A/HRC/40/21 I. Introduction A. Submission of the report 1. The present report was prepared pursuant to General Assembly resolution 72/163 and complements the report of the Secretary-General to the General Assembly on the activities of the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Victims of Torture (A/73/281). It contains updated information on the activities of the Fund, in particular the recommendations adopted by the Board of Trustees at its forty-eighth session, held in Geneva from 1 to 5 October 2018. B. Mandate of the Fund 2. The Fund receives voluntary contributions from Governments, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and individuals. In accordance with the mandate of the Fund outlined in General Assembly resolution 36/151 and the practices established by the Board of Trustees since 1982, the Fund provides grants to established channels of assistance, in particular NGOs, associations of victims and of family members of victims, private and public hospitals, legal clinics and public interest law firms that submit project proposals aimed at the provision of medical, psychological, social, financial, legal, humanitarian or other forms of direct assistance to victims of torture and members of their families. C. Administration of the Fund and composition of the Board of Trustees 3. The Secretary-General administers the Fund through the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) with the advice of a Board of Trustees composed of five members acting in their personal capacity and appointed by the Secretary-General with due regard to equitable geographical distribution and in consultation with their Governments. The Board of Trustees is currently composed of Sara Hossain (Bangladesh), Lawrence Murugu Mute (Kenya), Mikołaj Pietrzak (Chair, Poland) and Vivienne Nathanson (United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland), whose mandates end on 20 October 2020, and Gaby Oré Aguilar (Peru), whose mandate ends on 9 July 2020. Of note, the mandate of Ms. Hossain has been temporarily suspended until 31 March 2019 owing to her appointment to the Commission of Inquiry established by the Human Rights Council to investigate all violations of international humanitarian law and international human rights in the context of large-scale civilian protests in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. II. Management of grants A. Admissibility criteria 4. Project admissibility criteria are outlined in the guidelines of the Fund. The guidelines require a project proposal to be presented by an established channel of assistance, in particular non-governmental organizations, associations of victims and of family members of victims, private and public hospitals, legal clinics and public interest law firms. The beneficiaries must be victims of torture and/or their family members. Priority is given to projects providing direct assistance to torture victims, which may consist of medical or psychological assistance, help with social or financial reintegration as well as various forms of legal assistance for victims or members of their families, including support in seeking redress or applying for asylum. As a general rule, projects are awarded on a yearly basis for a maximum of 10 years, subject to a satisfactory evaluation of the project and availability of funds. 2