A/HRC/7/38 page 3 I. INTRODUCTION 1. The present report is submitted pursuant to Human Rights Council decision 2/102. It should also be read in the context of my report submitted to the sixty-second session of the General Assembly.1 2. The particular importance of the present report is related to the culmination of the institution-building phase of the Human Rights Council and the beginning of the actual functioning of its new or rationalized mechanisms within the framework of a standing body. The implementation of reform is an important challenge regarding the effectiveness of these human rights mechanisms and we should approach this coming phase with a spirit of constructive engagement and willingness to learn and further develop them together. 3. One of the main calls of Member States during the past months has been the need for greater interaction and consultations between the Council and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). Though the demands of the institution-building process often limited the space and time for this interaction, OHCHR intends to continue and enhance a structured dialogue with the Council, such as the round of consultations with regional groups carried out by the Deputy High Commissioner in 2007. 4. The content of the present report constitutes another important tool for dialogue, which is why it addresses not only activities undertaken by OHCHR, but also provides a substantive overview of the human rights challenges we are facing and the strategies the Office is using to address them. II. SUPPORT FOR THE WORK OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL AND THE EFFECTIVE FUNCTIONING OF ITS MECHANISMS 5. Since my last report, the Council has fulfilled the mandate entrusted to it by the General Assembly by adopting in resolution 5/1 its land-mark agreement on institution-building on 18 June 2007, one year after its inaugural meeting. Over the past months, the Council, with the unabated support of my Office, has embarked on translating into practice the letter and spirit of its resolution 5/1. While considerable progress has been made, further resolve is required for all mechanisms of the Council to be established effectively and to be able to carry out their mandates in a meaningful manner to ensure the effective protection and promotion of human rights. In the year to come, institution-building will be finalized and implementation will be at the centre of the Council’s attention, with specific focus on pragmatic, meaningful and realistic responses to the human rights challenges of our times. My Office continues to be firmly committed to lending substantial support to these endeavours. 6. Significant progress has been made in setting in motion the universal periodic review mechanism. The Council has adopted general guidelines regarding the preparation of the information by the State, on the basis of which my Office has prepared the first compilations of information contained in the reports of treaty bodies, special procedures and other relevant 1 Official Records of the General Assembly, Sixty-second Session, Supplement No. 36 (A/62/36).