E/C.12/GC/22 confidentiality and free, informed and responsible decision-making, without coercion, discrimination or fear of violence, in relation to the sexual and reproductive needs and behaviours of individuals; (e) To take measures to prevent unsafe abortions and to provide post-abortion care and counselling for those in need; (f) To ensure all individuals and groups have access to comprehensive education and information on sexual and reproductive health that are non-discriminatory, non-biased, evidence-based, and that take into account the evolving capacities of children and adolescents; (g) To provide medicines, equipment and technologies essential to sexual and reproductive health, including based on the WHO Model List of Essential Medicines;40 (h) To ensure access to effective and transparent remedies and redress, including administrative and judicial ones, for violations of the right to sexual and reproductive health. D. International obligations 50. International cooperation and assistance are key elements of article 2 (1) of the Covenant and are crucial for the realization of the right to sexual and reproductive health. In compliance with article 2 (1), States that are not able to comply with their obligations and that cannot realize the right to sexual and reproductive health due to a lack of resources must seek international cooperation and assistance. States that are in a position to do so must respond to such requests in good faith and in accordance with the international commitment of contributing at a minimum 0.7 per cent of their gross national income for international cooperation and assistance. 51. States parties should ensure, in compliance with their Covenant obligations, that their bilateral, regional and international agreements dealing with intellectual property or trade and economic exchange do not impede access to medicines, diagnostics or related technologies required for prevention or treatment of HIV/AIDS or other diseases related to sexual and reproductive health. States should ensure that international agreements and domestic legislation incorporate to the fullest extent any safeguards and flexibilities therein that may be used to promote and ensure access to medicines and health care for all. States parties should review their international agreements, including on trade and investment, to ensure that they are consistent with the protection of the right to sexual and reproductive health, and should amend them as necessary. 52. Donor States and international actors have an obligation to comply with human rights standards, which are also applicable to sexual and reproductive health. To this end, international assistance should not impose restrictions on information or services existing in donor States, draw trained reproductive health-care workers away from recipient countries or push recipient countries to adopt models of privatization. Also, donor States should not reinforce or condone legal, procedural, practical or social barriers to the full enjoyment of sexual and reproductive health that exist in the recipient countries. 53. Intergovernmental organizations, and in particular the United Nations and its specialized agencies, programmes and bodies, have a crucial role to play and contribution to make with regard to the universal realization of the right to sexual and reproductive health. The World Health Organization, UNFPA, the United Nations Entity for Gender 40 See WHO Model List of Essential Medicines, sect. 18.3. 13

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