Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights Opens Eightieth Session
The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights today opened its eightieth session in Geneva, during which it will review the efforts of Eswatini, Pakistan, Mexico and Austria to implement the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.
In opening remarks, Mahamane Cisse-Gouro, Director, Human Rights Council and Treaty Mechanisms Division, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, and representative of the Secretary-General, said the session was taking place at a significant moment — the sixtieth anniversaries of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. For six decades, these two Covenants had served as the foundation of the international human rights framework. Together, they affirmed that all human rights were universal, indivisible, interdependent and mutually reinforcing. Progress in one area could not be sustained without progress in the others.
Mr. Cisse-Gouro welcomed the joint commemoration event of the two Committees on 6 November, which would provide an important opportunity to celebrate this milestone, reflect on achievements and renew commitments to the full realisation of human rights for all.
Despite remarkable global progress and unprecedented levels of wealth, millions of people continued to be denied basic rights, Mr. Cisse-Gouro said. More than a third of humanity still lived in poverty or in precarious conditions. Too many people lacked access to quality education, healthcare, adequate housing and social protection. At the same time, growing inequalities, rising debt burdens and economic insecurity were deepening social tensions and eroding trust in institutions. These realities were a reminder that economic, social and cultural rights were not aspirations for the future, but essential rights that needed to be realised now. The Covenant remained a vital guide for addressing these challenges and ensuring that economic progress translated into human dignity, equality and opportunity for all.
Yet, Mr. Cisse-Gouro said, the treaty body system was facing unprecedented challenges. The United Nations’ liquidity crisis had significantly reduced available meeting time, resulting in postponed reviews, delays in the consideration of communications, and increased uncertainty for all stakeholders. These constraints affected not only treaty bodies, but also States parties, national human rights institutions, civil society organizations and, most importantly, the people whose rights the international community collectively sought to protect. Mr. Cisse-Gouro expressed deep appreciation to all partners who continued to support the Committee's work. Their expertise, engagement and independent perspectives remained indispensable in ensuring that the lived realities of rights-holders informed the Committee's work.
Mr. Cisse-Gouro reported that the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights continued to promote and protect economic, social and cultural rights through research, public policy advice, technical assistance and capacity-building, in collaboration with States, national human rights institutions, civil society and United Nations agencies. These efforts aimed to strengthen the implementation of international standards and to integrate these rights into public policies and decisions that affected people's daily lives. In February, the Office helped promote the right to social security by drafting a technical note with the International Labour Organization to strengthen human rights-based social protection systems, including in conflict and post-conflict contexts. In June, the High Commissioner launched the Global Alliance for Human Rights, a platform that brought together stakeholders to advance concrete actions and bring human rights commitments closer to peoples' daily realities.
Mr. Cisse-Gouro said the Office also worked to advance the realisation of economic, social and cultural rights through initiatives such as the Knowledge Hub for Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, established in 2024 at the request of the Human Rights Council. The initiative linked international human rights standards to their implementation at the national level, providing context-specific support and practical solutions based on good practices. Its online platform currently listed more than 100 documented good practices from around the world, as well as a database of actors and resources, allowing States to draw on the experiences of other countries to strengthen the implementation of these rights.
The Office of the High Commissioner, Mr. Cisse-Gouro said, also continued to promote a human rights-based approach to economics, integrating human rights into economic policies, development strategies, financing frameworks and economic governance mechanisms. This approach aimed to reduce inequalities and ensure that economic decisions contributed to the realisation of human rights. The Office stood ready to support States and other actors in the practical implementation of these approaches at the national level.
Strengthening the treaty body system remained a priority, Mr. Cisse-Gouro stressed. To this end, the Office had presented several proposals aimed at making the system more effective, accessible and sustainable. These included bringing dialogues closer to stakeholders, simplifying State reporting through a multilingual digital platform, and strengthening nomination processes while preserving States' prerogatives and the independence of the treaty bodies. It looked forward to continuing this dialogue with the Committee and to identifying practical solutions that preserved the quality, independence and effectiveness of the system. Ultimately, however, a strong treaty body system required predictable and sustainable resources and support from Member States. Such investment was essential to maintaining one of the most important pillars of the international human rights architecture.
During this session, Mr. Cisse-Gouro reported, the Committee would review the reports of Austria, Eswatini, Mexico and Pakistan, consider lists of issues, assess follow-up measures and continue its important, timely work on the draft general comment concerning economic, social and cultural rights in situations of armed conflict. Around the world, conflict continued to disrupt access to healthcare, education, housing, social protection and other essential services. The protection of economic, social and cultural rights was not only a development imperative, but increasingly a peace, security and resilience imperative.
In closing, Mr. Cisse-Gouro expressed deep appreciation for the Committee’s dedication and commitment, particularly in these challenging times. Sixty years after its adoption, the Covenant remained as relevant and necessary as ever. It continued to offer a vision of societies built on dignity, equality, solidarity and justice. In a world facing growing uncertainty and division, the Committee’s work demonstrated that human rights remained a practical roadmap for addressing today's challenges and building a better future. Mr. Cisse-Gouro wished the Committee a productive session, fruitful deliberations and every success in advancing the rights and dignity of all people everywhere.
Preeti Saran, Committee Chairperson, said in opening remarks that the Committee welcomed the accession of Andorra, on 22 September 2026, to the Covenant, becoming the 174th State party to the Covenant. Given today’s numerous challenges, it was most clear that the Committee’s work, and the work of other treaty bodies, was as important as ever in upholding international law and human rights frameworks as tools towards peace and sustainable development. She said the principles of equality, indivisibility, interdependence and interrelatedness of all human rights, as well their justiciability, needed to continue to guide the international community’s approach to addressing the many challenges faced worldwide.
During the session, Ms. Saran said, the Committee would work on the draft general comment on the Covenant in situations of armed conflicts; review the reports of Eswatini, Pakistan, Mexico and Austria; discuss the follow-up reports of Cambodia and Portugal; and adopt lists of issues regarding Burkina Faso, Estonia, Slovakia and Zambia. Since the last session, the Committee had received the periodic reports of Montenegro, Switzerland, Japan and Iran. It had 44 reports in all awaiting consideration. The concluding observations on the States parties reviewed during the current session would be made available publicly on Monday, 16 November.
Ms. Saran also discussed the joint event to mark the sixtieth anniversaries of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights taking place on Friday, 6 November 2026 at the Palais des Nations from 3 to 5:30 p.m. She said the commemoration would bring together the members of the two Covenants’ Committees, States parties, United Nations agencies and other international organizations, civil society organizations and other stakeholders to reflect on the achievements made over the past 60 years through the implementation of the two Covenants and the work of the Committees, as well as on the continued relevance of the Covenants in addressing current and emerging human rights challenges. Ms. Saran invited all interested partners and stakeholders in the work of the Committee to join the commemoration.
During the meeting, the Committee adopted its agenda for the session.
The Committee’s eightieth session is being held from 2 to 13 November 2026. All documents relating to the Committee’s work, including reports submitted by States parties, can be found on the session’s webpage. Webcasts of the meetings of the session can be found here, and meetings summaries can be found here.
The Committee will next meet in public at 3 p.m. on Monday, 2 November to begin its consideration of the initial report of Eswatini (E/C.12/SWZ/1).
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CESCR26.008E