Annual Meetings

Annual Meeting of National Human Rights Institutions

The Annual Meeting is the regular gathering of NHRIs from all around the world. It takes place in Geneva, normally in conjunction with a session of the UN Human Rights Council. The meeting is organized by GANHRI in collaboration with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). The Annual Meeting comprises the GANHRI Bureau meeting, the General Assembly and the Annual Conference. Other meetings and events are also occurring during the same week, including the regional networks’ meetings and side-events.

2023 Annual Meeting

From 14 to 16 March 2023 more than 200 participants from NHRIs and UN partners met in Geneva for the GANHRI 2023 Annual Meeting.
The event included the Bureau meeting, the General Assembly, meetings of the four NHRI regional networks, a Knowledge Exchange on NHRI experiences and good practices in addressing torture and ill-treatment, and an Annual Conference to mark the 30th anniversary of the adoption of the Paris Principles and the establishment of the global alliance of NHRIs and reflect on the current state of human rights and identify challenges, priorities and opportunities.

2022 Annual Meeting

From 8 to 10 March 2022 more than 150 participants from NHRIs and UN partners met online for the GANHRI 2022 Annual Meeting.
The Annual Meeting included the Bureau meeting, the General Assembly and an interactive session dedicated to the knowledge exchange of good practices.
Participants shared and discussed experiences of NHRIs being users of digital technologies in the implementation of their mandate and functions, highlighting positive examples, sharing tools, as well as emerging challenges.

2021 Annual Meeting

The 2021 Annual Meeting was held virtually from 29 June to 1 July 2021.
This year’s Annual Meeting included the Bureau Meeting and the General Assembly along with three major panel discussions: a Knowledge Exchange of good practices, an event dedicated to Business and Human Rights and a high-level event to launch the GANHRI Global Action Plan on human rights defenders and civic space.

2020 Annual Meeting

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 Annual Meeting was held virtually from 3 to 4 December 2020. Despite the distance, more than 300 participants between NHRIs, UN partners and experts from across the world met online to discuss challenges and innovative strategies developed to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, and to share practical experiences employed in the protection and promotion of human rights in the context of a changing climate which was the topic of the Annual Conference.

2019 Annual Meeting

The 2019 Annual Meeting took place from 4 to 6 March and it brought together participants from NHRIs from all regions, and their partners from the UN and civil society, as well as Member States, to consider the role and contributions of NHRIs towards ensuring human rights-based and gender-responsive implementation, follow-up and review of the Global Compact, which were discussed during the Annual Conference.

2018 Annual Meeting

The 2018 Annual Meeting took place from 21 to 23 February 2018 at the Palais des Nations, in Geneva. It focused on the rights of persons with disabilities and the role of national human rights institutions.

2017 Annual Meeting

In 2017, the Annual Meeting was held from 6 to 8 March. The Annual Conference focused in particular on the role that NHRIs play in early warning, conflict prevention and re-establishment of peaceful societies by applying their mandates under the UN Paris Principles.