A/HRC/10/49 page 3 I. MANDATE OF THE FUND 1. The General Assembly, in its resolution 46/122, established the United Nations Voluntary Trust Fund on Contemporary Forms of Slavery (the Fund) with the purpose of extending humanitarian, legal and financial aid to individuals whose human rights have been violated as a result of contemporary forms of slavery. Funding is obtained by means of voluntary contributions from Governments, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), other private or public entities and individuals. II. ADMINISTRATION AND BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE UNITED NATIONS VOLUNTARY TRUST FUND ON CONTEMPORARY FORMS OF SLAVERY 2. In conformity with resolution 46/122, the Fund is administered in accordance with the relevant financial regulations and rules of the United Nations on general trust funds for humanitarian assistance, by the Secretary-General, through the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), with the advice of a Board of Trustees. 3. The Board of Trustees is composed of five United Nations experts with relevant experience in the field of human rights and, in particular, with issues of contemporary forms of slavery, serving in their personal capacities. In December 2007 the Secretary-General appointed the following members for a three-year term ending on 31 December 2010, with due regard to equitable geographical distribution: Gulnara Shahinian (Armenia), Virginia Herrera Murillo (Costa Rica), Prateep Unsongtham Hata (Thailand), Cleophas Kwdjo Mally (Togo) and David Weissbrodt (United States of America). Ms. Shahinian resigned on 23 May 2008 because she was nominated as Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery, including its causes and consequences. The Secretary-General is due to appoint her replacement in 2009. III. GRANT CYCLE AND ADMISSIBILITY CRITERIA A. Grant cycle 4. The deadline for submitting applications for project grants for 2008 was 31 December 2007. Admissible applications received were examined by the Board of Trustees at its thirteenth session, which took place in Geneva from 8-12 September 2008. The recommendations for grants adopted by the Board of Trustees at that session were approved by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, on behalf of the Secretary-General, and the grants approved were to be paid in December 2008. Beneficiaries of project grants will have to provide the secretariat of the Fund with midyear narrative and financial reports on the use of their grants before 30 June 2009 and final year narrative and financial reports on the use of their grants before 28 February 2010. Until satisfactory reports on the use of previous grants are received, no new project grant can be paid to these beneficiaries. 5. The deadline for submitting applications for travel or project grants for 2009 is 31 March 2009. Admissible applications received will be examined by the Board of Trustees at its fourteenth session, scheduled to take place in Geneva from 17-18 September 2009.