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A Background Note for the Workshop on the Development of Human Rights Training for Humanitarian Actors
What Is a 'Rights-Based Approach' to Humanitarian Assistance/Development?
What Does the Term 'Rights-Based Programming' Mean?
Some Conceptualizations1
- "A rights-based approach to development describes situations not simply in terms of human needs, or of developmental requirements, but in terms of society's obligations to respond to the inalienable rights of individuals, empowers people to demand justice as a right, not as charity, and gives communities a moral basis from which to claim international assistance when needed2".
- "A rights-based approach to development sets the achievement of human rights as an objective of development. It uses thinking about human rights as a scaffolding of development policy. It invokes the international apparatus of human rights accountability in support of development action. In all of these, it is concerned with not just civil and political (CP) rights (the right to a trial, not to be tortured). but also with economic, social and cultural rights (ESC) (the right to food, housing, a job)." [Further] the implementation of a rights-based approach implies that performance standards be set, though these are best negotiated locally3"
- " A rights-based approach to programming means that we must be mindful in our development work of the basic principles of human rights that have been universally recognised and which underpin both CRC and CEDAW: inter alia, the rights to self-determination, peace and security. Among human rights instruments, CRC and CEDAW are the most widely ratified and the most directly relevant instruments to the UNICEF mandate4."
- "An approach: a coherent body of principles, goals, standards, strategies, action plans, programmes and procedures which respond to a particular vision, values and interest; based on the notion of rights, and more specifically on human rights: consequently, our principles, goals standards¼must be consistent with the values and principles underlying the idea of human rights (human dignity, non-discrimination, equality before the law¼). In addition, our programmes and intervention should ultimately aim at the promotion, respect and protection of human rights5".
- "I have no idea what we are really talking about when we talk about a 'rights-based approach'-but the term is used all the time6".
- A 'human rights approach to development' "sees poverty as a violation of human rights and places elimination of poverty as the primary goal of development assistance7".
- "A rights-based approach focuses deliberately and explicitly on people realising their rights. A key difference between needs and rights is that, while needs can exist in isolation from others, rights always trigger responsibilities. A rights-based approach to relief and development helps us to (a) take responsibility for the human rights impact of our work and (b) hold others accountable for their human responsibilities.8"
1.These definitions were taken from materials reviewed for this workshop and exploration of over 120 websites using the terms 'rights-based approach' or 'rights-based programming'. Many organisations use these terms in materials that are available on the Internet but do not define them.
2.Kofi Annan, UN Secretary General, 1998.
3.Overseas Development Institute, "What Can we do with a Rights-Based Approach to Development?", Briefing Paper, 1999 (3) September.
4.UNICEF Guidelines for human rights programming approach
5.A personal perspective offered by a workshop participant.
6.A headquarters representative of a humanitarian organisation).
7.AFCOA Human Rights Policy and Strategy Paper, 2001.
8.The CARE Human Rights Initiative Basic Introduction to Human Rights and Rights-Based Programming Workbook includes a session on Principles of Rights-Based Programming that identifies "fundamental principles of rights-based programming."
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