A/HRC/39/37 22. They also encouraged States parties to conduct independent studies into the potential social and environmental impact on indigenous peoples of natural resource exploration and development projects, and called for adequate remedies and reparation for groups negatively affected by extractive activities. 23. The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, in paragraphs 12 and 17 of its general comment No. 24 (2017) on State obligations under the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in the context of business activities, recommends that States parties and businesses respect the principle of the free, prior and informed consent of indigenous peoples in relation to all matters that could affect their rights. 24. Regarding existing national mechanisms for consulting indigenous peoples on matters that concern them, treaty bodies also advised the allocation of greater resources to ensure the mechanisms’ effective functioning4 and referred to initiatives for setting up new relevant government structures.5 25. A recurrent recommendation arising from the universal periodic review during the reporting period relates to the development or enhancement of procedures and mechanisms that guarantee meaningful, effective and full participation of indigenous peoples in decision-making processes relating to all development projects and legal or administrative measures that directly or indirectly affect their communities. A total of seven countries received recommendations to take further steps in this regard, often with direct reference to the need for ratification, implementation or systematic application of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, the ILO Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention, 1989 (No. 169), or the principle of free, prior and informed consent. B. Land rights 26. During the reporting period, OHCHR actively engaged in activities promoting indigenous people’s rights to land, in cooperation with relevant stakeholders. 27. In November 2017, the OHCHR office in Cambodia shared with the Ministry of Rural Development, the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction — the three ministries responsible for the three-step process allowing indigenous peoples to obtain communal land titles — a draft discussion paper on the potential reform of the communal land titling process. The office held consultation meetings with the relevant ministries at the technical level, as well as with relevant non-governmental organizations, to complete the document for formal presentation to the Government in 2018. 28. The country office received information from indigenous and other communities that claim to have lost land due to land disputes or inconsistent implementation of government policies. It received petitions from individuals and groups seeking its intervention and legal advice on their disputes and concerns. It conducted field visits to ascertain facts, engaged with the relevant authorities and dispute resolution mechanisms, facilitated dialogue among the parties, and provided legal and procedural advice to communities and the civil society organizations supporting them. In August 2017, it organized a training workshop on national and international standards relating to the rights of indigenous peoples for approximately 35 Chong indigenous representatives from Pursat Province. 29. The country office also assisted the Government and business enterprises in providing adequate remedies in cases of land and housing rights violations, in coordination with a non-governmental organization, the Independent Mediation Group, in August 2017, and in providing technical support to indigenous Bunong communities affected by an Economic Land Concession in Busra, Mondulkiri Province, during the pre-mediation and mediation phases of the dispute resolution accepted by the company concerned. 4 5 See CERD/C/AUS/CO/18-20, para. 19. See CEDAW/C/CHL/CO/7, para. 47. 5