A/HRC/24/27 A. Advocacy, outreach and communications 7. Enhanced awareness, knowledge and understanding of the right to development at all levels constitute one of the objectives of the OHCHR Strategic Framework (A/67/461, pp. 7–8). To this end, OHCHR participated in and provided substantive input and contributions to a number of initiatives, events and activities during this period. 8. They included a side event at the twentieth session of the Human Rights Council held in June 2012 on the role of non-governmental organizations in development. OHCHR highlighted the role of civil society in development and the role of free, active and meaningful participation. OHCHR participated in a side event at the twenty-first session of the Council held in September 2012 on the theme “International solidarity: from concept to action” with the participation of the Independent Expert on human rights and international solidarity, Virginia Dandan. OHCHR addressed the relationship between the right to development and international solidarity highlighting the duty to cooperate as an essential component of the right to development and for strengthening the global partnership for development. 9. In December 2012, OHCHR briefed representatives of the Arab NGO Network for Development. OHCHR participated in a conference on the theme “The South in the Global Economic Crisis and Reviewing Multilateral Negotiations” organized in January–February 2013 by the South Centre. OHCHR drew attention to the impact of investment agreements on the right to development. OHCHR participated in the Sixth Joint Annual Meeting of the African Union Conference of Ministers of Economy and Finance and the Economic Commission for Africa Conference of African Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, held in March 2013. The OHCHR intervention focused on the right to development in the post-2015 development agenda. 10. In January 2013, OHCHR participated in the first session of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) Multi-year Expert Meeting on Investment, Innovation and Entrepreneurship for Productive Capacity-building and Sustainable Development, the theme of which was regional integration and foreign direct investment in developing and transition economies. OHCHR focused in particular on the impact of bilateral and international investment agreements on the enjoyment of human rights. Building on the Declaration on the Right to Development, OHCHR recommended that investment agreements should be negotiated transparently and with the participation of all potentially affected parties. In this regard, human rights impact assessments should be conducted before approving an agreement and continue throughout its implementation. Specific measures should be taken to mitigate any negative human rights impacts of the agreement. Investment agreements should provide sufficient human rights policy space for States to perform their protective and regulatory functions. This means that investment agreements should not protect investor’s rights at the expense of the State’s ability and obligation to protect human rights. International investment agreements should promote the accountability of investors as well as of States. The recently issued Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights offer useful direction in this area. Finally, international investment agreements should not permit opaque dispute settlement procedures. Instead, dispute settlement should be transparent, participatory and fully compliant with the rule of law and principles of due process. 11. With a view to strengthening the global partnership for development, OHCHR, as a member of the working group on the global partnership for development beyond 2015 of the United Nations System Task Team on the Post-2015 United Nations Development Agenda, advocated for integrating the right to development into policy documents and recommendations. 4