A/HRC/29/49 90. The National Human Rights Commission advises the competent authorities on the harmonization of national law with international human rights standards and is helping to draw up the reports required by the United Nations human rights treaty bodies. In general, the Commission works together with national and international human rights entities. The Commission must submit an annual report to both the President of the Republic and all governmental institutions; it is also published. 91. The National Human Rights Commission has already considered many different areas. They include focused protection activities following complaints concerning human rights violations, advocacy for vulnerable populations, particularly those that have been forced out of shanty towns and national park forests with no prospect of being promptly rehoused, visits to prisons, on the basis of which reports are then published, with emphasis on their overcrowded and unhygienic state, meetings with political parties in order to strengthen the national dialogue with a view to ensure that the forthcoming elections take place in a peaceful atmosphere and to contribute to drawing up the universal periodic report. 92. Monthly meetings are organized with the Human Rights Division of UNOCI in order to review the human rights situation in the country. These meetings have led to the establishment of a human rights forum intended to strengthen collaboration between the National Human Rights Commission and civil society and enabled the development of a strategy on the prevention of human rights violations for 2015. 93. The conditions in which the National Human Rights Commission has to carry out its work should be improved in two respects. Firstly, its autonomy, which is clearly stipulated in the body’s founding text, should be better guaranteed. The relationship between the Ministry of Justice, Human Rights and Public Freedoms and the National Human Rights Commission should be one of mutual cooperation rather than of administrative supervision. The present situation arises from the fact that the Commission’s budget needs to be approved by the Minister of Justice (Act No. 2012-1132, art. 38) and the amounts awarded to its members are also determined by the Minister (art. 25). 94. Furthermore, the procedure for the appointment of members of the regional commissions needs to be reviewed. The National Human Rights Commission should, legally, have a say in the appointment procedure which is currently carried out by order of the Ministry of Justice, Human Rights and Public Freedoms following a proposal from the prefect of the region (Act No. 2012-1132, art. 12). It is also vital that the Commission should raise its profile, which depends on whether it has adequate resources, on the courage and commitment of its members as well as on the constructive cooperation of the public authorities. 95. The National Human Rights Commission is not yet two years old. Indeed, its work is still in the early stages and it has at times been faced with security challenges from within the country. The Commission needs to develop and implement a good information strategy for its activities and cultivate its relations with outside bodies. This requires improved internal organization, capacity-building for its members and increased funds that are spent wisely. With that in mind, reports on the human rights situation in Côte d’Ivoire drawn up by the Commission should be published and quickly made available to the public. Similarly, the Commission’s website should be made a priority. These recommendations will help the Commission to better comply with the Paris Principles. G. Independent Electoral Commission 96. The 2015 presidential elections will be a critical time to test the strength of the efforts made by Côte d’Ivoire in favour of democracy. It is the responsibility of the Ivorian GE.15-08296 17