UNFPA at Work: Six Human Rights Case Studies

accountability and the rule of law. In a human rights-basedapproach, these principles are applied systematically to allstages of programmatic activity. In other words, attention isgiven at each stage to how each principle informs the programmingactivities, from the initial assessment to the finalevaluation.Operationalizing the human rights-based approach simplymeans integrating the core human rights principles fully intothe programming process – that is, examining how the principlesinform the work. Some questions that field officerswho are overseeing a human rights-based initiative mightask themselves include:• How does the project embody the principles of participationand inclusion?• How is the public involved in the situation analysis, planning,implementation, monitoring and evaluation?• How can the participation of people who represent allcommunity members, including the most marginalized, beensured?• How does the project embody the principles of equalityand non-discrimination?• How can the project be planned and designed in waysthat facilitate the inclusion of marginalized groups?• How will power differentials among the people involved inthe project be dealt with?• What local values and practices of the community can beactivated to promote human rights and change from within?• What project monitoring and evaluation mechanisms areneeded to identify causes, occurrences and impacts ofdiscriminatory actions?Making programmatic decisions that further the humanrights principles embedded in the above questions can contributeto advancing human rights.This publication, in presenting six case studies of diverse fieldexperiences, conveys some of the many applications of thehuman rights-based model to demonstrate both its flexibilityand its capacity to consistently steer programming effortstoward optimal outcomes. It is the result of more than a yearof cooperative efforts undertaken by UNFPA (more particularly,the Gender, Human Rights and Culture Branch of theTechnical Division, the Regional Offices and the respectivecountry offices), governments, communities and the Programon International Health and Human Rights at the HarvardSchool of Public Health. Based on a questionnaire jointly prepared,the case studies were elaborated by the countryoffices with guidance from the Gender, Human Rights andCulture Branch. The selection of countries was made in conjunctionwith the Regional Offices and the country offices.Undoubtedly, many other country offices have carried outvaluable programmes related to human rights. However, thispublication is not intended to show all the work done byUNFPA on the human rights-based approach but rather toprovide some examples and to systematize some interestinglearning experiences.It is important to note that the approach needs to includenot only rights-holders (the people who have claims, orlegal entitlements, based on their human rights) but alsoduty-bearers (people and institutions with obligations tofulfil those rights).Government officials were involved in one way or another inthe elaboration of all the case studies. In the Philippines,UNFPA worked with the National Commission for the Role ofFilipino Women, which was actively involved in the analysisand identification of best practices, lessons learned and gaps.In Ecuador, the consultant was selected by the NationalCouncil of Women. In Nepal, the Director General of theDepartment of Women’s Development was involved in thedesign phase of the case study. In Turkey, staff at the Ministryof Interior and local authorities were interviewed and the findingswere discussed with the project team at the Ministry. InColombia and the United Republic of Tanzania, many governmentrepresentatives were consulted all through the process.This compilation does not reflect ‘perfect’ cases of the applicationof the human rights-based approach to programming.There are no perfect cases. Instead, it aims to highlight theways in which UNFPA has supported development initiativesthat have led to the advancement of human rights, and eachstudy is significant and meaningful within its own local context.Interestingly, the six case studies, for all of the differencesin their subject matter, share many of the same lessons.UNFPA hopes that the lessons learned provide bothinspiration and evidence on the benefits and value of integratinghuman rights principles into development programming,using both a cultural lens and a gender perspective.Finally, the focus of this document is not on the work ofUNFPA. More importantly, it shows ways in which governments,civil society and communities have taken the lead andmoved forward to advance human rights, and how UNFPAsupports these initiatives. It is about people bringing changeby and for themselves from within their own systems andinstitutions with clear understanding and behavioural change.It is about demonstrating how ownership of human rightsprinciples can be applied with success when communities areempowered to interpret them and to translate them andinternalize them in their own thinking and way of living.INTRODUCTIONix