A/HRC/4/WG.2/TF/2 page 3 Introduction 1. At its fifth session, in February 2004, the Working Group on the Right to Development agreed to recommend to the Commission on Human Rights that it establish a high-level task force on the implementation of the right to development, within the framework of the Working Group, in order to assist it in fulfilling its mandate as reflected in paragraph 10 (a) of Commission resolution 1998/7. At its seventh session, in January 2006, the Working Group agreed to recommend to the Commission to extend the mandate of the Working Group and the high-level task force for a further period of one year (see E/CN.4/2006/26, paras. 76 and 77). 2. In its resolution 1/4 of 29 June 2006, the Human Rights Council decided to renew the mandate of the Working Group for a period of one year, requested the high-level task force to meet with a view to implementing the relevant recommendations contained in the report of the seventh session of the Working Group, and requested the Working Group to meet for a period of five working days in the first three months of 2007. 3. The high-level task force on the implementation of the right to development convened its third session in Geneva from 22 to 26 January 2007. As requested by the Working Group, the mandate of the task force was to consider the criteria for periodic evaluation of global development partnerships - as identified in Millennium Development Goal 8 (MDG 8) from the perspective of the right to development, with a view to operationalizing and progressively developing them, thus contributing to mainstreaming the right to development in the policies and operational activities of relevant actors at the national, regional and international levels, including multilateral financial, trade and development institutions (E/CN.4/2006/26, para. 77). I. ORGANIZATION OF THE SESSION A. Opening of the session 4. The high-level task force was opened by Ms. Maria Francisca Ize-Charrin, Director, Operations, Programmes and Research Division, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), followed by the Chairperson-Rapporteur of the Working Group on the Right to Development, Mr. Ibrahim Salama (Egypt), who mentioned the important events relating to the right to development, which reflect a growing interest in the topic from different quarters. These included the commemorative conference organized by the Egyptian National Council for Human Rights in Cairo on 2-3 December 2006, which was attended primarily by national actors, and the expert meeting organized by the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung in Geneva, on 30 November 2006, attended by national development agencies. He noted the widespread support for the right to development in the new Human Rights Council, which promised considerable potential for the process to continue making progress. In conclusion, he introduced the members of the task force and representatives of the trade, development and financial institutions present. B. Election of the Chairperson-Rapporteur 5. At its first meeting, on 22 January 2007, the high-level task force elected by acclamation Stephen Marks (United States of America) as Chairperson-Rapporteur.