Advocacy is the active support of an idea or cause expressed through strategies and methods that influence the opinions and decisions of people and organisations. In the social and economic development context the aims of advocacy are to create or change policies, laws, regulations, distribution of resources or other decisions that affect people’s lives and to ensure that such decisions lead to implementation. Such advocacy is generally directed at policymakers including politicians, government officials and public servants, but also private sector leaders whose decisions impact upon peoples’ lives, as well as those whose opinions and actions influence policymakers, such as journalists and the media, development agencies and large NGOs. By “pro-poor advocacy” we mean advocacy for political decisions and actions that respond to the interests of people who directly face poverty and disadvantage. For those pursuing the goal of equitable and pro-poor climate change adaptation, mitigation and resilience access, advocacy as a means to bring about change can be appropriate in a range of circumstances, including:

(a) Where government and climate change based international organisations’ plan and policies could have the effect of reinforcing the adaptation, mitigation and resilience of climate change affects.

(b) When appropriate policy change could be expected to improve climate change affected people’s lives and livelihoods. For example, the adoption and mitigation of climate change affects and broadcasting plan and policies that enables community-based organisations, local and national government to establish their information, knowledge, services and resources and make ensure the access of affected communities and people in these essential elements.

(c) As part of a wider programme of support for pro-poor adaptation and mitigation access. For example, the impact and effectiveness of role and responsibilities of local and national duty bearers and state guardians such as local parliamentarian, parliamentarian committees along with national and international organisations in compliance to the climate change mitigation, adaptation and resilience may be improved by advocacy efforts to adopt and mainstream good practice such as community participation in management or use of free and open source of press and electronic media. In this aspect, advocacy is inherently political and an understanding of political dynamics is at the heart of effective advocacy.

Even the most clear-minded advocacy for pro-poor climate change affect; mitigation, resilience and adaptation policies can meet resistance for various reasons, including lack of political will, bureaucratic inertia, and counter arguments from well-resourced interest groups pursuing their own advocacy efforts. Effective advocacy therefore requires research to map out the policy terrain, the principal actors, the political relations and the interests at stake. In the policy field of mitigation, resilience and adaptation this terrain typically will include government departments, communications regulators, telecommunications service providers, media organisations, sector associations and growing numbers of civil society interest groups and community based organisations (CBOs). Hence, careful advocacy planning and a strategic approach are therefore needed if results are to be achieved.

Policy change rarely happens overnight and is often linked to broader change in the political environment. Effective advocacy requires long-term as well as short-term thinking, an understanding of the points of resistance and the means to gain traction, the readiness to form alliances, and the flexibility to seize windows of opportunity. Moreover, some of the more commonly used advocacy strategies from critical engagement such as policy monitoring and policy dialogue, through organised campaigns for new policies and reformation of current policies to resilience and mitigation of climate changes for the victims. It highlights the importance for people facing disadvantage to be able to assert their own sensation, needs and interests. It explains step by step how to devise an effective advocacy strategy for policy formation and reformation.

Almost all effective policy-related advocacy efforts commence with observation and monitoring of the implementation and effectiveness of policies already in place. Policy, plan and programme monitoring by the civil society, NGOs and Community Based Organisations (CBOs) advocacy groups can, on its own, contribute to improve policy and plan implementation and effectiveness by highlighting public policy targets and drawing public attention to under performance or to policy failure. Governments and public bodies, especially in Bangladesh, are sensitive to critical reports, and more so when these are based on robust evidence and analysis, come from a credible source, and are widely published and disseminated.

Policy and plan implementation monitoring by civil society groups, NGOs and CBOs may be in the form of one-off investigation into a particular area of interest related to the climate change; it may consist of a baseline study, perhaps at the commencement of a new or reformed policy and planned programme, and a follow-up study later to establish what results were achieved; or it may be a periodic monitoring report, such as an annual review. Policy monitoring and public accountability are made easier where government departments and other public bodies, including regulatory organisations, maintain and publish data and reports in a timely manner and undertake research and consultation to facilitate decision making in the public interest regarding adaptation, mitigation and resilience.

Where the information is slim, poor or unreliable, or where independent data is needed, civil society organisations, NGOs and CBO and their coalitions may organise their own action research and data gathering, or they may rely on academic research. Right to information laws can help and, in countries where such laws are weak or absent, their adoption or improvement has itself been a key demand of civil society organisations, not only those working in the communication policy field. In some cases investigative journalism may be needed to root out and expose policy failings. Impact may often be enhanced by involving citizens, civil society organisations, NGOs and CBOs in the process of policy monitoring and review and by gathering demand-side data using techniques such as community surveys, social audits and participatory policy review. Such social accountability mechanisms will gain the increasing recognition as effective means of strengthening civic engagement in policymaking and policy monitoring.

The writer is Director, New Strategies

Community Development

Centre (CODEC)