APF programme supports NHRIs to partner with communities on human rights

Representatives from 19 Asia Pacific NHRIs recently completed the APF’s new online Human Rights Community-led Development Programme.

Building resilient communities is vital to protecting and promoting human rights. To strengthen their community engagement, representatives from 19 National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs) in the Asia Pacific recently completed the APF’s new online Human Rights Community-led Development (HRCLD) Programme.

Held over seven weeks, from 24 February to 13 April, the programme introduced participants to the HRCLD approach, which supports NHRIs to work closely with communities to identify and address local human rights challenges using community knowledge and solutions.

Through this approach, NHRIs can support communities to:

Understand and speak up about their rights
Build resilience and self-reliance
Promote inclusion, equality, and non-discrimination
Improve conditions and wellbeing

The course featured four modules covering the foundations of HRCLD, practical implementation, applying a gender lens, and key lessons from case studies. Weekly live sessions, with Arabic and Russian interpretation available, provided additional opportunities for discussion and peer learning.

The course was co-facilitated by Dr. Jill Chrisp, APF Gender Consultant, and Aishath Fasoha, APF Manager of Gender Equality and Capacity Development. Many components of the course were informed by lessons from the 2022 Pacific HRCLD pilot programme and contributions from HRCLD practitioners in the Cook Islands and Fiji.

To support member institutions in applying the HRCLD approach in their work, the APF has also published a guide: Building Human Rights Communities: A guide to human rights community-led development for NHRIs.