In September 2012, the members of the AOB met with Barbara APT Bernath, the Director of Operations of the Association for the Prevention of Torture (APT) for a discussion. Discussions centred around the development process of the Austrian National Preventive Mechanism and the AOB’s new competences. The visit provided an excellent opportunity to intensify the cooperation with the APT. Bilateral contacts The AOB views itself as a partner of newly established ombudsman Assistance institutions; it was therefore glad to assist the Parliamentarian NorthSouth Dialogue project within the scope of its cooperation with the Parliament of Mozambique. The main topic of the visit by the members of Parliament was the desire to advance the establishment of an ombudsman institution in Mozambique. In his function as Secretary General of the IOI, Ombudsman Peter Kostelka has encouraged the sharing of experience with member institutions in Africa. Furthermore, he has established contact to the African Ombudsman and Mediators Association (AOMA). In June 2012, the Vice-President of the African Region of the IOI confirmed the appointment of José Imraimo Abudo as Ombudsman of Mozambique. In September 2012, Ombudswoman Brinek hosted a member of the National Human Rights Commission in Togo (Commission Nationale des Droits de l’Homme – CNDH). As the CNDH has recently begun its duties as the designated NPM in Togo, the visitor was interested in the AOB’s experience in this area. It was especially valuable for him to receive detailed information on the extensive preparatory measures necessary for this work. Since 2009, the AOB is also the headquarters of the General Secreta- Meetings riat of the International Ombudsman Institute (IOI); it takes advantage of this “dual function” in various discussions and information sharing with international colleagues. In March 2012, a delegation of the Petition Committee of the Diet of Saxony visited the AOB in order to get an overview of the diverse duties of the AOB. In October 2012, representatives of the Thai ombudsman institution held discussions with the AOB that included future in-depth cooperation with the IOI. A staff member of the Norwegian Organisation for Asylum Seekers (NOAS) met with the AOB in November 2012. AOB experts provided information about the expansion of AOB’s competence and its monitoring activities, as well as the integration of civil society into the 97