A/HRC/40/14 the absence of a national report and without the presence of a delegation, which showed the country’s difficulty in following up on its obligation and recommendations. Paraguay was also concerned about the inequalities in access to health, which varied according to socioeconomic position, place or residence, gender or ethnicity. 26. Peru recognized the progress made, especially in the treatment of people with HIV/AIDS and with regard to the use of excessive force by law enforcement officers. 27. The Philippines welcomed the progress made towards the mainstreaming of human rights through “Horizon 2030”. As a member of the Platform for Human Rights Education and Training, the Philippines recognized the efforts made by Belize in integrating human rights education in school curricula. The Philippines commended Belize on its significant progress towards universal birth registration, achieving registration coverage of 95.7 per cent for children under five years of age. 28. Portugal thanked Belize it for its continued commitment to the universal periodic review process. Portugal noted with satisfaction the improvements made by Belize in recent years in access to primary health care and the implementation of important recommendations from the second review cycle, including the ratification of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. 29. The Republic of Korea commended the commitment of Belize to implementing recommendations from the second review cycle. It welcomed the ratification of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman and Degrading Treatment or Punishment in 2015. It also commended the efforts to expand national policies aimed at preventing gender-based violence and increasing the enrolment rates of students from lower-income families. 30. Senegal praised the efforts undertaken by Belize to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, particularly the strategy for growth and sustainable development 2016–2019 and the national strategic health plan 2014–2024. 31. Serbia commended the activities of Belize in implementing the recommendations from the previous review cycle. It welcomed the establishment of two human rights observatories that sought to raise awareness of discriminatory laws and procedures for persons living with HIV and advocated for access to legal rights and fair trials using a human rights-based approach. 32. Slovenia welcomed the efforts made in the area of human rights education, in particular the teaching of human rights in an integrated manner in the primary and secondary school curricula. It welcomed the ratification of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman and Degrading Treatment and Punishment. 33. Spain recognized the progress made in the protection of human rights, in particular by acceding to international treaties and incorporating those treaties into domestic law. Spain noted with concern the situation of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex persons who were victims of acts of violence and discrimination. While welcoming the 2016 national plan of action to combat violence against women, it expressed its concern at the increase in cases of gender-based violence. 34. Trinidad and Tobago congratulated Belize for ratifying the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and its accession to the United Nations Convention against Corruption and the Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions. It commended Belize on the establishment of the Antitrafficking in Persons Council and noted the commitment undertaken in the elaboration of the national climate change policy, strategy and action plan 2015–2020. 35. Tunisia commended the progress made in strengthening the legislative framework in the area of human rights. It welcomed the ratification of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the Optional Protocol to the Convention against 5