The UN Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing was created in 2000. The mandate granted by the United Nations to Special Rapporteurs has been to "examine, monitor, advise and publicly report" on human rights problems through "activities undertaken by special procedures, including responding to individual complaints, conducting studies, providing advice on technical cooperation at the country level, and engaging in general promotional activities." (see special procedures of the Human Rights Council).

The main activities of the Rapporteur on Adequate Housing are:

• To receive information on individual cases of violations against the right to adequate housing;
• To request explanations from governments by means of urgent appeals and allegation letters;
• To perform official missions to specific countries to investigate the status of the right to housing and present the respective report to the UN Human Rights Council;
• To submit an annual report to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, and one to the UN General Assembly in New York, which address specific themes relating to the right to housing or specific reports on country missions performed by the Rapporteur.

Special procedures of the Human Rights Council: http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/chr/special/index.htm#code

The Special Rapporteur

UN Special Rapporteur on the right to adequate housing: http://righttohousing.org/  and http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Housing/Pages/HousingIndex.aspx