A/HRC/25/13 92. Canada recalled recommendations made by the Committee on the Rights of the Child to reduce poverty among children of indigenous and minority groups. It asked whether more people would be able to benefit from the BOOST and Food Pantry programmes. It encouraged ongoing efforts in the reporting, investigation and punishment of offences by police officers and steps to improve access to preschool and secondary education and reduce poverty and crime. Canada made recommendations. 93. With regard to the question from Canada about increasing coverage of two social safety net programmes, the delegation stated that Belize had taken a deliberate policy step to ensure that the cash transfer programme and the Food Pantry programme were funded from recurrent revenue to ensure sustainability. The investment in improving health and education for poor children was a long-term one, and Belize wanted to ensure the sustainability of those programmes. Belize would continue to do so for the current and next financial year and had a plan to increase the number of beneficiaries of those programmes. There was also full political support. The Prime Minister said on various occasions that those pro-poor policies and programmes were the centrepiece for his Government. 94. As to the National Gender Policy and its aims, the delegation reported that it was designed to tackle issues of gender equality, gender equity and women’s empowerment. This was a revised policy that had built on the previous policy. Belize was working on a revised implementation plan for the policy. 95. Provisions for amendments to the Criminal Code that dealt with sexual offences were before the national assembly. The National Gender-Based Violence Plan of Action and other issues in terms of, inter alia, strengthening the implementation framework for the gender-based violence programme, and the decent work agenda, were all part and parcel of the Government commitment under the revised gender policy. The cabinet had approved the revised policy only this year. It was hoped that, by the first quarter next year, and following extensive consultations, there would be a multidisciplinary and multisectoral plan of action to ensure the implementation of the gender policy. 96. The delegation stated that a part of what constituted a barrier to the development of the implementation plan for the gender policy was resistance from churches, especially the evangelical churches. In certain sectors, they requested complete withdrawal of the policy because it spoke to respect for diversity, including the acknowledgement of sexual orientation as a type of diversity. It spoke to providing sexual and reproductive health services for vulnerable groups, including men who have sex with men and commercial sex workers. Because of those factors, the evangelical council and other churches had called for a complete removal of the policy. Nonetheless, the Prime Minister stated his commitment to the policy and opened the door for submissions of concerns by the council, but the plans of action for various sectors were in place and Belize would continue the work in ensuring gender equity and equality and women’s empowerment under the rubric of that policy. II. Conclusions and/or recommendations** 97. The recommendations formulated during the interactive dialogue, listed below, enjoy the support of Belize: 97.1. Endeavour to establish a national human rights institution in line with the Paris Principles (Nigeria); ** Conclusions and recommendations have not been edited. 14