Abstract
In the Concluding Observations (COs) that the UN human rights treaty bodies issue following review of State party periodic reports, appear to make little or no reference to each other's findings concerning any one State. As a result, States must address multiple sets of recommendations, often concerning the same or closely related issues, and sometimes with different degrees of emphasis or even inconsistencies and contradictions. The practice has the effect of diminishing the impact of the work of the treaty bodies. It may also be perceived as inconsistent with the very nature of human rights as indivisible and inter-related. This article argues that the recommendation of all of the treaty bodies could, usefully, be integrated and that a model exist for this purpose: that of the “rights based approaches to development” (RBA). It examines the manner in which the application of RBA-related principles might render COs much more effective in promoting concrete human rights improvements at the country level. It also considers how the application of the model might also transform the process of the consideration of State reports.