A/HRC/45/47 G. Working with United Nations entities to implement the programme of activities for the Decade 45. The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), in partnership with OHCHR, the Government of Costa Rica and other stakeholders, has held events to advocate and promote dialogue on issues affecting women and girls of African descent. UNFPA is also supporting national institutions in strengthening their capacity on population data collection, disaggregation and analysis with a view to promoting statistical visibility for people of African descent in national policies, including in Chile, Colombia, Haiti and Nicaragua. 46. OHCHR has been working with UNESCO in several areas to implement the programme of activities, including through the management of memorials and itineraries, the development of teaching and promotional materials and the organization of a series of thematic meetings to deepen reflection on specific issues concerning people of African descent that have not yet been fully explored. 37 OHCHR has been collaborating with UNESCO on the Slave Route Project, which celebrated its twenty-fifth anniversary in 2019.38 47. OHCHR coordinates the United Nations network on racial discrimination and protection of minorities, 39 which brings together over 20 United Nations departments, agencies, programmes and funds, all of which have identified focal points for this purpose, to address issues of racial discrimination and the protection of national, ethnic, linguistic and religious minorities, including on issues of multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination based on gender, disability and age, among other grounds. The network recently adopted a statement entitled “Leave no one behind” to underscore the importance of combating racial discrimination and protecting minorities in the context of the COVID-19 crisis. The network provides a good system for increasing inter-agency collaboration on issues affecting people of African descent. 48. The work of OHCHR to implement the programme of activities is often carried out on the ground through field presences around the world. OHCHR has also been able to count on support from key United Nations entities, including UNDP, in Latin America and the Caribbean, Africa and Asia. H. Supporting civic space for people of African descent, especially young people of African descent 49. The Decade has provided a framework and inspired several hundred grass-roots and civil society groups, coalitions, networks and movements of people of African descent around the world. There have been meetings, seminars, competitions, conferences, panels, blogs, consultations, concerts, “emancipation events” and, more recently, webinars and other online events.40 For example, during the past three years, OHCHR has sponsored and participated in the Afrodysée fashion event in Geneva, which is aimed at raising awareness of the Decade and drawing attention to the cultures and histories of Africa and of people of African descent, while also exposing designers of African descent to a broader audience.41 50. OHCHR has provided advice, assistance and support to a great number of civil society actions and initiatives. At each regional meeting and in the majority of the consultations, seminars and events it has organized or supported, OHCHR has ensured that civil society representatives of African descent, including young people and women, have been involved and present, in part by funding and supporting their participation. 51. In addition, OHCHR has proactively contributed to building a global network of more than 1,000 civil society actors promoting the human rights of people of African descent through outreach, missions, participation in regional meetings and seminars, social media 37 38 39 40 41 10 See https://en.unesco.org/internationaldecadeforpeopleofafricandescent. See https://en.unesco.org/themes/fostering-rights-inclusion/slave-route. See www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Minorities/Pages/ UNNetworkRacialDiscriminationProtectionMinorities.aspx. See www.un.org/en/observances/decade-people-african-descent/past-events. See https://afrodyssee.ch/en/home-en/.