Highlights from UPR Session 47

By Rebecca Oas, Ph.D. | May 19, 2025

The 47th session of the Universal Periodic Review was held in November of 2024, and 14 countries were reviewed: Albania, Bhutan, Brunei Darussalam, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Costa Rica, Cote d’Ivoire, Dominica, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Nicaragua, Norway, Portugal, and Qatar.  All of the countries, with the exception of Nicaragua, issued responses to the recommendations they received, and their reports were adopted at the 58th regular session of the Human Rights Council in April 2025.

Here are some highlights from the 47th UPR session:

  • The countries being reviewed received almost 3,850 total recommendations, with an average of around 275 received by each country. Dominica received the fewest recommendations (182) and Ethiopia received the most (334).
  • With the exception of Nicaragua, which did not submit responses, 74% of recommendations received in the session were marked as “supported.”
  • The countries being reviewed received pressure on sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI) issues 101 times and on abortion 30 times. Albania received the most SOGI pressure (14 recommendations) and Costa Rica received the most abortion pressure (9 times).
  • Iceland issued 23 of the recommendations containing SOGI pressure (23%) and 9 of the recommendations containing abortion pressure (30%).
  • With the exception of the four abortion recommendations received by Nicaragua, the abortion pressure recommendations were marked as “supported” only 3 times out of 26 (12% acceptance.)
  • With the exception of the four SOGI recommendations received by Nicaragua, the SOGI pressure recommendations were marked as “supported” only 21 times out of 97 (22% acceptance.)
  • Not all abortion-related recommendations contained pressure to liberalize countries’ abortion laws. Albania received two recommendations to put a stop to prenatal sex selection targeting girls for abortion (both marked as “supported”).  The Democratic People’s Republic received a recommendation to end the practice of forced abortions for women repatriated to the country while pregnant (marked as “noted”.)
  • Albania supported almost all of its SOGI-related recommendations, including calls to legally recognize same-sex unions, but noted one recommendation to ensure legal recognition of gender identity based on self-identification.
  • Several countries rejected all instance of SOGI pressure, including all the African countries that were reviewed.
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