A Year of Human Rights Covenants: Great Leap for Taiwan National Human Rights Commission, Taiwan 9 NHRC-Expertise France Cooperation Program: Clarifying the Role of an NHRI Through Peer to Peer Exchange Author: Jérémie Beja International Human Rights and Government Expert National Human Rights Commission of Taiwan I joined the Taiwanese National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) as a special advisor in September 2022. My positioning is the result of a cooperation agreement between the NHRC, Expertise France and the French Bureau of Taipei and aims at developing the relationships between the NHRC and its French counterparts, as well as providing technical support to the NHRC, two years after it was established by an organic law passed by the Legislative Yuan. I. Human Rights institutions in France and Taiwan: Different administrative structures but similar mandates During these first few months I started getting familiar with the NHRC’s organization, its work and its position in the Taiwanese administrative infrastructure. Moreover, the foundations for the strengthening of the bilateral cooperation between the NHRC and the French national institutions in charge of protecting different types of Human Rights were laid. Unlike Taiwan, France does not have only one independent institution whose mandate is related to the protection of Human Rights but three. The French National Consultative Commission on Human Rights (CNCDH) is the oldest Human Rights Commission in the world and was originally founded in 1947. Unlike the NHRC, it is not mandated to take individual complaints. Its main work is to monitor the Human Rights situation in France by issuing public opinions and reports on a wide range of Human Rights issues (racism, disabled people rights, refugee rights, women’s rights, environment protection, rights of LGBTQI people, fight against human trafficking, etc.) and promote Human Rights culture through public education activities and joint programs with schools, universities and civil servants training schools. It also plays an important role in writing opinions on bills discussed in Parliament and national policies promoted by the government. Furthermore, The CNCDH participates in the UN treaty monitoring system for all Human Rights Conventions signed by France by providing independent opinions and participating in the various’ Committees’ sessions. National Human Rights Commission 2022 Annual Report 89