A/HRC/13/51
opportunity to strengthen social security guarantees to mitigate the adverse effects of the
crisis on the vulnerable, particularly those groups including, but not limited to, women,
migrants, indigenous peoples, people with disabilities and children. Furthermore, she
underscored the necessity of international assistance and cooperation and the support of
international organizations and donors in overcoming macroeconomic constraints on
growth and implementing appropriate policies at the national level. The Deputy High
Commissioner welcomed further constructive discussions on incorporating a human rights
approach into social security policies.
B.
Organization of work
8.
The Council, in its resolution 10/29, requested that the discussions of the 2009
Social Forum focus on the negative impact of economic and financial crises on efforts to
combat poverty; national anti-poverty programmes: best practices of States in
implementing social security programmes from a human rights perspective; and
international assistance and cooperation in combating poverty.
9.
Consequently, the programme of work1 was prepared under the guidance of the
Chairperson-Rapporteur, taking into account the input received from Member States and
other relevant stakeholders. Under the above-mentioned main themes, the 2009 Social
Forum heard 21 expert presentations on 7 different thematic panels, which were each
followed by an interactive debate.
C.
Documentation
10.
The 2009 Social Forum had before it the provisional agenda (A/HRC/SF/2009/1; see
annex I), the programme of work and the background report (A/HRC/SF/2009/2) submitted
by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights pursuant to paragraph 9 of
Council resolution 10/29.
III. Summary of proceedings
11.
The section below contains a summary of the presentations and statements made
during the interactive debate that followed the presentations.
A.
National anti-poverty programmes: best practices of States in
implementing social security programmes from a human rights
perspective
1.
Human rights perspectives on a social protection floor, approaches for addressing the
social protection gap
12.
The independent expert on the question of human rights and extreme poverty, Maria
Magdalena Sepulveda Carmona, reiterated that poverty was both a cause and a consequence
of human rights violations, and that human rights norms and principles provided guidance
and a normative framework for poverty reduction. She stated that the economic and
financial crisis had had devastating consequences for the poor, especially the most
1
4
Available on the website of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights at
the address www2.ohchr.org/english/issues/poverty/docs/sforum/SF2009_PoW.pdf
GE.09-17229
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