Committee work lies at the heart of the Council of Europe. It allows governmental and independent experts to participate directly and is the main tool to develop and monitor policy instruments and legal standards, building a common pan-European legal space.

 

The first type of committee includes steering committees, ad hoc committees and subordinate bodies: for the period 2024 to 2027 there are 25 steering or ad hoc committees and 19 subordinate bodies for the Ordinary Budget. Their job is to draw up policy texts and legal standards, such as treaties or recommendations. These committees are made up of representatives from member states who have the highest possible rank in the relevant field. They include relevant international and regional organisations, civil society and other partners in their work. International NGOs which have been granted participatory status with the Council of Europe contribute to the work of the above bodies, mostly through the Conference of INGOs which makes it possible to elaborate common positions of civil society. An NGO can also request observer status in accordance with the conditions set forth under article 8 of Resolution CM/Res(2021)3.

See also the dedicated webpage on intergovernmental committees.

The second type of committee monitors Council of Europe policies and legal texts and ensures these are always up to date. They include:

  • committees representing parties to a given treaty;
  • committees representing all member states which follow a specific resolution (legal text) of the Committee of Ministers;
  • committees composed of independent experts, sitting in their individual capacity (independent monitoring or advisory committees);
  • committees established to manage partial and enlarged agreements, which only include certain member states or non-member states.

These bodies involve civil society in their work in different ways, according to their respective rules. Monitoring bodies make ample use of information from civil society, collected in particular through interviews during country visits and written submissions, including shadow reports and complaints where such possibility is provided for.

See also the dedicated webpage on monitoring bodies.