The sixteenth Human Rights Report highlights the following issues in particular:

• the German Government’s efforts at both national and international level to promote gender equality and the equal rights of women, girls and marginalised groups, as well as the implementation and impact of the feminist foreign policy guidelines (outlined in detail);

• the German Government’s international commitment to the fight against impunity with regard to human rights violations and crimes against international law, including the use of sanctions and the conduct of criminal proceedings in accordance with the German Code of Crimes Against International Law;

• the advancement of climate change adaptation and reduction measures in conformity with human rights standards, as well as solutions to compensate for loss and damage;

• the fight against racism, antisemitism, Islamophobia, antigypsyism and other forms of group-based hostility, as well as the care and support for those affected;

• the German Government’s efforts to monitor and respect the human rights of refugees and migrants at the EU’s external borders, as well as within the context of cooperation with third countries;

• information on the implementation of the German Supply Chain Due Diligence Act, which entered into force in January 2023, and the offers of support for companies implementing due diligence, as well as the impact on the human rights situation of those affected in the scope of application covered by the Act.

These focal areas are incorporated in the overall structure of the report:

The chapter on Human rights in Germany describes human rights work in Germany and the implementation status of the recommendations given to Germany and supported by Germany within the current cycle of the UN’s Universal Periodic Reviews (UPR).

The chapter entitled Human rights in foreign and development policy outlines the efforts in international human rights forums and on various human rights issues against the background of the German Government’s values-based foreign and development policy focused on human rights.

The chapter on Human rights around the world describes the human rights situation in selected countries and profiles Germany’s involvement in human rights work and projects, including the impact of that engagement.