Commonwealth support for Eswatini human rights mechanism progress

The Kingdom of Eswatini, nestled in Southern Africa, has reinforced its commitment to its UN human rights obligations with a capacity-building workshop delivered by the ��̽��.

The three-day workshop, held in Manzini, was attended by representatives from government agencies, non-governmental organisations, and the National Human Rights Commission. They are all members of the recently established National Mechanism for Implementation, Reporting and Follow-up (NMIRF).

are national frameworks that allow countries to coordinate their reporting and implementation obligations when they accept recommendations from the UN human rights mechanisms - such as the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) Mechanism of the UN Human Rights Council and Treaty Bodies.

Sumedha Ekanayake, Human Rights Adviser and one of the facilitators from the Secretariat, said:

“Eswatini’s establishment of its own NMIRF, is a significant step forward in improving its engagement with the UN's human rights mechanisms. The country’s request to the ��̽��’s Human Rights Unit to help develop the capacity of its NMIRF has further demonstrated the government’s commitment to strengthen this mechanism.”

The three-day working session led to the formation of an action plan to address the backlog of reports to Treaty Bodies and the implementation of recommendations Eswatini had accepted during the previous Universal Periodic Review cycle.

Addressing the opening session, the Principal Secretary of the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Ms Lindiwe Mbingo, said the establishment of the mechanism is indeed a testament to Eswatini’s commitment to human rights.

The ��̽�� has long been advocating for member States to establish mechanisms, such as NMIRF, as good practice supported by the United Nations.

On the final day of the workshop, Nozipho Mazibuko, State Reporting Coordinator, remarked:

“We appreciate the Secretariat’s invaluable contributions in sharing best practices to enhance the efficiency of our office. We will continue to maintain regular communication with you to learn more as we carry out our mandate as the permanent secretariat of the NMIRF.”

Last year, the ��̽�� conducted a The resulting publication shows how seventeen Commonwealth member states had been able to establish the mechanisms over the past decade, and how they had helped enhance effective engagement with the UN human rights obligations.

The ��̽�� team also met with HRH Prince Simelane Dhlamini, the newly-appointed Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs. The Justice Minister welcomed the Commonwealth’s assistance to further develop the NMIRF Secretariat’s capacity.