A/HRC/27/30 B. Special procedures 71. The activities of the Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples were focused on four interrelated areas: promoting good practices, country reports, cases of alleged human rights violations and thematic studies. Within each of these areas, the Special Rapporteur built upon the established methods of work generally employed by Human Rights Council special procedures and also developed new ones, especially in relation to the promotion of good practices and addressing allegations of human rights violations through the communications procedure. 72. With respect to the promotion of good practices, the Special Rapporteur continued to provide technical assistance to Governments in their efforts to develop laws and policies relating to indigenous peoples. Most often, the technical assistance dealt with the development of procedures for the duty to consult with indigenous peoples about decisions that affect them. 73. The work of the Special Rapporteur also involves investigating and reporting on the overall human rights situation of indigenous peoples in selected countries. The reports of country visits include conclusions and recommendations aimed at strengthening good practices, identifying areas of concern and improving the human rights situation of indigenous peoples. Over the past year, the Special Rapporteur visited and reported on the situation of indigenous peoples in Panama, Canada and Peru. Those reports will be presented to the Human Rights Council in September 2014. 74. The Special Rapporteur responded to specific cases of alleged human rights violations on a continuous basis. Over the past year, the Special Rapporteur took action with regard to some 50 cases, including concerning the following countries: Argentina, Bangladesh, Bolivia (Plurinational State of), Brazil, Cameroon, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Ethiopia, France, Guatemala, Honduras, Israel, Kenya, Papua New Guinea, Peru, the Philippines, the Russian Federation, Suriname, the United Republic of Tanzania and the United States of America. 75. The Special Rapporteur dedicated the past three years of the mandate to the issue of extractive industries and their impact on indigenous peoples. The Special Rapporteur’s final report on this issue (A/HRC/24/41)was presented to the Human Rights Council in September 2013. The Special Rapporteur participated in several meetings in order to gather perspectives on the issue from indigenous peoples, Governments, and companies. As part of the study, he launched an online forum to gather examples of specific extractive projects being carried out in or near indigenous peoples’ territories. In his final report to the General Assembly (A/68/317), presented in October 2013, the Special Rapporteur gave an overview of the activities he had carried out throughout his tenure and offered comments on the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. 76. During the reporting period, other special procedure mandate holders also addressed the situation of indigenous peoples within their respective mandates. For example, the Special Rapporteur in the field of cultural rights emphasized the right of indigenous peoples to be informed and consulted prior to the adoption of new legislation affecting the enjoyment of their cultural rights (A/HRC/23/34/Add.1). The Special Rapporteur on the human right to safe drinking water and sanitation noted that the lack of citizenship of indigenous peoples was a barrier to their access to water and sanitation as well to other basic services like health care and education (A/HRC/24/44/Add.3). 77. In the context of a country visit, the Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living, and on the right to non-discrimination in this context highlighted the precarious situation of indigenous peoples living in urban settlements (A/HRC/25/54/Add.1). On one country visit, the Special Rapporteur on the right to food learned about the problems that indigenous peoples faced in their access to traditional 15