Strategic Advocacy: Strengthening UPR stakeholders in Senegal
From November 7 to 10, 2023, UPR Info, the Senegalese Human Rights Committee (CSDH) and La Rencontre Africaine pour la défense des droits de l’homme (RADDHO) facilitated a seminar on advocacy strategy for Senegal’s Civil Society Organizations (CSO) and the CSDH with a view to preparing for Senegal‘s fourth cycle of the Universal Periodic Review, which will take place in January 2024 in Geneva.
The in-country pre-session, held on November 9, 2023, allowed CSOs and the CSDH to read their oral statements and share their recommendations, in relation to Senegal's 4th cycle UPR, with members of the diplomatic community.
The Human Rights Coffee that followed allowed diplomats and members of civil society to have more informal exchanges and to discuss the content of the advocacy sheets developed by CSOs for that occasion.
The Human Rights Café is an informal session to share specific information among diplomats and participants. Diplomats circulate among three groups according to their interests: 1) Civil and Political Rights, 2) Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and 3) Groups in situations of vulnerability.
The briefing of the members of the CCNDH-DIH, which also took place on November 9, was an opportunity to inform them about the review guidelines, the review procedure, time management by the State under review and preparation for the interactive dialogue. Furthermore, some of the United Nations agencies in Dakar also attended a briefing on November 10 2023, on their role within the framework of the UPR process; particularly on the acceptance of recommendations, follow-up and implementation.
These activities were organised by the In-country Programme, in which Senegal is a target country since 2023.