SDC's Human Rights and Rule of Law Guidance Documents

Commissioned by the Evaluation & Controlling Division of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), this 141-page study aims to provide recommendations to further SDC's human rights and rule of law orientation through an analysis of the influence of SDC's 1997 Human Rights Guidelines and 1998 Rule of Law Conceptual Framework. In short, this research examines the strategy of drawing up and disseminating documents - sharing information in the form of guidelines - as a means of protecting and promoting human rights in the context of the work of development and humanitarian agencies.

Researchers affiliated with the Overseas Development Institute (ODI) explain here that "There is very little practical experience of integrating human rights into development practice. Two main approaches have been identified: an 'empowerment' or inspirational approach, which privileges social contestation and civil society interventions, and a 'legalistic' or institutional approach, grounded in international human rights instruments, and focusing on how states can better meet their obligations. To date, this second approach has often been associated with prioritising civil and political rights. Best practice would suggest taking on board both approaches. SDC's Guidelines combine both institutional and empowerment dimensions."

By focusing on SDC's operations in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Pakistan, Peru and Rwanda, the research is designed to explore the effectiveness of SDC's human rights documentation and communication - in the areas of awareness-raising, policy and programmatic guidance. A range of methodological techniques were used, including:

• semi-structured interviews with SDC staff, Swiss ministries and departments, and non-governmental organisations (NGOs);
• a review of SDC policy and programme documents and financial data;
• a brief electronic survey of SDC staff, Swiss embassies and Swiss NGOs;
• 4 case studies: Bosnia-Herzegovina, Pakistan, Peru and Rwanda
• focus group discussions with UK Department for International Development (DFID) and Geneva-based development experts;
• an "Episode Study" of changes to gender policy within SDC;
• a review of 4 development agencies: DFID, Sida, UNICEF and USAID.

An excerpt from the report follows:

Major Findings


Relevance. The development of guidance documents on human rights and the rule of law was highly relevant given the international and domestic political and policy contexts. The existence of human rights policy was particularly relevant for SDC staff because of the need to take more account of the political situation in partner countries, as particularly experienced e.g. in Rwanda, and the specific human rights and rule of law objectives for support to Eastern European and the former Soviet Union countries. The documents themselves were not relevant for SDC partners. They had much less operational relevance, and could be made more poverty-focused, in line with SDC's current policy priorities.

Efficiency. The Working Group approach to formulating the documents took time but was cost-effective through its use of a consultant. It helped achieve intra-governmental consensus. Greater efficiency in terms of influence would have required a higher degree of investment in the production and communication of the documents, including more involvement of the country offices, training and awareness-raising activities, senior-level supportive messages and technical follow-up capacity at headquarters.

Effectiveness. Human rights awareness remains general and there is a lack of consistent knowledge about the content of the human rights policy amongst SDC staff, together with a degree of complacency. There is also an incertitude how to shape confusion about rule of law interventions. The Human Rights Guidelines were generally better known and more used than the Rule of Law Concept. SDC partners, including other donors, have little knowledge about the policies.

Policy coherence across Swiss government remains a challenge, and the SDC documents have
little influence on other ministries and departments. There is a perception that SDC could do more to promote human rights overseas. Human rights dialogue can be difficult given the
projectised nature of SDC assistance, and the demands this makes on field staff.

...Human rights programming mostly takes the form of projects, principally in the area of civil and political rights, and usually for short-term activities. Very few SDC country programmes have adopted human rights as a transversal theme or have developed human rights strategies. It is 'Governance' that has become a more important issue over the period.

Conclusions

Policy guidance documents. Guidance documents on their own cannot achieve policy change....Official policy statements should be short and should be distinguished from
operational guidance documents or tools. A dynamic approach to preparing and sustaining policy guidance would be more effective. SDC also needs to ensure that it communicates its policies effectively, including identifying target audiences, and providing supporting measures, such as technical support, training and lesson-learning events. SDC issues a great number of guidance documents, and needs to clarify the implications when policies, such as that on human rights, are intended to be binding. SDC could have a greater influence on policy in certain contexts by including explicit efforts at influencing key actors and processes at the macro level as part of its programming.

Human rights orientation. SDC's senior management need to reaffirm their commitment to human rights, in line with the priority given to this issue in Swiss foreign policy. Resources should be allocated to make human rights better understood amongst SDC staff and visible in programming. SDC should update its human rights and rule of law policies, in line with current best practice and highlighting their contributions to poverty reduction. There is a danger that human rights may be seen as prioritising civil and political issues, given the location of the focal point in the governance division. Adequate management systems need to be adopted, in line with the 'binding' nature of the human rights policy, indicating who is to be held to account for implementation. A number of simple steps can be taken to ensure that SDC staff have a common understanding of the policy, including issuing a short policy statement, providing training and learning events, practical tools and networking, and translating major documents into local
languages."