A/HRC/29/48 31. Effective technical cooperation must be based on the broadest possible participation and consultation with all the elements of national society. This aspect is a key element to achieving the two main of objectives of technical cooperation, namely, to improve the promotion and protection of human rights for all, and to ensure the sustainability of outcomes. 32. The term “participation” should be understood as an inclusive term that refers to engagement with all relevant actors in all the stages of the technical cooperation process, from needs assessments to the design, formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of impact of these programmes. It should be noted that, in this case, both the process and the outcome are equally important and mutually dependent. There can be no good human rights outcome without a good human rights process. Investing in the full participation of all sectors is crucial in ensuring that efforts to strengthen national protection mechanisms, including through better legislation, policies and institutions, are built and developed in a sustainable manner, and that investment continues to yield results once technical support comes to an end. 33. Participation is a fundamental human rights principle – a human right in itself – and central to the efficiency and sustainability of development efforts, including through technical cooperation and assistance. It demands that all persons from all sectors of society be entitled to active, free, meaningful and informed participation in any efforts of the State aimed at realizing the full enjoyment of life in dignity. The enjoyment of the right to participation depends on the realization of other human rights, including the rights to freedom of association, assembly and expression, just to mention a few. To enable meaningful participation, it is critical to ensure free access to information and full transparency in decision-making processes. Numerous technical cooperation programmes at the national level with the support of the United Nations are specifically designed to support national efforts to enable an environment where these rights can be fully realized and the fruits of those programmes enjoyed by all. 34. Women across regions and countries face deeply rooted challenges to their enjoyment of equal participation in decision-making and leadership processes, in particular women from marginalized and disadvantaged groups. Women are inadequately represented in relevant community organizations, local settings and legal decision-making bodies, which are essential avenues for ensuring participation. . Deeply rooted gender bias present in many societies may require that quotas for women be established in, inter alia, education and training programmes, and leadership positions in decision-making bodies, to achieve gender equality and the empowerment of women. For these reasons, effective technical cooperation programmes, and particularly those in the field of human rights, have to take into account, at all stages from design through to implementation, all these limitations and challenges, such as mobility, resources, caregiving responsibilities and lack of familiarity with policies, to ensure that they do not constrain or limit the active participation of women at any level. Some of the effective practices to ensure women’s participation include, for example, actively looking for women’s inputs during the discussions, making sure that women receive appropriate information to participate, offering child care during the participatory processes, scheduling meetings in a way that is compatible with women’s care responsibilities and where necessary, holding exclusive sessions for women. 35. During its visits to field presences and discussions held with State institutions, the Board observed several obstacles to meaningful representation and innovative practices to promote participation. Regrettably, opportunities to address properly the obstacles or to share promising experiences are often limited. States and key stakeholders have recognized in private meetings with the Board the key convening role that the Office plays in supporting these consultative and participatory processes. The most recent report of the High Commissioner on technical assistance to support inclusive and participatory 10