How human rights organizations can bridge gap between research, policy formulation and implementation to achieve objectives

Human rights organizations have played a pivotal role in promoting and protecting human rights globally. Their efforts have brought about significant changes in the way individuals, governments, and institutions address human rights issues.

However, there is still a significant gap between research, policy formulation, and implementation. This gap undermines the effectiveness of human rights organizations in achieving their objectives, and therefore, needs to be addressed urgently.

The gap between research, policy formulation, and implementation is not novel to human rights organizations. Indeed, many other organizations have faced similar challenges when trying to translate research findings into effective policies that can be implemented.

However, the gap is particularly pronounced when it comes to human rights issues. This is because human rights are often highly sensitive and controversial issues that have complex social, political, cultural, and legal dimensions.

Moreover, human rights violations are often intertwined with other social problems such as poverty, discrimination, and inequality. As such, addressing human rights issues requires a multi-dimensional and interdisciplinary approach that involves input from different stakeholders.

One way that human rights organizations can bridge the gap between research, policy formulation, and implementation is by fostering collaboration between researchers, policy makers, and implementers.

Collaboration can help in several ways. First, it can promote a shared understanding of the problem, its causes, and implications. Second, it can lead to the development of evidence-based policies that are grounded in research findings and best practices. Third, it can engender a sense of ownership and accountability among all stakeholders, which can improve the likelihood of successful implementation.

To foster collaboration, human rights organizations can promote dialogue and consultation between researchers, policy makers, and implementers. This can be done through various means such as workshops, roundtables, and policy briefings. During these events, stakeholders can discuss research findings, best practices, policy options, and implementation challenges. They can also engage in critical analysis and evaluation of existing policies and programs to determine their effectiveness.

Another way that human rights organizations can bridge the gap between research, policy formulation, and implementation is by providing technical assistance and capacity building to policy makers and implementers.

Technical assistance can include training on human rights principles and standards, data collection and analysis, program monitoring and evaluation, and policy implementation.

Capacity building can help policy makers and implementers to develop the skills, knowledge, and resources needed to implement effective policies and programs.

To provide technical assistance and capacity building, human rights organizations can partner with universities, research institutions, and other organizations that specialize in these areas.

These partnerships can help to leverage the expertise and resources of different stakeholders and promote a comprehensive and integrated approach to addressing human rights issues.

Conclusion

Bridging the gap between research, policy formulation, and implementation is critical for the effectiveness of human rights organizations. To achieve this, human rights organizations should foster collaboration between researchers, policy makers, and implementers, and provide technical assistance and capacity building to policy makers and implementers. These efforts can help to ensure that human rights issues are addressed in a comprehensive and effective manner that respects the rights and dignity of all individuals.

By Joseph Kobla Wemakor

The writer is a staunch human rights activist, National SDGs Champion and Founder/Executive Director of Human Rights Reporters Ghana (HRRG)