A/HRC/13/61 I. Introduction 1. The Secretary-General submitted to the Commission on Human Rights and subsequently the Human Rights Council an annual report on technical cooperation in the field of human rights, reflecting the discussions of the Board of Trustees of the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Technical Cooperation in the Field of Human Rights. The Council, in its decision 2/102, requested the Secretary-General and the High Commissioner for Human Rights to continue with the fulfilment of their activities, in accordance with all previous decisions adopted by the Commission on Human Rights, and to update the relevant reports and studies. The present report is therefore submitted as an update of the previous report,1 and focuses on the work of the Board of Trustees of the Voluntary Fund in 2009. II. Board of Trustees of the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Technical Cooperation in the Field of Human Rights 2. The members of the Board of Trustees are appointed by the Secretary-General to advise the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) on streamlining and rationalizing the working methods and procedures of its technical cooperation programme. Its current members are William Schabas (Canada), Chairperson; Monica Pinto (Argentina); Deepika Udagama (Sri Lanka); Fatima Mbaye (Mauritania); and Sozar Subari (Georgia). Ms. Mbaye and Mr. Subari were appointed by the SecretaryGeneral in 2009 at the successful conclusion of the mandates of Mary Chinery-Hesse (Ghana) and Viacheslav Bakhmin (Russian Federation). 3. The work of the Board has evolved in recent years, from detailed revision of individual projects to advising OHCHR on policy orientation and providing global vision and strategy on technical cooperation at a broader programme level. The change in the role played by the Board has been appreciated by the Office, which has greatly benefited from the Board’s experience and wisdom of the Board members, particularly following the recent reforms within the United Nations and OHCHR, including strengthened country engagement. 4. The Board holds its meetings twice a year in Geneva. Its thirtieth session was held from 20 to 23 April 2009 and its thirty-first session from 27 to 30 October 2009. During its sessions, the Board examined various components of the United Nations Human Rights Programme on Technical Cooperation funded by the Voluntary Fund and received regional updates and presentations on the development of the thematic areas of priority for implementation of the OHCHR strategic management plan 2010–2011. 5. The Board participated in interactive dialogues with the Deputy High Commissioner who expressed her and the High Commissioner’s gratitude to the Board members for their guidance for the work of the Voluntary Fund and warmly welcomed the newly appointed members, Mr. Subari and Ms. Mbaye. 6. The Deputy High Commissioner noted that the Board members were present at a crucial time in the planning cycle of OHCHR work and expressed her confidence that the Board’s engagement provided fruitful policy guidance, while acknowledging the important role played by external experts in analysing the evolution of the Office. The Board 1 GE.10-10528 A/HRC/10/57 and Corr.1. 3