A/76/44 Summary The present annual report covers the period from 16 May 2020 to 28 April 2021, during which the Committee against Torture held its sixty-ninth and seventieth sessions online, in a special format, and carried out other activities online, owing to the situation related to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. As at 28 April 2021, there were 171 States parties to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. During the period under review, the Committee, owing to the COVID-19 situation, postponed its consideration of the reports of Belgium, Bolivia (Plurinational State of), Kyrgyzstan, Lithuania, Serbia, State of Palestine, Sweden and Ukraine, and the country situation of Nigeria, scheduled for 2020, and the reports of Cuba, Iceland, Kenya, Montenegro, the United Arab Emirates and Uruguay, scheduled for the seventieth session. The Committee deeply regrets the fact that some States parties do not comply with their reporting obligations under article 19 of the Convention. At the time of reporting, there were 28 States parties with overdue initial reports and 40 States parties with overdue periodic reports (see chap. II). The Committee’s procedure for following up on concluding observations continued to develop during the reporting period (see chap. IV). The Committee expresses its appreciation to those States parties that have provided timely and thorough information to the Rapporteur for follow-up under article 19. The Committee’s procedure under article 20 continued during the reporting period (see chap. V). Under article 22 of the Convention, the Committee declared 4 communications inadmissible, discontinued the consideration of 34 communications, and postponed the examination of 1 communication (see chap. VI). A total of 1,068 complaints concerning 42 States parties have been registered since the entry into force of the Convention, including 66 since the writing of the previous report. The Committee’s workload under article 22 remains significant, as demonstrated by the large number of complaints registered during the reporting period, and has increased further owing to the COVID-19 pandemic and its consequences on the work of the Committee. As at 28 April 2021, 219 complaints were pending consideration (see chap. VI). The Committee again notes that some States have failed to implement the decisions adopted on complaints. The Committee has continued to seek to ensure implementation of its decisions through its Rapporteur for follow-up on decisions adopted under article 22 (see chap. VI). The Committee also paid particular attention to reprisals (see chap. I). GE.21-08303(E) iii