ECOSOCC CSO MANUAL: Advocacy and Policy Writing in the Areas of Democracy, Governance and Human Rights

This manual's purpose is to equip African civil society organisations with soft skills needed for effec- tive policy engagement on the issues of democracy, governance, and human rights. The manual also provides substantive content on the salient aspects to consider in advocacy and policy writing. The manual is meant to be an ergonomic operational tool which will provide practical information to the civil society on effective advocacy. It is designed to give stakeholders access to tools and advocacy strategies to use in pursuit of accountability and redress for injustices and inequalities. Effective engagement with the African human rights system requires civil societies to understand the human rights obligations of states and other regional duty bearers. The engagement also requires one to be familiar with existing entry points and opportunities for advocacy.

The manual therefore seeks to play a dual role of equipping the civil society organisations with substantive content on the one hand whilst availing insights into proven advocacy strategies that CSOs can use to be effective in their engagement. The manual identifies gender as one of the critical elements to address in the advocacy.