A/HRC/38/8 the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Government had chosen to use the simplified reporting procedure to submit its pending periodic reports. 9. In 2017, Parliament had passed the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court Act of 2017, which reflected the commitment of Botswana to prosecute, at a national level, those allegedly responsible for crimes recognized under the Rome Statute. The unwavering belief of the Government in the spirit that had inspired the creation of the International Criminal Court had led Botswana to co-sponsor a paper on the activation of the Court’s jurisdiction over the crime of aggression. 10. Policies and programmes had been put in place to provide significant investment in social protection, health and education. Poverty eradication initiatives, which were aimed at economically empowering the poor by providing beneficiaries with skills and funds to enable them to live a dignified life, continued to be implemented. 11. In 2014, the National Strategic Framework 2010–2016 had been reviewed to align the priorities contained therein with the latest developments relating to HIV/AIDS. In 2016, the Treat All Strategy had been launched. The Government had subscribed to the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS 90-90-90 target and to efforts to bring an end to AIDS by 2030. HIV/AIDS interventions were open to all and were not used as a means to negatively target or stigmatize any group. The country was about to embark on the fifth Botswana AIDS Impact Survey, with the aim of updating the existing data on HIV/AIDS. The survey would be combined with the first-ever survey on the prevalence of tuberculosis. 12. Access to good quality health-care services remained a priority and, in that context, a five-year training strategy and annual training plans had been developed that were aimed at strengthening the capacity of health-care workers. Furthermore, the law on mental health of 1971 was currently under review and the initial draft of the non-communicable diseases strategy for the period 2017–2022 had been completed. 13. Progress had been made in improving the lives of members of communities located in remote areas under the Affirmative Action Framework for Remote Area Communities. Consultations were ongoing with the communities in question, including those located around the Central Kalahari Game Reserve, regarding issues affecting them. 14. Six boreholes had been drilled in the Central Kalahari Game Reserve for use by its residents and plans were under way to increase that number. Furthermore, water containers with a capacity of 10,000 litres were filled on a monthly basis. A mobile clinic provided health care once a month and social protection food rations were distributed on a monthly basis. Hunting was illegal, except on private game farms. Members of remote area communities were allowed to gather wild fruits for consumption. 15. Internal consultations were ongoing with a view to acceding to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. It was expected that a revised National Policy on Care for People with Disabilities would be discussed during the July 2018 session of Parliament. 16. The National Policy on Gender and Development, adopted in 2015, was being implemented and monitored by the National Gender Commission. 17. Girls who had dropped out of school as a result of pregnancy and other challenges were reintegrated into the education system: an approach which had resulted in an increase in the number of girls enrolled in education at the tertiary level. 18. Gender-based violence remained a challenge but was being addressed through the national strategy on ending gender-based violence for the period 2014–2020. In July 2017, a pilot of the Gender-Based Violence Referral System had been concluded in the northern and southern parts of the country. Also, traditional leaders (Dikgosi) had been engaged in mainstreaming gender into the customary justice system. 19. The Anti-Human Trafficking Act had come into force in 2015 and the Anti-Human Trafficking National Action Plan was expected to be launched in April 2018. The Plan focused on prevention, protection, prosecution and partnership, in line with the international instruments concerning trafficking in persons. 3