A/HRC/10/31 page 7 substantive and secretariat support to the Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent, the Intergovernmental Working Group on the effective implementation of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action, and for the first session of the Ad Hoc Committee on Complementary Standards, as well as contributing to the elaboration of guidelines on a good practices database and advancing the elaboration of the guidelines for the adoption of antidiscrimination legislations, policies and mechanisms. In addition, the Office has continued to organize events to raise awareness in the fight against racial discrimination, including a highlevel panel discussion for the commemoration of the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (21 March), and holding consultations with regional and United Nations agencies to enhance cooperation in the fight against racial discrimination. B. Indigenous and minority issues 21. I am happy to report the continuing attention given by the international community to the rights of indigenous peoples. My Office is providing full support to the work of the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, launched in 2008. We have also taken a leading role in the promotion of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, adopted in September 2007, including through inter-agency cooperation. This has led to substantial recommendations for the integration of the Declaration into United Nations policies and operational programmes. The incorporation of the Declaration into national normative and institutional frameworks is another crucial goal for OHCHR 22. Among the commitments assumed by States in the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action is that law enforcement agencies should be representative of, and responsive and accountable to, the community as a whole. In this regard, my Office has developed Guidelines and Good Practice on Diversity in Policing, in consultation with experts from all regions. In cooperation with the Inter-Agency Group on Minority Issues, my Office has also developed an information tool, entitled “Towards developing country engagement strategies on minorities”, to provide relevant expertise to United Nations country programmes. We have also launched a regional Andean project on the promotion of the human rights of Afro-descendants in Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru, to build the institutional capacity of Afro-descendant organizations and to enable them to better defend their human rights. 23. Enhancement of skills and expertise of the Office staff and of stakeholders is paramount in our efforts to promote and protect the human rights of minorities and indigenous peoples. To that end, the Office held a training workshop in Addis Ababa for OHCHR staff in Africa, and continued its capacity-building fellowships programmes for indigenous and minority representatives. The Voluntary Fund for Indigenous Populations funded the travel of more than 70 indigenous representatives to the seventh session of the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues and the inaugural session of the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, while the Voluntary Trust Fund on Contemporary Forms of Slavery funded over 30 projects providing aid to victims and addressing problems of contemporary forms of slavery. C. Gender and women’s rights 24. Whether in conflict or in peace, deeply rooted gender inequality and far-reaching discrimination against women are a reality, resulting in the denial of basic human rights and