessions and 17 keynote speakers from all over the world intervened and exchanged views and good practices on the full spectrum of the rights of older persons. Concrete proposals were put forward, including on how to build on the momentum of the cross-regional consensus generated by the Independent Expert and her comprehensive thematic report to the Human Rights Council in 2016 (A/HRC/33/44) towards the adoption of an international instrument on the protection and promotion of the rights of older persons. 5. Participants in the meeting sought to develop concrete proposals and identify actionable recommendations to enhance the protection of older persons and ensure their enjoyment of human rights everywhere and at all times. The objective was threefold: first, to sensitize multipliers and increase their receptiveness for the human rights concerns of older persons and to inform them about the current global state of affairs with regard to promotion and protection efforts in relation to the human rights of older persons in general. Secondly, to discuss lacunae and potential strengthening tools for the protection of the rights of older persons based on state-of-the-art research and the findings of specialists in various relevant fields, thereby ensuring an informed debate among all stakeholders. Through this approach, participants sought to break through existing silo thinking, since the concerns of older persons cut across a number of areas. The presentations exhibited the 1 2 Rosa Kornfeld-Matte and Carmen Luz Belloni, eds., “Human rights of older persons and nondiscriminationˮ (2017). The Group of Friends of the Human Rights of Older Persons was launched by Argentina and Slovenia on 8 June 2016. 3