HIGHLIGHTS OF RESULTS UN Human Rights and UNDP facilitated the second Regional Consultations of National Human Rights Institutions of Central Asia in Kazakhstan. © OHCHR/Central Asia Widening the democratic space A total of 60 per cent of national expected accomplishments were fully or partially achieved over the last four years, with varying levels of progress achieved in those that are remaining. Compliance of national laws, policies and institutions Establishing national human rights institutions National human rights institutions are established by States to promote and protect human rights. NHRIs that are in compliance with the Paris Principles are a cornerstone of national human rights protection systems and enable States to implement their international obligations at the national level. In 2017, UN Human Rights supported the establishment and/or strengthening of NHRIs in 70 countries, in compliance with the Paris Principles, and assisted them in outlining their roles and responsibilities in pro- 38 UN HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2017 moting and protecting human rights. As the Secretariat of the Global Alliance of NHRIs (GANHRI), the Office provided support to the NHRI accreditation process and participated in the review process of 26 NHRIs by the GANHRI Sub-Committee on Accreditation. In 2017, the status of several NHRIs was downgraded from ‘A’ to ‘B’ because they no longer met the standards of the Paris Principles. As of December, 121 NHRIs were accredited, including 78 with ‘A’ status. Regarding the establishment of NHRIs, the Law on the Human Rights Commission of the Central African Republic was adopted, in April, and in September, its 12 commissioners were appointed by presidential decree. In December, a bill was adopted in the National Assembly to establish the National Human Rights Commission in the Gambia. The draft legislation on the Human Rights Commission of Somalia was passed by the Parliament and signed into law by the President in 2016. Following the enactment of the Law, establishment of the Commission commenced in 2017 with the selection process for its members. In December, the final list of recommended candidates was submitted for approval to the Executive Branch. A similar process took place in Burkina Faso where legislation to establish an NHRI was adopted in 2016, and a process to select the members of the Commission was launched in May and resulted in the nomination of nine members in December.