Egypt presented voluntary pledges and commitments in support of its candidature for membership of the Council for the period of 2017-2019 on 26 September 2016.
Internationally, Egypt committed to, inter alia: support the work of the OHCHR; promote a constructive role of NGOs and civil society in the promotion of human rights; contribute to the effectiveness and efficiency of the Council; promote a constructive dialogue and cooperation, including through sharing good practices, technical cooperation and capacity building; continue to cooperate with Member States concerning the strengthening of the United Nations treaty body system; provide adequate support to UN agencies, programmes and funds that contribute to the promotion of human rights; address the financial and institutional challenges facing the OHCHR, treaty bodies, and the Council and its mechanisms; continue to support initiatives and processes, at the international, regional and local levels, to advance the empowerment of women and equality between men and women and provide adequate protections for the rights of the child and persons in vulnerable situations; build cross-regional partnerships to support the economic, social and cultural rights of all; and promote the efforts of Member States to strengthen their national mechanisms aimed at ensuring accountability and remedy.
Domestically, Egypt pledged to: Continue to strengthen the national human rights framework; engage in a process of review of national laws to ensure their conformity with the Constitution and the full protection of internationally recognized human rights and fundamental freedoms; Work on strengthening national human rights institutions and developing their role within the international human rights framework; remain committed to further strengthening national redress mechanisms available to all citizens; continue to promote a human rights culture and human rights education and training at the national level; promote the constructive role of legally registered NGOs and civil society at large in the promotion of human rights at all levels; remain committed to the commitments undertaken in the framework of the universal periodic review mechanism; engage with OHCHR in order to expand the current level of cooperation and identify areas where technical assistance can have a specific impact according to national priorities; remain committed to submitting its periodic national reports to treaty bodies of the treaties to which Egypt is party and to review reservations on an d the status of ratification of the different regional and international agreements; Increase engagement and cooperation with the special procedures mandate holders of the Council.
An analysis of steps taken by Egypt in fulfillment of its international pledges show that it maintains an NHRI that has been accredited by the GANHRI with A status; it did not make a voluntary financial contribution to the OHCHR in 2018 and does not have OHCHR field presence.
In terms of cooperation with Special Procedures, Egypt has facilitated around 25% of visit requests, and has responded to around 61% of communications. Regarding the treaty bodies, Egypt is yet to ratify the CPED and has not yet presented its periodic reports under any of the ratified human rights conventions.
Egypt joined consensus on the resolutions on the civil society space, but was cited in the UN Secretary-General report on cooperation with the UN, its representatives and mechanisms in the field of human rights concerning the alleged disappearance and detention of a human rights advocate that had been cooperating with the Working Group on Enforced and Involuntary Disappearances.
Cooperation with international human rights system
Most overdue report
Fulfilment of past voluntary pledges & commitments