VSO Programmatic Interface Authors: Igor Suárez Solá Joe Hourclé Alisdair Davey VSO Team.
Participatory Advocacy a Toolkit for VSO Staff Volunteers and Partners
Transcript of Participatory Advocacy a Toolkit for VSO Staff Volunteers and Partners
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PcPy vccy:
LK F vS SFF, vLUNEES
N PNES
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bU vS
vS is an international deelopment agen that works through olunteers. ur ision is
a world without poert in whih people work together to full their potential. nstead of
sending food or mone, we send women and men from a wide range of professions who
want the hane to make a real differene in the ght against poert. We work with partner
organisations to ring together people from different ultures and akgrounds, enaling
them to share skills and ahiee hange together.
vS is far the largest independent olunteer-sending agen in the world. Sine 1958, we
hae sent out oer 30,000 olunteers to work in fria, sia, the cariean, the Pai and
Eastern Europe in response to requests from goernments and ommunit organisations.
t the moment, we hae around 1,500 people working in plaements in these regions, the
majorit of whom are skilled professionals.
vS welomes olunteers from an eer-inreasing range of ountries and akgrounds.
ur national partners in canada, Kena, the Netherlands, the Philippines, ndia and reland
reruit olunteers from man different ountries worldwide. his international approah
allows us to omine and learn from a rih ariet of perspeties.
PEFcE am er pleased to introdue this oolkit. doa is a part of vSs approah to
deelopment, and eliee it an ring aout sustainale hange eause it works to hange
the auses of poert, rather than dealing with the smptoms.
his toolkit will help ou arr out an tpe of adoa or inuening work. We hope ou will
use it to plan and implement effetie strategies that lead to enduring soial hange.
worked for oer 20 ears for F, where we were ale to fund large deelopment
programmes in man of the poorest ountries. but some of the greatest suesses during
those ears ame from groups of ommitted itizens, who worked tirelessl to inuene
poli. Peasant groups ahieed hanges in laws on unused land. People liing with Hv
took on pharmaeutial ompanies in ourt. nd women suffering iolene ampaigned for
stronger laws on rape. ll of these groups were ale to improe the lies of people around
them through adoa work.
he toolkit has een written primaril for the use of vS staff and olunteers, in the North
and the South, and also for our partner organisations and eturned volunteers. t proides
a rih ariet of approahes to adoa work. Not all will e appropriate to eer ultural,
soial or politial situation. o use our researh and ountr experienes to identif the
approahes that will e most produtie in our own situation.
hope that with the aid of this toolkit ou will e ale to ahiee great progress.
Good luk!
SUM cHKb
chair of the board o f rustees
vS
Noemer 2009
you are welome to use parts of this toolkitut please aknowledge the soure.
his toolkit was written vS olunteer
Janie cox, using materials and tools
used around the world in vS
programmes. Janie has worked as an
adoate in London and brussels and now
lies in South fria. She has arried out
olunteer plaements with vS in Uganda,
Sri Lanka, wanda and Malawi. Stee
Lewis, Stephen Nok, Mike Podmore,
Purna Shrestha and enaldah Mjoma
proided editing and additional inputs. ur
thanks go to vS partners and programme
ofes who hae proided examples and
ase studies.
Hw w Hp y:
he vS nternational Poli and doa eam
This guide contains general lessons learned throughout VS. The polic and dvocac team can
suort VS programme fces in various as:
providing suort to programme fces that ish to undertake an level o advocac ork
ocusing on the issues raised in IDS agenda, Valuing Teachers or Valuing Health workers
Suorting national level advocac or artners, or examle orking on climate change or
gender issues
Sharing research and olic knoledge gained through international advocac ork
oordinating ork beteen the national, regional and international levels, to ensure that
advocac strategies at dierent levels reinorce each other
providing advocac training during visits to rogrammes
please contact us i ou need secifc hel or advice.
VS programme earning & dvocac Team
IpG, 317 putne Bridge Road, ondon Sw15 2p, K
Tel: +44 20 8780 7500
mail: [email protected]
web Site: .vsointernational.org/hat-e-do/advocac
Hw T S THIS TKIT
This toolkit is made u o a ritten ublication and an accomaning D-RM. The essential
inormation is in the ublication, and extra tools and advice are in the D-RM. you can adat
and use all the materials or our on organisation.
Part 1 looks at hat advocac is and ho articiator advocac can be most eectivel carried
out. Part 2 describes some o the as that VS uses advocac. This ill be o articular interest
to VS sta and volunteers other readers ma ant to ski this chater.
The main bod o the Toolkit is the fve arts belo, hich reresent fve ke stages o the
articiator advocac rocess:
Part 3: esearh & nalsis examines the initial research and analsis that is needed, including
identiing the olic issue and the context surrounding the issue.
Part 4: Strategi Planning exlains the stes needed to develo an eective advocac strateg.
Part 5: Moilisation outlines the as ou can mobilise suort and resources.
Part 6: tion rovides guidance on ho to imlement an advocac strateg, including advice
on lobbing, camaigning, media ork and roject management.
Part 7: Learning & eiew rovides guidance on monitoring our advocac rogress.
Part 8:ools contains some articiator exercises ou can do ith a grou o colleagues. These
Strategic planning & nalsis Tools hel ou think creativel about our ork and hat ou can
reall achieve. n the D-RM ou ill fnd man other Tools that ou ill fnd useul.
The toolkit can be read rom start to fnish, but it is also designed so ou can di into it as required.
This toolkit comlements S1 , VSs advocac research toolkit. STRT is an accessible
manual based on VSs on exerience o lo-cost, non-academic roessional research.
lthough it is centred on VSs Valuing Teachers roject in teacher motivation, it includes a
ealth o advocac research tools and methods that are generall alicable.
This Toolkit and STRT are also available to sta and volunteers on pRT, Moodle, and Volzone.
1. Simle Toolkit or dvocac Research
Techniques (STRT). 2004. Voluntar
Service verseas.
htt://.vsointernational.org/hat-
e-do/advocac/camaigns/index.as#0
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pRTIIpTRy DVy pRSS DIGRM
In realit, the advocac rocess is not alas linear, and should be considered iterative.
The various stages can be overlaing and interlinked.
TTS
Page
3 Ho can the dvocac Team hel ou?
2 preace
3 Ho to use this Toolkit
4 dvocac process Diagram
5 ontents
6 cronms and Glossar
7 part ne: Introduction
8 what is dvocac?
10 wh Do dvocac?
11 what Te o dvocac?
12 part To: dvocac in VS
13 working at Dierent evels
15 VS ororate dvocac Strategies
16 working o-oerativel
16 Building inks rom ocal to ational to International
17 dvocac ith partners
19 Volunteer dvocac placements
20 part Three: Research & nalsis
22 The Imortance o particiator Research
25 Methodolog
26 The Issue
27 The polic nvironment
28 The polic Sstem
28 peole and rganisations
Page
32 part Four: Strategic planning
34 dvocac Strateg xlained
36 Strategic nalsis
41 Strategic hoice
45 part Five: Mobilisation
47 moerment
47 etorks & oalitions
49 Fundraising
51 part Six: ction52 Imlementation
54 obbing
62 amaigning
66 ommunication & egotiation
70 Media
75 part Seven: ngoing earningand Revie
76 earning and Revie o dvocac ctivities in VS
78 what Should Be Monitored?
79 Ho Should you Monitor?
79 ssessing polic hange
80 part ight: dvocac Tools
97 Further dvocac Resources
5.Mobilise forAdvocacy Action
6.ActionAdvocacy Plan
1.BroadBackgroundResearch
2. Define the Issue
3.TargetedResearch
4.StrategicPlanning
7.Ongoing Learning& Review 8.
ReviseAdvocacy Plan
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GSSRy
cronms
ID anadian International Develoment genc
Sp ountr Strategic plan
DFID Deartment or International Develoment (K)
DM Decision Maker (oten used hile assessing ho are the ke targets)
G The Global amaign or ducation
IMF International Monetar Fund
IG International G
G on-Governmental rganisation
pps programme rea plan (VS)
p programme fce (VS)
RIS Regional IDS Initiative o Southern rica
SD Southern rican Develoment ommunit
SID S genc or International Develoment
VS Voluntar Service verseas
wH world Health rganisation
dvocac Terms
llies Grous or individuals ho share our aim or olic change
sk The core request o our advocac camaign
udience The erson selected to receive our message (this could be a direct or an
indirect target)
Messages The main oints that ou ant to get across in our advocac, in suort o our ask
planning & Revie VSs monitoring & evaluation sstem (partnershi Revies and
programme rea Revies)
onents Grous or individuals ho counter or oose our olic change aim
ther laers ther organisations orking in the same feld and/or on the same issue
(similar organisations)
polic context research Research on the olic environment aecting the issue (eg: the olic
sstem, eole and organisations)
polic indos Brie eriods hen there are unusual oortunities or olic change
Target The olic maker to hom our advocac message is addressed because the
have the best oortunit to make olic change (also knon as a rimar target)
Target (Indirect) person selected to bear inuence on our advocac target (also knon as a
secondar target)
Transarenc The oenness o the olic sstem and rocedures (to the ublic and civil societ)
pRT : ITRDTI
his introdution looks at what adoa is and how it an help to further vSs mission.
t examines different tpes of adoa, and how partiipator adoa work an e most
effetiel arried out.
What is adoa?
Defnitions
Demstiing advocac
Wh do adoa?
dvocac and develoment orkFurthering VSs ork
What tpe of adoa?
who does the advocac
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What is doa?
Defnitions
In a develoment context, advocac is the deliberate rocess o inuencing those ho make
olic. dvocac can concern the creation, reorm, imlementation and enorcement o olicies.
olic is an rincile or action adoted or roosed b a government, art, business or
individual etc. This includes government legislation but can be much ider.
There are man defnitions o advocac ithin the develoment communit. VS has its on
defnition to exlain advocac ithin the context o its ork:
vS enition of doa
rocess that tackles disadvantage b orking ith communities and ke stakeholders to
bring about changes in olic, rocess, ractice, and attitudes in order to ensure communities
rights are recognised and realised. The aim is to activel suort disadvantaged eole to
inuence the decisions that aect their rights and lives.
The term lobbing is sometimes used interchangeabl ith advocac, but there is a distinction.
dvocac is an umbrella term and there are a number o activities that can contribute to a
successul advocac strateg. obbing and camaigning are to activities that can be art o
advocac ork.
obbing is seeking to inuence decision-makers on behal o a articular interest. The term
oten reers to eorts to inuence legislation but rivate comanies, donors and other large
institutions are also oten lobbied. obbing is usuall carried out b a small number o eole,
ho are exerts in their subject.
Mp
The VS rogramme manager in Guana meets the minister o education to lobb or
imrovements to the rimar schools curriculum.
amaigning is: n organised course o action or a articular urose, eseciall to arouse
ublic interest. amaigning is a motivational exercise designed to activate members o the
ublic to do something that leads to change. For a camaign to be a success it usuall needs
a large number o eole to take an action.
Mp
VS and artners in South rica get 10,000 arents and children to send ostcards to the
ministr o education, asking or the recruitment o more teachers.
We dont use that word.
ach language has dierent ords to describe these terms, and ou are best o discussing
advocac in our on language. In some countries the ord advocac itsel is unelcome. In
this case ou might just talk about inuencing instead. For examle wed like to hold a
meeting to see ho e can inuence t he health ministr to imrove the training o nurses
Demstiing dvocac
There is oten a mstique around advocac, hich can lead to unease and even ear. nce
ou start the rocess this ill ade, as eective research leads naturall to a good strateg.
s contacts become real eole instead o daunting oliticians and oonents ou ill
gain confdence.
you ma alread use some advocac techniques ithout even realising it. when ou come
across situations here ou need to inuence others, ou robabl instinctivel emlo tactics
like research, lanning, alliance building, and negotiation. you siml learn b exerience.
we intend this toolkit as guidance, not as instruction. There are no one size fts all ormulas to
advocac ork across the orld. In some countries, certain advocac activities ma not be
accetable, so ill need to be relaced b more aroriate methods. In ever case, local
exerience and common sense should be alied. dvocac ill alas be more eective henit is culturall aroriate.
Dealings ith government can be eseciall intimidating or some. But remember, i ou are in
a democrac ou are entitled to la a art in the governance o our countr. Indeed, rticle 21
o the niversal Declaration o Human Rights states:
verone has the right to take art i n the government o his countr, directl or through reel
chosen reresentatives.
Mths and Legends:
doa means
street marhes
Some eole think that
advocac mainl means
marching in the street, burning
tres and throing stones.
ot so. street march is one
ossible art o a camaign.
nd camaigning is one
ossible art o advocac.
I a mass street event is not
aroriate in our countr
then ou should do something
else. dvocac has man
ossible orms. you should
take hat ill ork best in
our countr and our context.
Networking & Alliances
Campaigning
Lobbying
Research & Analysis
Advocacy
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Wh o doa?
dvocac and Develoment work
In the 1980s, develoment Gs became aare that develoment and emergenc ork alone
ere unlikel to roduce sustained imrovements in the lives o the oor. This led them to re-
examine their strategies, and become increasingl ocused on advocac ork. dvocac ork
enables them to dra on their rogramme exerience to sho the imact o existing olicies on
the oor and marginalised, and to suggest imrovements.
The increased transarenc and oenness o man governments make advocac increasingl
eective. Toda the develoment movement is carring out a greater number and range o
camaigns, ith a greater degree o roessionalism. These advocac initiatives are no oten
suorted b rivate oundations and bilateral or multilateral donors.
Mp
n G sees the eect o climate change on omen armers, and is able to roduce evidence
to lobb government.
Furthering the ork o VS and artners
VSs advocac ork comlements our other rogramme ork, and can bring about
sustainable change in develoment. VS vies the benefts o its advocac ork in terms o
imrovements in:
The material osition o the oor and disadvantaged
ttitudes and olitical ill
The ositioning and articiation o civil societ
In brie, the rogrammatic reasons VS undertakes advocac ork are:
Traditional develoment ork alone ill not be able to roduce sustained imrovements in the
lives o disadvantaged eole.
dvocac is a ke tool or addressing the causes o overt and disadvantage. dvocac does
not merel deal ith the smtoms o overt, but ensures that the structural causes o that
overt and disadvantage are addressed.
dvocac is an emoering aroach toards sustainable rogressive change. It can enable
eole to inuence decisions aecting their lives and bring advances that emoer communities
and individuals.
we also recognise that advocac can beneft other asects o our ork including visibilit,
recruitment and undraising. It hels VS to be recognised as a serious laer in develoment
circles and rovides greater ublic exosure.
VS uses an aroach based on eoles rights, hich is to-ronged: e seek both to
inuence olic imrovement and to emoer individuals to kno and claim their rights.
dvocac is aimed at the sul side o rights realising imroved rights (in constitutions or
legislation) and itizen ducation is aimed at the demand side o rights enabling citizens to
understand and claim their rights.
What pe of doa?
There are man dierent tes o advocac ork. These should be careull considered to
ensure that the aroach adoted is aroriate to our organisation, the national strateg and
countr situation. There are various as to categorise tes o advocac including:
Geographial: dvocac can take lace at an level in a articular village, district, countr,
region or globall.
iming: n advocac camaign can be ongoing or time-limited (e.g. one secifc event).
ssue: dvocac can cover a single-issue, or range o issues. In general it is easier to achieve
success i ou have a small number o ocused objectives.
pproah: roaches can var rom abolition to reorm. bolition is hen ou tr to sto an
unoular olic. Reorm is here ou seek incremental imrovements. bolition is likel to be
more conrontational (and ublicl critical o the existing ideolog), hereas reorm is usuall
vieed as more collaborative and/or ractical.
argets: dvocac can be directed at a number o targets: government, businesses, grous o
eole or individuals.
ttitude: This can var rom conict to engagement. dversarial dvocac is oten associated
ith ardent abolition or rotest movements hich document the ailures o government or
olic makers, and criticise them, to eect change. programmatic engagement is more
commonl undertaken b organisations that ork ith government to deliver services.
It involves constructive discussion o olicies to eect internal reorm and i ncremental changes
ithin existing sstems.
who does the advocac?
dvocac can also be categorised b ho does it. The various otions are discussed in more
detail in tool 6.
The degree o involvement o the disadvantaged is a rime consideration. There are three otions:
dvocac done for disadvantaged eole
dvocac done with disadvantaged eole
dvocac done disadvantaged eole
There is no one correct aroach each has its on advantages and disadvantages. n
most occasions VS and artners ill carr out in-countr advocac ith the disadvantaged.
Hoever, e recognise that the ideal is or advocac ork to be done b disadvantaged eole
themselves, and our long-term aim is to emoer them to achieve this.
Mths and legends:
f we do an adoa in this
ountr well e losed down.
In each countr the
environment or advocac is
dierent. In countries here
the concet o active
citizenshi is resected, there
are requent ublic camaign
events. In other countries,
including man here VS
orks, the government is
susicious o Gs and is not
ver oen to eoles artici-
ation in decision-making. n
G considering an advocac
strateg needs to carr out a
risk analsis, ie assess hat is
relevant in our countr and on
our issue.
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pRT Tw: DVy I VS
Working at ifferent Leels
ocal dvocac
ational dvocac
Regional and International dvocac
vS corporate doa Strategies
ids genda
Valuing Health workers
Valuing Teachers
Working co-operatiel
building Links from Loal to National to nternational
doa with Partners
who leads the dvocac?
princiles o partnershi dvocac
volunteer doa Plaements
ong-term Volunteers
Short-term Volunteers
Working at different leels
VS both carries out advocac directl and suorts artners to carr out advocac. This ork
can take lace at a local, national, regional or international level. The most successul ork
joins u the ork rom dierent levels into one strong camaign. The olloing ages describe
some ieces o ork at each o these levels.
ocal advocac
Man VS artners ork in one articular art o a countr. The carr out advocac in their
localit or region. Main targets might be the maor or the district council. s man countries
have decentralised their ministr unctions over the last to decades the scoe or successul
local advocac has increased.
Mp building an alliane to stop the spraing of pestiides in Uganda
ast ear small-scale organic armers in Bundibugo district o ganda became orried that
the use o DDT to control malaria ould threaten the organic status o their roduce.
ocal G BS lanned a camaign to rotest. The ormed a coalition o concerned
stakeholders including armers, the cocoa exorting comanies and the Sustainable griculture
Trainers etork. BS had a VS volunteer, a communications secialist, ho heled them
source and disseminate inormation to the dierent stakeholders. with her suort BS ere
able to ackage aroriate messages targeting dierent audiences.
The lobbing o senior decision makers as backed u b to mass actions, a eaceul
demonstration and a letter o aeal to the ofce o the president o the Reublic o ganda,
signed b 20,000 eole.
The camaign successull resulted in increased aareness o the imact o the roosed
sraing o DDT and halted the sraing o DDT i n the Bundibugo district.2
ational advocac
ach programme fce ill determine its ke aims and riorities during the countr strategic
lanning (Sp) rocess. The olic environment should be considered as an integral art o this
rocess, and advocac research should orm art o the situational analsis.
The olic environment is an imortant art o the context in hich countr ofces oerate, and
has a signifcant inuence on ho VS can best contribute to develoment. dvocac oortu-
nities can inuence the programme fces rogramme area riorities and asects such as
artnershis and volunteer lacements.
To ork, advocac has to be strategic, hich means analsing asects o the countr-secifc
situation, including:
Develoment riorities
The national olic environment
Stakeholder riorities and attitudes (including disadvantaged eole, the media, the government
and donors)
ther laers (including other Gs, netorks and coalitions)
The programme fces cometitive advantage (or niche)
ll Sps and programme rea plans (pps) should include an analsis o the olic
environment, and an imlementation gas. Having undertaken such an analsis programme
fces are then able to decide hether the ish to develo an advocac strateg ocussing on
these olic and imlementation issues. ot all programme fces decide to undertake
advocac ork. Hoever, it is encouraged as a ver oerul tool in imlementing most pps
and in addressing the structural causes o overt.
2. longer version o this ase Stud,
ith more detail, is available on the
D-Rom.
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Mp ndonesia loing for emploment rights for people with disailities
In Indonesia, VS is suorting a camaign to in emloment oortunities or eole ith
disabilities. The world Health rganisation believes there are more than 22 million disabled
eole in Indonesia. ver 80% are unemloed.
nder Indonesian la, comanies ith more than 100 emloees should ensure that at least
1% o their sta consists o eole ith disabilities. But the legislation remains in general
unknon and unenorced. VS orks ith 12 artners to ush or the imlementation o the la.
Good rogress is being made in some rovinces. ast ear the Bali Hotel ssociation agreed to
imlement the camaign, a move that could result in 1500 aid jobs or eole ith disabilities
in the next fve ears. The Four Seasons hotel chain has alread recruited a grou o alicants,
all ith olio-related hsical difculties. ther comanies, or examle in the urniture
industr have also joined the rogramme.,
This is a a to make business eole think about and understand their obligation and the
rights o eole ith disabilities. Giving eole ith disabilities an oortunit to ork is a good
idea because to give material is onl momentar, but a job i s an actual a to survive said Joko
Dharmanto.
programme reas
programme ofces should alas consider advocac as a means o
achieving benefcial change in their riorit rogramme areas. where
ossible, advocac ork should:
work ith range o decision-makers and stakeholders, including
national and local government, olic-making bodies, multilateral
institutions and rivate sector enterrises
Strengthen the abilit o disadvantaged eole to inuence the
decisions that aect their rights and their lives
se a range o orking methods. These might include olic research,
direct lobbing, inuencing, constructive engagement, orking in
netorks and alliances, media ork, and ublic camaigning
The most aroriate advocac aroaches to use ill be identifed during the strateg rocess,
as the ill var according to the countr, rogramme and organisational context. But VS
alas dras on the voices o artners, volunteers and sta in its advocac ork, and uses the
unique testimonies o volunteers exerience on the ground. VS volunteers also build advocac
skills among our artners, through volunteer lacements and general training.
Given VSs strateg and our rimar role o suorting artners through volunteer
interventions, reerence should be given to advocac aroaches that involve:
VS laing a strategi role (as catalsts or change)Bringing partners together ho have shared interests in creating olic change
Forming strategi partnerships in order to carr out advocac and olic ork
capait-uildingor advocac
VS orks to romote the rights o disadvantaged eole. we a close attention to olitical,
social, and economic discrimination, and oer relationshis beteen citizens and authorit
structures. when olic makers are not ulflling their human resonsibilities to others,
advocac can be used to hold them accountable.
Regional advocac
Regional advocac is gaining imortance as more regional olitical and organisational
grouings such as SD, S and MRSR are develoed.
Regional advocac can be undertaken in three as:
nalsis o the regional poli and implementation issues
egional oordination of a numer of national leel adoa strategies and
VS multi-ountr programme on a ommon theme
ll aroaches have value. The frst involves ocused ork on olic changes and imlementation
around regional olic matters. Regional inter-governmental olic bodies, stakeholders and
donors can be targeted. The value o the second aroach is in the inormation sharing across a
region ith man similar issues, hile alloing or lobbing to be ocused on national olic and
local imlementation. The third otion involves develoing a regional rogramme that includes
an advocac element. This can again be valuable or lesson sharing and coordination.
Mp Working to inuene Hv poli aross Southern fria the S experiene
Working with regional stakeholders to deelop a regional adoa strateg. RIS has a
regional advocac strateg to reduce the burden o HIV and IDS care on omen and girls.
creating regional allianes e.g. RIS suorted artners to attend the orksho that resulted
in the proosed ode or the Southern rican Develoment ommunit (SD) on the qualit
o women and the Reduction o Risk o HIV Inection.
Using national experiene to feed into regional frameworks. RIS shares its rogramme
exerience ith regional initiatives, such as the Southern rican Task Force o the oalitiono women and IDS.
Sharing vS partners experienes within an existing regional framework e.g. orking ith
men in South rica, Zimbabe and amibia. This advocac raises regional aareness around the
needs o men and the ke reasons h men should be included in the resonse to HIV and IDS.
nternational doa - vS corporate doa Strategies
VS has three cororate advocac rogrammes hich join u ork rom the national to the
regional to the international levels. These are: IDS genda, Valuing Teachers and Valuing
Health workers. ach o these cororate camaigns is based on ongoing olic research and
analsis in the rogramme countries, and uses this evidence to lobb international agencies
and governments.
S genda seeks to mitigate the imact o HIV and IDS on omen, girls and vulnerable men,
and to address the gender inequalities that currentl drive the andemic. The camaign has to
articular areas o ocus: to reduce the disroortionate burden o HIV care on omen and girls,
and to increase the romotion and unding o revention rogrammes that seek to transorm
dominant concets o masculinit and ork ith vulnerable men. The camaign researches
ho gender inequalit drives the HIV andemic and rooses olic and ractice changes at
national, regional and international levels to address these inequalities and halt the sread o
the HIV andemic.
valuing eahers sets out to research hat teachers themselves eel about their roession:
hat motivates them and hat hels them erorm ell, in order to inorm olic-making and
imlementation at national and international levels. Folloing the research, advocac strategies
are develoed. These include the develoment o artnershis and volunteer lacements in:
civil societ coalitions, teachers unions, girls education organisations, netorks o eole ith
disabilities, other minorities or eole living ith HIV and IDS to develo their caacit to use
research fndings to increase their voice in olic making; and in ministries o education to
increase their caacit to be resonsive to civil societ and i mrove teacher and education
management sstems.
valuing Health Workers is VSs third ororate International dvocac rogramme. It aims
to raise aareness o the critical shortage o health orkers in develoing countries, and bring
the voices o health orkers to the attention o olic makers to suggest solutions. s in the
other strategies it is based on in-countr research, and close collaboration ith volunteers and
artners in each countr.
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VS contributes to international debates or examle ith:
contributed to a revie o migration olicies to the uroean ommunit to tr to slo
the brain drain o health orkers rom the develoing orld to uroe.
contributed to the High evel Task Force on Innovative Financing o Health Sstems.3
working co-oerativel
dvocac ork is oten more successul hen it is carried out in coalition ith other like-
minded agencies.
Mp he Gloal campaign for Eduation
VS is a member o The Global amaign or ducation (G) an international netork o
national education coalitions, hich aims to make sure ever child can go to school no matter
here the live in the orld. Its a large global coalition that orks to get orld leaders to kee
the romise the made in 2000, that everone should have the chance to get an education
b 2015.
G coordinates the Global ction week on education in ril ever ear. Its aim is to raise
ublic aareness o the need or education around the orld. In 2008 over eight million eole,
including national leaders and celebrities, took art in the worlds Biggest esson.
dvocac ork in VS Federations
Some o the VS ederation members run their on strong advocac rogrammes.
In etherlands and Kena or examle VS has been lobbing to increase the attention given
to HIV services or eole ith disabilities. In VS K there has been a successul camaign
to create a dedicated bod or omen. For more details o this ork lease see
.vso.org.uk/act/camaign
Building links rom local to national to international
VS international advocac ork is based on our rogramme ork. This rogrammatic base
gives us our ke legitimac in the international olic arena. Thus, e need to ensure that there
is constant communication beteen countr rogrammes and K advocac sta so our olic
messages resonate ith rogramme exerience. This also kees rogramme ofces abreast
o our ork and the changing international olic environment and trends.
ur voice is much stronger hen e make direct links beteen our national, regional,
and international advocac strategies. lso advocac strategies at dierent levels
are strengthened i the reect a shared understanding o issues among
artners, programme fces and others. Similarl, it is useul to share
lessons across dierent national level advocac strategies i.e. rom
programme fce to programme fce, and across regions. Thiscan be useul both or lesson sharing and i n order to identi
otential coalitions and artners.
Mp Sharing learning from the national to regional and international leel
ne examle o the beneft o orking at dierent levels comes rom a volunteer organisation in
Zimbabe, the Famil IDS aring Trust (FT)
FT orked to change the burden o IDS care on omen and girls through a camaign to
recruit and train more male volunteers. with suort rom the ational Volunteer team and
VS Jitolee, FT succeeded in recruiting male volunteers throughout its rogrammes, ith:
166 o the 500 outh volunteers being oung men (orking on eer counselling, aareness
raising and home hel)
110 o 300 o the volunteers in their home based care rogramme being males
nce FT had shon that it is ossible to imrove olic and ractice at a local level the ork
as then shared at regional and international level. VS RIS shared the examle around the
artners at the annual conerences. nd no VS RIS is orking to make sure that good
ractice is adoted b wH and SD, the most imortant intra-government level institutions
in the region.
dvocac ith artners
lthough it is ossible to do advocac ork on our on, oten it is more eective to ork incollaboration ith others.
VS collaborates ith artner organisations on advocac in various as, such as :
placing a volunteer to build advocac skills and suort the artners advocac
Suorting advocac ork led b a artner
sking artners to suort an advocac cause that VS is leading on
VS also has artnershis aimed secifcall at rogressing advocac initiatives or examle
ith national G netorks, trade unions, or coalitions.
Mp
Valuing Teachers research carried out in eal identifed a lack o meaningul articiation
o teachers reresentatives as a core roblem aecting teachers terms and conditions. The
develoed a artnershi ith the teachers uni on and arranged various volunteer lacements,
covering areas such as strategic lanning, advocac and lobbing. The then orged alliances
ith other Gs and international Gs, such as Save the hildren, and linked u ith the
local chater o the Global amaign or ducation.
The result as that the union no articiates in round table donors meetings, the ealese
government has agreed to rovide lie insurance to ermanent teachers, and a code o conduct
has been reared to imrove minimum standards.
who eads the dvocac?
There are various aroaches and, in VS, each case should be discussed b the rogramme
ofce in order to decide on the most aroriate. The olloing guidance ma hel:
Single-owner doa, vS: Here advocac is carried out b VS (sta and/or volunteers)
alone. This aroach is discouraged as VS is essentiall a artnershi-based organisation.
There ould be onl a e excetions to this rincile. For examle:
one-o advocac oortunit that is imlemented at short notice
dvocac on a ver secifc issue o interest to VS but not to our artners (e.g. the legal
rameork or volunteer agencies, access to visas, etc)
Single-owner doa, Partner (vS neutral): where a artner that is suorted b VS
carries out advocac on their on account, ithout VS involvement. This ill oten be the case,
VSOs programmework, with partners onthe ground, informsits advocacy.
VSOs advocacywork assists itsprogramme work.
2. For more inormation about each dvocac
strateg lease see .vsointernational.org
/hat-e-do/advocac
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or examle, i the advocac covers an issue that is not in VSs rogramme. In this case, the
minimum that VS should do is to be aare o the ork, and carr out a risk-analsis could it
iminge in a negative a on our volunteers or our reutation?
Single-owner doa Partner (vS supportie ut not isile): where a artner that is
suorted b VS ishes to carr out advocac on an issue that ould contribute to a VS
rogramme. VS has ull knoledge and understanding o the ork, but it ma be controversial
or cause olitical difculties, VS can usuall suort behind the scenes, but not be seen
ublicl to be suortive. This is considered as artners-on advocac, ith the artner
carring the risk. In an case o this nature VS must carr out a risk-analsis and sta
inormed o the ork as it develos.
Shared doa vS + Partner: where an advocac rogramme is shared and co-ordinated
beteen VS and a artner or set o artners. This is the most common aroach or VS i
the advocac contributes to VSs rogramme and has snerg ith our volunteer lacements.
In this case, lanning should be joint, orkload allocated according to ossibilities, and
visibilit shared.
princiles o partnershi dvocac
There are rinciles and recommendations that al secifcall to advocac ork. These are
summarised brie belo.
NEGN
dvocac should not be seen as something searate to rogramming and the lacement o
volunteers. dvocac ork should be integrated into the countr strategic lan (Sp), the
programme rea plan (pp), the programme rea Revie (pR) and the budgeting rocess.
The rocess o choosing artners and develoing joint rogrammes should take into account
the ossibilities o carring out joint advocac, as ell as their abilit to utilise volunteers ell.
JN PLNNNG / PLyNG SENGHS
I ossible, advocac should be lanned rom an earl stage ith the artners. This might
useull include joint strategic lanning and a joint steering grou.
SHE vSbLy
The rincile o conducting advocac ith artners imlies that e ill share visibilit that
accrues through the ork. n reorts roduced as art o the ork should include the logo
o each o the main author agencies. Similarl or an ublic events (conerences etc), consid-
eration should be given to ho each agenc can be credited.
FcUS N cPcy EvELPMEN
This is a ke strength o the VS model. ach iece o advocac should leave the artner in a
stronger osition. The oortunit e have to bring in volunteers ith skills i n advocac, media,
communications and olic analsis is a ke beneft e should build on. are should be taken,
hoever, because o the olitical sensitivities o conducting advocac. partners should be made
aare that although volunteers bring invaluable outside skills, the ma also have some gas in
their understanding o the local olitical situation. suall volunteers should not take a ront-
line role in advocac.
Mp LNKS stud tours
ten the best a or VS to be eective in advocac can be in caacit building and behind-
the-scenes ork. For examle in 2007 education artners rom our countries visited Malai
and Zambia in a stud tour to learn rom the education advocac exerience o the local
education coalitions. This enabled man o the artners to go back to their on countries
aterards more confdent to argue or imrovements in terms and conditions or teachers.
Volunteer dvocac placements
There are man activities a volunteer can sort and man tes o advocac activities that can be
led b volunteers, artners or rogramme managers. n the D there is a brainstormed list o
samle advocac activities a volunteer can suort.
Mp
VS in hina have laced an dvocac Volunteer ith Mangrove Suort Grou, a grou ho
ork to suort peole iving ith HIV/IDS. ne challenge or most hinese Gs is a lack
o aareness o hat is haening in other countries. Thereore one role or the volunteer has
been to collect examles o HIV communications materials rom around the orld. The volunteer
has been able to do this through her abilit to netork orldide; internet research skills and
language skills. These ere abilities reviousl missing in Mangrove, ho no eel less isolated.
Volunteers can be given a ide variet o advocac lacements. The olloing list includes examles
o hat such lacements ma involve (B. this is not an exhaustive list, just selected examles):
ong-term volunteers
ndertaking partiipator researh (using STRT), and then orking ith the programme
Manager and/or artner(s) to disseminate researh, assist ost research adoa strateg
planning, and begin advocac strateg implementation.
colleting aseline data. where volunteers collect disaggregated data at district/local level in
order to build inormation needed to share learning about services in dierent districts/areas
at the national level, and advocate or its relication nationide (modelling advocac).
working as oalition or network oordinators/assistant oordinators . oordinating netork
meetings, acilitating advocac lanning rocesses, accomaning netork members to
lobbing meetings, coordinating research, camaigns or media activities.
working on adoa apait uilding. Heling one or more organisations to build caacit
in areas such as: advocac strateg, lobbing, media ork, engagement in coalitions, etc.
Volunteers oten strengthen links and sharing beteen coalitions in the region, and ma set
u stud tours to neighbouring countries ith more exerience.
Short-term volunteers (2 eeks to 6 months):
ndertaking partner needs assessments to determine hat ork a long-term volunteer might do.
ndertaking short partiipator researh or feasiilit studies (on secifc, ocused issues that
do not require large-scale, in-deth stakeholder consultation).
Heling rogramme ofce sta, artners or coalitions/netorks to revie advocac ork alread
undertaken and plan future strategies and activities.
rganising and acilitating one o large-sale onferenes, or stud tours. rganising awareness raising/ampaigning eents such as ction Da/week activities
e.g. world Teachers Da, world IDS Da activities, or organising national level events ith
Ministers or the president etc.
Mp Working against orporal punishment in hailand
Sometimes olicies on the rovision o volunteers can bring about olic change.
In Thailand, VS sta and volunteers have been orking to combat cororal unishment in
schools or ears. This has included volunteer activities such as modelling alternative methods
or classroom management. The programme fce set a standard that VS ould onl ork
ith schools that develoed a olic banning cororal unishment. This led to VS ithdraing
rom some institutions. But the tin aroach has resulted in schools across the countr
abandoning cororal unishment.
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pRT THR: RSRH & ySIS
An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest.
Ben Franklin
his setion explains the importane of effetie researh to proide redile eidene for our
adoa work. t examines different aspets of researh and analsis, inluding not
onl the poli issue, ut also the poli enironment, sstem, and the organisations and
people inoled.
he mportane of Partiipator esearh
what is particiator Research?
wh is Research Imortant?
Methodolog
STRT
Research Methods and Sources
who could do the Research?
he ssue
Selecting a polic Issue
problem auses and Imacts
he Poli Enironment
as and Regulations
polic-Making Sstems
a making, dministration & norcement
People and rganisations
polic-Makers, poer & Inuence
poer
doa esearh & nalsis
5.Mobilise forAdvocacy Action
6.ActionAdvocacy Plan
1.BroadBackgroundResearch
2. Define the Issue
3.TargetedResearch
4.StrategicPlanning
7.Ongoing Learning& Review 8.
ReviseAdvocacy Plan
Broad Researchon Problem
Research onDefined Issues
Research on theirPolicy Context
InternalIssue Report
Published Reports
Stages
Current Stages Inputs
Outputs
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esearh & nalsis op ips!
Follo the methodolog contained in STRT
nsure research and analsis is articiator
Build a thorough understanding o both our issue and the olic context (including as in
hich social change is achieved in our social and olitical context)
place our issue in context determine i its reall imortant
nsure that our research is credible and easil understandable
Identi the causes and solutions or our olic issue
Build understanding o ke decision-makers their interests, motivations and oer bases
Identi the ke targets o our advocac, and then ork out ho to inuence them
Determine the target audience or our research reorts, then ensure the are tailored to
inuence this audience (in terms o content and timing)
he mportane of Partiipator esearh
what is particiator Research?
In order to ersuade olic-makers to change their olicies or las,ou ill need inormation. So ou need to do some research. That
could mean anthing rom combing through documents in a librar to
searching the Internet, or talking to itnesses.
VS believes that or research to be legitimate the oinions o the eole
directl aected b the olic issue must be sought. Their voices should
be used as the basis or advocac. For this reason VS recommends that
all research undertaken or commissioned b our sta and volunteers is
articiator research:
caution!
The next section o this toolkit deals ith research methodolog. Hoever, this onl contains a
brie overvie o rinciles. more detailed descrition is contained in VSs STRT (Simle
oolkit or dvocac esearch echniques). In order to lan our advocac research eectivel,
e strongl recommend that ou obtain a co o STRT at an earl stage and use this in
conjunction ith this toolkit. STRT is included on the D at the end o this toolkit, or on the
VS ebsite.
Making our research eective
I research is to be useul to olicmakers, it ill need to be:
General - providing extensive background inormation, not just selective cases and anecdotes
essile and Easil Understandale bod o good evidence, ell analsed and resented
in a user-riendl ormat
argeted - Findings resented in dierent ormats, tailored to dierent audiences, ith the
inormation needs o olic makers being taken into account
eleant - roriate to their area o ork and interests
Measurale - Incororating acts and statistics
imel to date and rovided at the right ti me
Pratiall Useful Grounded in realit, and roviding ractical solutions
jetie & urate without unsubstantiated value judgements
credile - Reliable, sourced aroriatel, using acceted methods
uthoritatie - arried out b an organisation that olic makers erceive as credible
ip
Remember: legitimac and credibilit are necessar or olic inuence. oule-hek and
referene our soures. nl use recognised and credible sources
useul lo is to use our targets or our oonents inormation here ossible (as the
cannot contest it!).
General background inormation hels to lace the issue in context, roviding the bigger
icture against hich the local roblem can be examined or examle: b roviding acts and
fgures, or researching the international and regional dimensions o a roblem. Sometimes it is
useul to reer to international human rights rameorks or conventions. See the D-rom or a
list o relevant declarations.
Research also hels to ersonalise our issue and build emath. you can do this b using
methods such as case studies, quotations rom those aected, hotos etc. s ar as ossible,
the research and the identifcation o otential solutions should be based on the voices o those
ersonall aected.
ective research should:
Focus on a roblem that directl aects disadvantaged communities
Be linked to our rogramme ork. (Indeed, man programme Managers have used the fndingso articiator research to inorm the uture direction o their hole programme rea).
ook into the root causes o roblems ound on the ground
nalse the olic environment to uncover imlementation gas
ink local, national, regional & international asects
ollect evidence in a sstematic a
wh is research imortant?
particiator research hels ou to gain a clear understanding o the causes and eects o
develoment issues rom the ersective o the eole aected, hich makes it ossible to
build a consensus about ractical solutions.
Research is the oundation or successul advocac. It is imortant or both:
Suessful adoa work - b roviding accurate evidence to suort advocac; and
n effetie adoa strateg - b enabling thorough strategic analsis
ip
Do not see data under the caret i it does not suort our case. nticiate and unearth the
arguments against ou and deal ith them in our advocac ork and reorts.
PcPy ESEcH cN: Give our advocac substance
stablish our reutation as an exert on the issue
provide easible and orkable solutions to our issue
provide ou ith case studies, anecdotes and examles to make our issue come alive
provide cost-beneft arguments, including the (oten hidden) cost o alternatives and inaction
Demonstrate ublic suort or ublic concern
Hel ou to analse our issue rom dierent ersectives
Hel to disrove mths, rumours and alse assumtions
nalse and rovide counter arguments to ositions held b stakeholders ho ma not be
smathetic to our cause
provide evidence or our ositions
xlain h revious strategies have or have not orked
provide the basis or media and ublic aareness ork
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It is said that ever dollar sent on research is orth ten sent on lobbing. I our research is
thorough, it ill be easier to develo a inning advocac strateg.
Mp Nepal Good researh gets good results
Folloing the ublication o their Valuing Teachers reort, VS eals national advocac led to
imrovements in re-school education and textbook deliver in rural areas and changes in
government olic. This included ne lie insurance or teachers, the introduction o ositive
discrimination in teacher recruitment and romotion to increase the numbers o emale, disabled
and minorit teachers and head teachers. These changes ere resonses to recommendations
made in eals 2005 reort: essons From The lassroom, and the result o months o
coordinated lobbing b VS sta, volunteers and artners.
Stes in the dvocac process where Research ould be eeded:
Methodolog
STRT: Simle oolkit or dvocac esearch echniques
VSs STRT toolkit is a comrehensive guide to carring out articiator research on an
advocac theme. It is recommended that this is used to guide advocac research.
STRT hels to refne understanding o comlex roblems, and to identi otential solutions
or areas here advocac is needed to achieve changes in olic or olic i mlementation.
STRT covers the olloing areas:
Defning the research question
arring out a literature revie (background reading beore the research)
hoosing research methods and articiants
Setting u the research itinerar and logistics
Guidance on: one-to-one intervies, ocus grous and questionnaires
nalsis o the research fndings, including ormulating recommendations and solutions
dvice and tis on riting a olic reort
Research Methods and Sources
The frst stages o research ill include gathering acts and fgures and revieing materialsalread roduced. ter this stage, there are various other research methods available:
In-deth intervies
onsultations or ocus grous
inion olls
Surves and questionnaires
omuter based eb-conerences or eb-discussions
Field visits and investigations
ase studies
pilot rojects
There are man useul sources or research, and using a ide range ill add deth, context and
interest to our ork. Remember that there are man other organisations out there collecting
inormation (including government deartments, universities and other Gs) and man
ould be illing to share it ith ou.
who could do the research?
within VS, research can be carried out b sta, volunteers or artners. ne o the big strengths
o VS is the abilit to recruit volunteers ho have research skills. when research is carried out
b a volunteer, it should be done i n collaboration ith one or more local artner organisations,
or ith a netork. The volunteer should not onl hel carr out research but should also aim to
build the caacit o the local artner.
s background or their lacement, each volunteer should be given a co o an olic
briefngs or research reorts that are relevant to their role, even i the are going to a service-
deliver job. This hels to lace their role into context, and ma also to make it ossible or
them to advocate eectivel ithin the context o their job.
The volunteer, and national civil societ colleagues, should:
Identi the causes o overt and discrimination, or olic issues
nderstand the structure o olic-making bodies
nderstand ormal and inormal olic making rocesses
Identi ke actors and institutions that make decisions about olic, as ell as those ho can
inuence olic makers
nalse the distribution o olitical oer among ke actors
Research Steps
Undertake broad background research
Outputs
Define Issue
Design ResearchProgramme(use START)
Policy context research
Undertake issue research
Strategic Planning
Targeted issue research & analysis
Background research, Internal report
Policy environment and systemsoverview (report for internal strategizing)
Issue report and communicationsmaterials (case studies, photos etc.)
Targeted & timed publishedreports for external distribution
Organisationalcommitment toone priority
Commitment toprovide resources(time, money etc)
CompletedAdvocacyStrategy
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he ssue
Selecting the ke olic issue
within VS, advocac issues tend to arise in dierent as.
Barriers arise to the imlementation o our lacement activities that could be overcome
through advocac
The disadvantaged eole that ou are orking ith identi a articular roblem that cannot
be overcome through roject ork
Develoment activities that ou suort have resulted in successes that could be relicated
more idel. dvocac can hel in sharing and scaling u the imact o the ork
Institutions hose olicies aect the lives o the oor announce ne roosals that need to be
resonded to either b resisting or modiing these roosals
These are all reactive as in hich a erceived need or advocac arises. you can also take a
roactive aroach. This ill usuall be initiated b research and analsis, or examle as art o
the ountr Strategic planning rocess. when an advocac issue is identifed in thi s a, it can be
meaningull integrated into rogramme ork, and used as a tool to achieve rogramme objectives.
The number o advocac issues it is ossible to tackle ill deend on our resources. you
should ocus our ork on onl as man objectives as ou can realisticall achieve (hich ma
be just one or each rogramme area). dvocates ho attemt to fx everthing run the risk o
changing nothing.
ool 1. he ssue choie Matrix
This tool is designed to assist ith the choice o advocac issue. See part ight or a ull descrition.
In making our choice o advocac issue, remember that:
The issue must be o relevance to our rogramme area.
The issue should be something ou care assionatel about and ant to advocate on.
you need to carr out a risk analsis to ensure that our choice o issue ill not bring harm to
VS or our artners (or that the envisaged benefts ar outeigh an risk o harm).
problem auses and Imacts
nce ou have identifed our main issue ou need to identi the causes and imacts o
the roblem.
ool 2. Prolem ree nalsis
This is a tool or analsing roblems. It also hels to
establish aims and objectives or our issue. This tool is ell knon
and can lead to roductive discussion about real causes o disadvantage.
caution!
whilst the roblem tree can be a useul tool it also has negative connotations, because it ocuses
on roblems, rather than looking at solutions. you ma ish to also use idea-generating
aroaches. reciative Inquir methods, examine ast successes and achievements, ith
a vie to relicating or imroving on these.
se articiator tools to generate ne and creative ideas.
nce ou have maed out the roblems, b using the roblem tree, ou ill ant to make sure
our reort comes alive or the reader. your research reort should include case studies relevant
to our issue and target audience.
ool 15. esearh doa case Studies
This tool rovides guidance on roducing eective research case studies.
he Poli Enironment
The olic environment includes all asects surrounding olic-making. So hile our narro
ocus might be on the legislative rocess, the broader socio-economic environment is also
imortant. you need to be aare o hat are the ressing concerns o the da including in the
media, research institutes, donors, trades unions and civil societ.
ool 16. he context, Eidene, Links Poli Framework
This tool hels ith the assessment o dierent external actors that imact uon the olic-
making rocess, and rovides ointers on ho to inuence olic and ractice.
Ke questions to be asked hen analsing the olic environment include:
re the roblems ou have identifed imortant to societ?
what are the existing olicies and las that cause these roblems and ho are the imlemented?
Ho could changes in olic hel resolve the roblems?
what te o olic change is needed (legislation, regulation, legal decision, or other)?
what are the fnancial imlications o the roosed olic change?
ne asect o the olic environment that ill have an enormous imact uon our advocac
is the level o transarenc. In some oen and democratic regimes, it is ossible to obtain all
relevant inormation through ofcial channels, and also to take art in relevant meetings and
consultations. onversel, in regimes that lack oenness it ma be difcult to meet ke decision-
makers and achieve involvement. dvocac is more likel to be successul in a more democratic
olitical sstem. Hoever VS has ound that olic or examle in Health or ducation
ministries can be inuenced in almost an countr.
as & Regulations
your research should include an existing las (acts and regulations) that ma aect our
issue. Dierent countries have dierent legislative sstems so these ill take dierent orms.
nce research has identifed legislative rovisions, it is necessar to go one ste urther, and to
research enorcement. International conventions and agreements ma need to be incororated
into national legislation and successull imlemented, or the ma be directl alicable.
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To change the world, we must frst understand it
Former Secretar General Kof nnan
polic-Making Sstems
Dierent countries have dierent legislative sstems, hich ill imact uon their olic sstem.
Sometimes the rovincial or local government might be the target or our advocac rather than
national government. There are also dierent legal sstems (civil la, common la and religious la).
critical element in the success o an advocac camaign is a good understanding o the olic-
making sstem o our countr. This includes the ormal and inormal as in hich olicies are
made at dierent levels. This analsis hels ou to understand the oortunities that exist, including
critical oints o timing (olic indos).
This knoledge also revents Gs rom making tactical mistakes that can alienate olic-makers.
In man countries, government and olitical leaders remain scetical about including civil societ
in olic-making, believing that the lack aroriate exerience, skills, and knoledge. The a to
overcome this ercetion is to become a skilled and knoledgeable advocate.
Being aware o the political environment is very important. There are times
when our fndings have not been taken seriously, or have been set aside,because the political timing was not right or the research came at an
inopportune time in terms o the politics around the research fndings.
Mavuto Bamusi o the Malai conomic Justice etork
a making, dministration & norcement
polic-making rocesses should be maed and understood. This includes the legislative rocess,
hich can be quite comlex. These rocesses aect timing and oortunities or inut and inuence.
It is also necessar to ma and understand ho olicies are administered and imlemented. In
man cases, las are agreed on aer but not enorced. Factors aecting imlementation ill
include: the nature o the bureaucratic rocesses, incentives, caacit, and the level o racticalit
and accetabilit o the olic.
In this categor, it is necessar to include research into actors such as budget allocations. Some
VS artner organisations carr out budget monitoring o major ministries, to determine i unding
is arriving here it has been romised.
peole and rganisations
PLcy-MKES, PWE & NFLUENcE
peole and organisations are at the heart o olic-making. To succeed in inuencing olic, it
is necessar to understand their motivations, and the a in hich oer and inuence ork.Successul advocac involves building and maintaining relationshis that enable ou to inuence
olic-making in avour o our issue.
First, identi the institutions and individuals involved in decision-making. This ill include all
stakeholders associated ith the desired olic change, or examle:
Decision-makers (major oerul laers regional, national or local, here relevant)
dvisors to decision-makers
Inuencers (eg - nesaer editors)
Disadvantaged eole
llies and suorters
onents
ndecided on the issue (ho ou ma be able to inuence)
ext, research and analsis is needed to uncover:
Relationshis and tensions beteen the laers
Their agendas and constraints
Their motivations and interests
what their riorities are - rational, emotional, and ersonal
ool 3. eision and nuene Mapping
This tool hels to analse decision-makers and their sources o inuence.
ool 4. llies and pponents Matrix
This is a matrix that is used to categorise the allies and oonents o our advocac issue.
ool 23. ther Plaer nalsis
This tool is a matrix that can be used to consider other organisations orking in our feld, and
the nature o our relationshi ith them.
ool 5. venn iagram
tool to ma stakeholders involved in the olic sstem, and the relationshis beteen them.
nce ou kno and understand olic-makers and the a the think, ou are better able to
judge the channel and tone needed to reach them. The ill also assist to identi the best
targets (and indirect targets) or our advocac ork.
ip
Kee a database o organisations and eole, and udate as ne inormation is received.
Remember ersonal inormation, as ell as organisational since this ma hel in
building relationshis.
PWE
poer is a measure o a ersons abilit to control the environment around them, including the
behaviour o other eole. In historical terms, it has been monoolised b the e, creating
idesread overt, marginalisation and the violation o human rights. Much o civil societ
orks to reverse this attern and bring reviousl excluded grous and individuals into arenas
o decision-making, hile at the same time transorming ho oer is understood and used.
ights based pproahes and nlusie Programmes
VS believes that overt is a result o unequal access to a livelihood, education, healthcare,
olitical articiation and access to justice. ll o these are uni versal human rights.
B inclusive rogrammes e mean those that:
1. Identi those eole ho are at most risk o exclusion. Ticall, exclusion occurs on the basis
o gender, race, class, disabilit, mental health, HIV and IDS, age, language, religion and
sexual orientation.2. Strengthen the voice o excluded grous and strengthen the abilit o dut bearers (or examle
Ministries o ducation and Health, local government and other service roviders) to resond.
n understanding o ho oer oerates is vital to successul advocac. This includes the
oer sources o the organisations and individuals involved in olic-making and the roles and
balance o oer amongst these. you should also analse our on oer sources, and lan
ho to use and develo these.
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I you want to change anything, you need frst o all to think about your
source o power.
harles Hand
ool 6. Fore Field nalsis
This is a tool or assessing the driving and restraining orces o an advocac issue. This hels to
identi the aroaches that are likel to be most eective in changing the balance o oer in
avour o our issue (shiting the equilibrium).
Mp Sometimes just an implied threat an ring aout hange.
VS has suorted the advocac task orce o the ational ssociation o peole iving ith
HIV/IDS in eal to tr and bring about imrovements in service rovision in the Teku hosital.
There as still no rogress ater more than our months o meetings, including ith the
hosital director. So TF gave an ultimatum that i their demands ere not met, 200 HIV and
IDS activists ould rotest directl to the prime Minister. This resulted in a meeting ith the
Health Minister and rogress on man o their demands, including a ne 15-bed HIV unit at
the hosital hich ill remain oen around the clock and the romise to establish a centre o
excellence or HIV and IDS.
dvocac is most eective i it is ocused on the individuals or grous that have the greatest
caacit to introduce the desired olic change. These are called targets.
nce e have a clear icture o the decision-making sstem, e ill be able to i denti our
advocac targets. ten, the most obvious advocac target is not accessible or smathetic. This
means it is necessar to ork through others to reach them. This involves orking ith those
ho can inuence those ith inuence and ho have smathetic vies, rather than targeting
the decision-maker directl. These are sometimes called indiret targets.
This means that in addition to determining targets, ou need to assess the most eective as
in hich to inuence them. This involves research into the osition and motivations o each
actor, and their sources o advice and inuence, in order to decide on the best channels or
reaching them on our issue. This aroach is knon as inuence maing.
ool 3. eision and nuene Mapping
The main tool to ma and analse decision-makers and their sources o inuence.
The more inormation ou have about the actors that ma inuence and aect olic change,
the easier it is to devise an eective advocac strateg. The olloing is an examle hich
shos some ossible indirect targets that could hel to inuence a minister.
NEc GES NFLUENcE HE MNSE
These indirect targets can also be lobbied in a a that encourages them to lobb other indirect
targets, thus making the aroach more accetable to the Minister. For examle, an G
lobbies a think tank to make aroaches to the permanent Secretar or Secial dviser, ho
then aroaches the Minister. r a riend or amil member o the Mini ster aroaches his ie,
ho then tackles the issue ith her husband.
ip
ever underestimate the inuence o donors and researchers in the olic-making rocess.
Mone talks Research rovides the ultimate inormation oer.
The Minister
Ministers family
Ministers Advisers
Special Advisers
Personal Secretary
Permanent Secretary
InternationalOrganisations
Junior MinistersPresidentialCommission
Think TanksRegionalOrganisations
Indirect targets
Opposition Party Trade Unions Business Leaders
Ministers partner
NGOs Academics/Scientists
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pRT FR: STRTGI pIG FR DVy
This section exlains hat an advocac strateg is, including the elements that build a strateg.
t also explains the steps needed to deelop an effetie strateg.
doa Strateg Explained
The Value o Strateg
producing a Strateg Document
Strategi nalsis
Introduction
Defne the Issue
ssess the xternal Situation (nvironmental analsis)
ssess the Internal Situation (rganisational analsis)
ssess other Stakeholders
Strategies or Dealing ith onents and llies
Risk nalsis
Strategi choie
Introduction
Defne the rganisational iche
Defne im, bjectives, Indicators and Ke sks
hecklist ssessing your Strateg
Strategic planning
5.Mobilise forAdvocacy Action
6.ActionAdvocacy Plan
1.BroadBackgroundResearch
2. Define the Issue
3.TargetedResearch
4.StrategicPlanning
7.Ongoing Learning& Review 8.
ReviseAdvocacy Plan
Stages
Current Stage Inputs
Outputs
OrganisationalAnalysis
StakeholderAnalysis
Issue (problemand solution)
EnvironmentalAnalysis
Risk Analysis
VSO Nicheand approach
Action Plan,with budget
Consult on andfinalise strategy
Aim, Objectives,Indicators andKey Asks
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doa Strategi Planning op ips!
Kee it relativel simle dont be too ambitious at frst
I ou are ne to strategic lanning use a acilitator to lead a orksho
Make our strategic lanning articiator in order to gain commitment
Ma our stakeholders, deciding ho to consult at each stage
se a variet o tools, ith creative methods, to ensure that analsis includes creative thought
Base our Strateg on the research ou have carried out
The choice o olic issue should be based on analsis o the develoment, countr and olic
environment, as ell as VSs rogramme riorities
Formulate our asks in order to gain maximum suort or our aim
xlore as o joint orking netorks and alliances
Identi rimar targets and as o reaching them (messages and activities)
nsure our objectives are clear and ocused
Dont orget risk analsis
doa Strateg ExplainedStrateg is concerned ith deciding the nature and scoe o an organisations activities. what
the advocac ill be like, here and ho it ill ork, and ho its results ill be measured. The
attern o activities in strateg include:
The allocation o a set o available resources b the organisation.
Managing the netork o relationshis beteen stakeholders.
sing tailored messages to ersuade target audiences.
Strateg should look or our cometitive advantage or niche, and ill rovide direction, hich
hels organisations to achieve their aims.
The Value o Strateg
dvocac can be comlicated, but a ell-ocused and defned strateg can simli things b
roviding a route ma.
The olic changes e ish to see are contested (i others agreed, the ould
alread have been adoted). we have limited resources, eseciall hen
comared to government and other organisations e ma be tring to
inuence. Thereore e need to harness the resources e do have at
our disosal; strategic lanning hels us to achieve this.
ne ke success actor or advocac is to have
idesread suort and articiation. Strategic
lanning is a sstematic aroach that makes
it ossible or others to be aare o our
lans and to become involved. In our
lanning orksho ou should
break don broad aims into
manageable stes.
he step-wise approah
See the D-Rom or some dvantages and hallenges o Strategic planning or dvocac
producing a Strateg Documentsuall to develo an dvocac Strateg ou ill hold a strateg orksho or at least a series
o meetings ith other colleagues. The more articiator the strategic rocess is (ithin
limits), the greater the likelihood o commitment to the end strateg.
ip
Engage an expert failitator: I ou are ne to strategic lanning, it ma be desirable to have
a acilitator to run a Strategic planning orksho or ou. The can design and manage the
rocess, mediate beteen diering actions, and handle the varied concerns o articiants.
I this is not ossible, share out tasks beteen various members o our grou
Keep it simple: Design a simle rocess ithout too man tools. se just a e o the tools rom
part ight o this manual. lso, use simle terminolog here ossible, and clari commonl
used terms beore beginning, to avoid misunderstanding.
imesale to deelop an doa Strateg
There is no defnitive time scale or running a rocess but e recommend the olloing as
a minimum:
Preparation: Background research and lanning (identi stakeholders & decide on their level
o involvement; examine existing situation and internal organisational exeriences; external
environment, designing the articiative rocess etc.). t least two das.
Partiipator strateg proess: This is the ke orksho stage or strategic analsis and
decision-making. im or as much articiation as ossible rom ke stakeholders, but
ithin budget and resource constraints. t least two das (more i volunteers / artners/
disadvantaged eole are consulted searatel).
rafting: writing u the drat strateg. wo das. (Ti do it as soon as ossible ater the
orksho, beore ou orget the discussions).
consultation: Drat strateg sent out to all those ho ma have some role in delivering the
strateg or hose advice ould be valuable. t least a two-week onsultation period.
collation: ollate and revie comments, make necessar amendments to the strateg to create
fnal document, send out fnal strateg document. ne da.
Activities to achieve
year 1 objectives
Year 1 Objectives
Project aim
Activities to achieveyear 2 objectives
Year 2 Objectives
Activities to achieve
year 3 objectives
Year 3 Objectives
Activities
Outcomes
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SUcUE F N vccy SEGy cUMEN
The olloing is a basic structure ou can ollo. Dont let it get too long or no-one ill read it.
I ou ant other arts it might be best to ut them i n as annexes:
lear Title, and ontents age
Short Introduction and short Methodolog
dvocac Issue
ontext nalsis a descrition o the environment and hat it means or the advocac
problem & Solution
dvocac im
dvocac bjectives
dvocac sks
Risk nalsis
nnexes, e.g. ossibl ith analsis tables, action lan, budget narrative etc.
Strategi nalsis
Introduction
The main areas that need to be analsed are:
he issue
Enironmental analsis (external situation)
rganisational analsis (the internal situation, e.g. - skills, resources and other lans)
Stakeholder analsis (e.g. - allies, cometitors, adversaries and targets)
isk analsis
These are covered in more detail belo. The order i n hich the are considered should var
according to individual circumstances.
Defne the Issue
The choice o issue as covered in part Three. It should comlement our rogramme ork,
and it should be an imortant theme that, i tackled successull, ill make a real dierence to
the lives o the disadvantaged. Ideall b the time ou come to the Strategic planning orksho
ou have agreement or the main issue ou are going to ork on. But in the orksho ou ma
change the nuance, or the sub-theme o the issue. The other urose o the Strategic planning
orksho is to discuss all asects o the issue and in suort and bu-in or a sustained
eriod o ork on that issue.
ools that help determine our issue.
s ell as tools described in part ne, e.g. The Issue hoice Matrix (Tool 1) or problem Tree
nalsis (Tool 2) ou could use.
ool 19. creatie rawing
This tool encourages intuitive thinking about the imrovement o a current situation. It is a
creative envisioning tool that can hel to generate a uture vision.
ssess the xternal Situation (nvironmental analsis)
To develo an eective advocac strateg, ou need to understand the broader environment in
hich the organisation oerates (and to hich the issue relates). seul tools include:
ools 6. Fore Field nalsis
This tool is helul to assess the driving and restraining orces o an advocac issue (the actors
that are orking to romote olic change and those that are reventing this rom haening).
ool 7. PESLE External nalsis
This tool hels to scan or revie the broader environment, and to sort and analse ke actors
that ma aect the advocac camaign.
nvironmental analsis should also consider the question o timing, hich is a vital element o
strateg ormulation. Ke questions might include
what is the timing or the legislative rocess?
when are ke meetings hen decisions are taken?
re there elections coming u? The might mess u our schedule, but might be an oortunit.
Mp: Working towards free health are
VS believes that health care or the oor should be ree at the oint o service. DFID also
orks to this aim. n ofcial in the health team at DFID has ound that their major successes
in inuencing government olicies come hen the resident is u or re-election. ering ree
health care is a ver attractive olic during an election camaign. The lesson thereore is that
i ou are lanning an advocac strateg to the health ministr ou should begin a ear or so
beore the election date, and build u. you need to have our targets convinced at the time the
election maniesto is decided.
ssess the Internal Situation (rganisational analsis)
your organisational resources aect our caacit to do the advocac ork, and ill determineho and ith hom ou collaborate. n organisational skills and resources audit could include
the olloing asects:
N PcUL:
esoures: ook at the fnancial, hsical and human resources that are available to ork on
the advocac roject. Include the undraising otential o the advocac roject.
Knowledge & Skills: Identi the knoledge and skills that are available or can be dran uon
in order to do eective advocac. re there knoledge and skills gas that need to be flled?
Should ou do this in house, or b joining others ith the exertise?
I ou are looking more idel at advocac ork in an organisation, there are some deeer
organisational actors that can be assessed. In articular, check that our advocac contributes
to our organisations vision and mission, hels to ulfl our overall cororate objectives and is
integrated into our broader organisational strateg.
Physical
Tangible
Resources
Financial
Intangible
Technology
Human
Knowledge & Skills
CultureReputation
MotivationCommunication
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ools that an help with nternal nalsis
ool 12. SW nalsis
This is a commonl used tool or undertaking an organisational assessment and is used
to consider the Strengths, Weaknesses, ortunities and hreats relevant to the
advocac camaign.
ool 13. doa Self ssessment
tool to hel ith identiing strengths and eaknesses.
ool 14. change Management eerg
diagram shoing the essence o change in articular, hat lies beneath the surace or
managers and olic-inuencers seeking to achieve change.
ool 22. Pathwas of nuene
diagram that can be used as a guide hen determining advocac strategies.
ssess ther Stakeholders
dvocac should be a delierate rocess, involving intentional actions. Thereore, beore
choosing an aroriate advocac strateg, it should be clear ho ou are tring to inuence.
when ou have identifed our issue ou ill be clear hich individuals are aected b the issue
or can inuence a decision on it. These eole are collectivel termed stakeholders.
Be aare o all the otential stakeholders. It is useul to break this large grou don into
smaller categories o like-minded eole in order to recognise here articiants ft into the
camaign. These ma include:
isadantaged people peole hose lives ill be imroved b the olic change.
Disadvantaged eole are the most imortant stakeholder grou, but the can oten be assive
stakeholders (hereas allies are activel involved).
nternal stakeholders peole ithin our on organisation ho are involved in the advocac
roject in some a e.g. sta, volunteers, management board etc. Some ma be onl lukearm
about the advocac roject or be resource cometitors.
llies peole ho are on our side either because the ill directl beneft rom the olic
changes, or because the ant to bring about these changes or reasons o justice.
dersaries or opponents peole ho are oosed to the olic change. The ma be activel
oosed to the olic change. r the ma be ignorant or uniormed these could be otential
allies, given greater understanding. dversaries could be the targets o our advocac camaign.
argets - peole hom ou ish to inuence. primar targets are those ith the abilit to aect
our objective directl. Secondar targets are those ho can i nuence rimar targets.
peole can be in more than one o these categories at an one time. ter listing the main
stakeholders ou ill have to consider ho to ork ith them eg hether the should be
involved in the strategic lanning or not. See the D or more on stakeholder involvement in
the strategic rocess.
ool 9. nolement of the isadantaged
ssists ith the rocess o involving disadvantaged eole in the strateg rocess.
In addition to deciding on the involvement (or otherise) o various stakeholders in the strateg
rocess, the a in hich stakeholders are dealt ith in the camaign is a major art o the
strateg rocess itsel.
MPPNG ELNSHPS bEWEEN SKEHLES
Stakeholder analsis can also be used to ma relationshis beteen stakeholders, avenues o
inuence and oer relations. poer maing is essential or lanning and calculating risks.
you can also then consider the easibilit o moving eole - e.g. turning adversaries into allies.
ools
ool 3. eision and nuene Mapping
This tool hels to ma and analse decision-makers and their sources o inuence.
ool 15. Power Mapping (venn iagram)
This tool hels to ma the relative oer and relationshis beteen dierent targets.
Strategies or Dealing ith onents and llies
The main strategies or dealing ith opponents are likel to be:
persuading them that our osition is right, or eakening their oosition to our osition
Reducing their inuence (oten b aecting their credibilit b successull countering
their arguments)
Seeking some common ground on some issues and agreeing to disagree on others
The main things ou need to fnd out about our oonents are:
wh do the oose ou?
Ho activel ill the oose ou? will the be reactive (just counteracting our moves)
or roactive?
what ill the do to challenge ou? what battleground are the likel to choose?
Ho much oer do the have (mone, inuence, numbers)?
what are their strategies and tactics?
what are their olicies and belies? re there areas here ou might agree?
who inuences them? who is inuenced b them?
SEGES F ELNG WH LLES
The main strategies or dealing ith allies are likel to be:
persuading the all that our osition is right
persuading the all that the issue is imortant enough to arrant action
Building alliances
The main things ou need to fnd out about our allies are:
Ho ell do the suort our advocac issue?
Do the have an misgivings about our advocac camaign? I so, hat are the?
what do the hoe to gain rom the advocac?
Ho ell resourced are the in terms o the camaign?
what are the illing to do to suort the camaign?
Ho involved and inormed do the exect to be?
Do the have issues ith an other rosective allies?
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The rincile ojoint engagement should come in the s