The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) is scheduled to hold its 117^th session from April 13 to May 1. During this session, the CERD will consider State reports from Burkina Faso, Cuba, Cyprus, Serbia, Slovenia, Uzbekistan, and Tonga; and follow-up reports from Albania, Argentina, Brazil, Italy, Qatar, and Turkmenistan. A provisional agenda and a program of work are available on the session page. Guidance for civil society, NGOs, and NHRIs is available on the Committee’s webpage. Registration is open for all in-person attendees. All public meetings of the Committee are also generally webcast live on UN WebTV.

The Committee Against Torture (CAT) is scheduled to hold its 84^th session from April 13 to May 1. During this session the CAT will consider State reports from Gabon, Italy, Pakistan, and Tajikistan; and lists of issues prior to reporting for Brazil, Colombia, Kazakhstan, Luxembourg, New Zealand, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, and Switzerland. A Program of Work and an information note for civil society actors are available on the session page. Registration for in-person attendance is open via the UN’s Indico platform. All public meetings of the Committee are also generally webcast live on UN WebTV.

Two of the UN Human Rights Council’s special procedures will be holding a session in April and another will be holding a conference:

• The UN Working Group on the use of mercenaries as a means of violating human rights and impeding the exercise of the rights of peoples to self-determination is scheduled to hold its 56th session in Geneva, Switzerland from April 13 to 17.
• The UN Expert Mechanism on the Right to Development will hold its 13^th session at UN Headquarters in New York. The session will focus on the 40^th anniversary of the Declaration on the Right to Development and discussing contemporary challenges for operationalizing the right to development. All participants are required to register using the UN’s Indico platform by April 16.
• The UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights is holding a conference on April 22 to mark the launch of the Roadmap for Eradicating Poverty Beyond Growth, an effort from UN agencies and civil society focused on achieving social progress and wellbeing without relying on perpetual economic growth. Registration to attend is open for both in person and virtual attendance, the event will take place at the International Labour Organization in Geneva, Switzerland.

The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) will hold its 87^th Ordinary Session from April 24 to May 20 in Banjul, Gambia. The theme of this session is “2026 Year of Water Sustainability: Assuring Sustainable Water Availability & Safe Sanitation System to Achieve the Goals of Agenda 2063.” The public portion of the session will be from May 11 to 20. The deadline to register to participate or make a statement is April 11.

The Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) will hold a hearing in the case of S.O v. Spain (no. 5742/22) on April 1 at 9:15 am at the Human Rights Building in Strasbourg, France. Those who have pre-registered may view the Court hearings in person. Alternatively, Court hearings may also be viewed via webcast.

The Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACtHR) is scheduled to hold its 188th session from April 13 to 24. Agenda and more information forthcoming.

The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) has issued a call for comments to inform its drafting of a general recommendation on gender stereotypes. Those interested in submitting comments may do so through the CEDAW online submission system. Deadline May 6.

The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) invites inputs to inform its work on elaborating a draft general comment on the Application of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in Situations of Armed Conflicts. Deadline May 15.

In preparation for the 53rd session of the Universal Periodic Review in November 2026, the UPR is accepting written submissions from civil society on: Suriname, Greece, Samoa, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Hungary, Papua New Guinea,, Tajikistan, United Republic of Tanzania, Antigua and Barbuda, Eswatini, Trinidad and Tobago, Thailand, Ireland, and United States of America. Deadline April 10.*

*Please Note: “Regarding the review of the United States of America, please be informed that, in accordance with established modalities, only those organizations that contributed to the 2025 pre-session UPR reports of the USA will be invited to submit an update, as this forms part of the continuation of that exercise. No new call for contributions will be opened. The Secretariat will not admit additional organizations and will not produce new pre-session documentation. Updates provided by eligible organizations will be uploaded as appropriate.”

• The UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances (WGEID) is scheduled to hold its 139^th session in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire in May 2026. Those interested in meeting with the experts of the Working Group during the session should notify the Secretariat at the UN OHCHR via e-mail: hrc-wg-eid@un.org. Deadline April 3.
• The UN Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers has issued a call for input to prepare for her upcoming visit to Poland in May 2026. Deadline April 4.
• The UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls has issued a call for input on violence against older women to inform their report and recommendations to the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly. Deadline April 10.
• The UN Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism has issued a call for input on report on combating glorification of Nazism, neo-Nazism and other practices that contribute to fueling contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance. Deadline April 10.
• The UN Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism has issued a call for input on contemporary forms of racism in sports. Deadline April 10.
• The UN Special Rapporteur on the right to development has issued a call for input to inform the 2026 thematic report on the right to development in the following themes: to the Human Rights Council “Participation in development” and to the United Nations General Assembly “Peace for development.” Deadline April 17.
• The UN Independent Expert on sexual orientation and gender identity has issued a call for input to inform a report on violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in humanitarian contexts to be presented at the 81st session of the General Assembly. Deadline April 20.
• The UN Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent has issued a call for input to inform its visit to Mexico in May 2026. Deadline April 22.
• The UN Special Rapporteur on truth, justice and reparation has issued a call for input to prepare for its country visit to Nepal to address the human rights violations committed during the 1996-2006 civil war. Deadline April 30.
• The UN Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities has issued a call for input on the implementation of inclusive humanitarian assistance and safeguards for the rights of persons with disabilities on the context of current humanitarian reform processes. Deadline April 30.
• The UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967 has issued a call for input on the role of media in the context of Israel’s policies and practices towards the Palestinian people particularly after October 7th 2023. Deadline April 30.
• The UN Independent Expert on human rights and international solidarity has issued a call for input to inform a report on women and international solidarity that will be presented to the 81st session of the UN General Assembly. Deadline April 30.
• The UN Special Rapporteur on the right to education has issued a call for input on international financial architecture, debt, and the right to education. Deadline April 30.
• The UN Special Rapporteur on the right to education has issued a call for input in the form of public survey for students to explore how global financial pressures impact education. Deadline April 30.
• The UN Special Rapporteur on the rights to water and sanitation has issued a call for input to analyze the human right to sanitation, particularly disproportionate affects to women and girls, to inform their 2026 thematic report to the UN Human Rights Council. Deadline April 30.
• The UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights has issued a call for input seeking information in preparation for its next country visit to Guatemala in August 2026. Deadline April 30.
• The UN Special Rapporteur on climate change has issued a call for input to aid in understanding the actual and potential human rights impacts of climate-related technologies. Deadline April 30.

• The UN’s International Independent Expert Mechanism to Advance Racial Justice and Equality in Law Enforcement (EMLER) is calling for inputs to inform an upcoming visit to Colombia in May 2026. Deadline April 6.
• The Expert Mechanism to Advance Racial Justice and Equality in Law Enforcement (EMLER) has issued a call for input regarding systemic racism against Africans and people of African descent in the enforcement of drug laws and policies to inform the preparation of the Expert Mechanism’s fifth annual report to the Human Rights Council at its 63rd session. Deadline April 10.
• The Expert Mechanism on the Right to Development (EMRTD) has issued a call for input from diverse stakeholders regarding the role of peace and security as conditions for the full enjoyment of human rights and the right to development. Deadline April 15.
• The UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel (COI-OPT/Israel) has issued a broad call for submissions of information concerning acts of killing and causing serious bodily or mental harm committed by any State or non-State actor since October 7, 2023. No deadline is specified, but this information will be used for a report that will be presented to the UN Human Rights Council in June 2026 and to the UN General Assembly during its 81st Session in October 2026.
• The Fact-Finding Mission on the situation in North and South Kivu provinces of the Democratic Republic of Congo (D.R.C.-OFFMK) has issued a call for submissions of information related to all alleged human rights violations and abuses committed in the context of the latest and ongoing escalation of hostilities in January 2025 in the provinces of North and South Kivu. No deadline specified.
• The UN Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar has issued a press release calling for all those who witnessed or have direct information about an airstrike on a boarding school complex in Thayat Tabin village, Kyauktaw Township in Rakhine State, on September 12, 2025 to please share their evidence. The press release also contains instructions on how to share information with the Mechanism. No deadline specified.
• The UN Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar has issued a call for information calling for anyone who witnessed or has direct knowledge of the airstrike on Mrauk U General Hospital in Rakhine State on December 10, 2025 to please share their knowledge of the incident. The call for information contains instructions on how to share information with the Mechanism. No deadline specified.