1. National Network for Children Sofia, Bulgaria 29-30 June 2010Ad
Advocacy Workshop
National Network for Children
Sofia, Bulgaria
29-30 June 2010

2. day 1

3. Addressing differences in POWER
what is advocacy?
advocacy is……
influencing to change
knowledge, attitudes and behaviour
(in relation to your issue)
policy
practice
Addressing differences in POWER

4. what advocacy IS NOT concept target audience objective
how do you measure success?
behaviour change – information, education and communication
individuals or groups
raise awareness, increase understanding
change in knowledge or skills
Public relations
consumers, donors, general public
improve brand recognition
improved public perception, increased donations
community mobilisation
Community members & leaders
community empowered to take action
issue-specific process and outcome indicators
Advocacy
Public institutions and policymakers
change in policies, practice & funding
desired changes achieved

5. the different levels of advocacy…….
e.g. International MDGs conference
Int'l
e.g. child trafficking policies, early warning systems
Regional
e.g. health, education, food security and child protection policies
National
Provincial/District/Local Government
e.g. provision of alternative basic education to pastoralist children
e.g. social rules about breastfeeding
Community
e.g. who works, who goes to school
Family
Inter-personal
e.g. hand-washing, anti-smacking

6. rights based advocacy naming the right assuring it is enjoyed
defining nature of right
identifying violations
incorporating into law
assuring it is enjoyed
making duty bearers and violators accountable
seeking justice for victims
making the system responsive
A rights-based approach to advocacy implies many different meanings and strategies. If working on children’s rights, this involves using the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UN CRC) to push for the enforcement of child rights at the national or local level. Advocacy on economic, social and cultural rights – enshrined in the UN CRC – has advanced considerably over the last decade. However, while policy-makers are increasingly open to the rights language, advocacy for children’s rights and economic, social and cultural rights more broadly is very challenging. This stems from the elusive legal and budgetary challenges of enforcement and ideological differences about who is responsible for addressing poverty and inequality (i.e. who the duty bearers are).
achieving broad acceptance
changing behaviours and values
engaging the public as citizens

7. advocating for child rights
example of a definition……
Acting with and on behalf of children to influence the policies and actions of others to improve the fulfilment of child rights

8. what role for NNC and its members?
you can advocate with children and their families
OR with your support, they can advocate for themselves
OR you can advocate for them, on their behalf

9. advocating in a network
challenges
co-operation is time-consuming
may be hard to agree objectives
may have to compromise
can lose distinctive identities
conflicting agendas
opponents can exploit differences
some organisations may dominate
benefits
link work on different levels
common voice – powerful
wider base, wider audience
more resources
more skills and expertise
strengthens civil society
build capacity of others
unity, solidarity
avoid competition

10. some tips for making it work…….
consensus on shared priority (overarching) issues
shared change objectives
joint advocacy asks
joint advocacy strategy
transparent co-ordination mechanism
thematic steering groups with clear responsibilities
continuous monitoring and information sharing

11. the advocacy cycle develop &implement plan of action gather evidence
understand the context
(political analysis)
develop &implement plan of action
gather evidence
identify the Issue
(problem analysis)
mobilise resources
M&E
involve children
select influencing influencing strategies
set change objectives
develop clear messages
know who can make change happen

12. understanding the context (1)
understanding power dynamics
visible power formal rules and structures
hidden power who really controls agenda
invisible power values, norms, beliefs, social hierarchy

13. understanding the context (2)
political analysis entails understanding
how policy issues are identified
how policies are formulated and implemented
both formal and informal processes
roles, responsibilities and balance of power of institutions and individuals
how, when and where to act to achieve maximum impact

14. setting change objectives
a change objective defines concretely
what will be accomplished
with whom
how
in what period of time
Setting your objectives using a problem tree analysis
Turn the problem tree into an objective tree by turning each problem into an issue to address and then change. For example, if ‘ignorance’ is given as a cause, then the objective box would read ‘reduce ignorance’ or ‘provide education’.
Do the same with consequences, so an effect that says ‘high rate of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs)’ would read ‘reduce number of STDs’. This helps identify key problems, objectives and indicators, thought not all the objectives may be relevant to the project.

15. SMART objectives Specific Measurable Achievable Realistic Time-bound
tip: objectives should be change-oriented, not activity oriented
For example “Decision makers x y and z will clearly demonstrate their awareness of the implications of child rights” is change-oriented, while “to raise awareness of decision makers about child rights” is activity-oriented.

16. exercise: critiquing objectives (1)
original objectives
To mobilise and educate women and law enforcement agencies by the year 2001.
Improve health service delivery in rural areas in order to reduce child mortality.

17. exercise: critiquing objectives (2)
Rural women involved in savings clubs in three villages will have been educated about domestic violence and their rights with regard to family law. They will be able to form violence prevention groups at the community level within thirty months.
By 2011, 50% of children in five locations in the country will be covered by high-quality essential health services (where the constituents of essential health services are defined and agreed benchmarks used to assess quality).

18. day 2

19. recapping SMART objectives
Specific
Measurable
Achievable
Realistic
Time-bound
tip: objectives should be change-oriented, not activity oriented
For example “Decision makers x y and z will clearly demonstrate their awareness of the implications of child rights” is change-oriented, while “to raise awareness of decision makers about child rights” is activity-oriented.

20. who can make change happen?
a stakeholder analysis is useful to:
identify who is interested in your issue (targets & influentials)
better understand their interests & attitudes
identify allies & opponents
assess who should be involved when
tip: find out what they know and really care about

21. influencing your targets
inform
inform
persuade
move to action

22. advocacy approaches approach your role advantages disadvantages
co-operative:
working with the government to find solutions
insider
develop relationships
gain trust
compromise values
exclude discordant voices
confrontational:
forcing an issue onto the agenda
complete outsider
higher profile
strong leverage
freedom of action
damage future relations
marginalised, radical
lose funding
persuasive: presenting evidence in order to sway your targets
critical insider
more open minded
less aggressive
conducive to forging alliances
Are you perceived as just “sitting on the fence”?
Less sharp and ‘shocking’ messages for campaigning

23. knowing your audiences
Number of people
Complexity of message
Level 1: General public,
new supporters, children
Level 2: Committed supporters, volunteers
(no brief)
Level 3: Volunteers, campaigners journalists, All staff
Level 5: Specialist contacts, eg MPs, correspondents
Level 4: Opinion formers,
NGOs, Trustees
Simple
Complex
Targeted audience
People join the funnel at any level.
The aim is to push people into the “knowledge funnel”:
moving their knowledge up the levels in time

24. developing clear messages
keep it simple
put your ‘frame’ around the issue (highlight your perspective)
use information that will be locally relevant
use clear facts and numbers creatively
allow your audience to reach their own understanding
present a solution if possible

25. the one-minute message
statement the central idea of the message
evidence supports statement with accessible facts and figures
example adds a human face to the message
action what you want the target to do
desired

26. conveying your messages
source whom will the audience find credible and respond to?
format which ways are more appropriate to reach specific audiences?
timing which is the best time to deliver your message?
place what location can enhance your credibility & political impact?

27. make your problem their problem
lobbying
what? 1:1 communication with key targets and influentials
how? visits, briefings, conversations
why? to educate and convince them to support and advance your agenda
ultimately you have to
make your problem their problem

28. preparing for a lobbying visit
before
set objectives for the meeting
rehearse difficult questions and responses
during
introduce yourself, the issue and the solution
communicate clearly what action you want your target to take
say that you are willing to help with information and support
do not avoid controversial topics but remain calm
try to get a commitment from the decision-maker
after
make notes and evaluate your visit with colleagues
send a thank you note

29. lobbying politicians do don’t face-to-face meetings
use clear messages and ‘killer’ facts
share ‘cutting edge’ research & reports
establish yourself as the expert
show them you know how the process works
win over their assistants
provide concise, relevant, to the point input
always be available
don’t
go in if you haven’t done your homework
try too hard….
impose your views
fudge it if you are not saying anything new…..

30. Ad
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