EU Project page - EU for Azerbaijan

Enhancing the capacity of national actors in promoting and effectively protecting human rights

Project Description

The project's aim funded by EU and implemented by OHCHR is to strengthen the role of the civil society and lawyers’ community members to promote and effectively protect human rights under the UN human rights system. The project through its training programme, enhances the knowledge and skills of the civil society organizations (CSOs) and lawyers’ community members in human rights monitoring, assessment and reporting with a focus on UN human rights mechanisms. A number of educational materials made available in the national language provides the CSOs and lawyers’ community members with substantial information on human rights. The Project provides selected representatives of the CSOs and lawyers’ community with financial and advisory assistance to engage in monitoring and reporting on human rights, and preparing and making submissions to the UN human rights bodies. The Resource Centre established within the Project has made free legal assistance services available to members of vulnerable groups. The Resource Centre also serves as a free educational resource hub providing access to free facilities and necessary educational/legal resources for the benefit of the CSOs and lawyers’ community members.

Specific Objective

The project has three specific objectives : (1) building the capacity of national CSOs and lawyers’ community members in the international advocacy to promote and protect human rights by use of the UN Human Rights system; (2) promoting the role and increasing the number of national actors in making substantive submissions to the UN Treaty Bodies; and (3) promoting and increasing the use of national human rights protection systems for national actors, specifically for vulnerable groups.

Expected Results

- At least 150 members of the CSOs and lawyers’ community increase their knowledge of international human rights standards, and enhance their capacity to assess and report on the human rights situation in the country;
- Information and legal analysis of the recent Concluding Observations, including concerns and recommendations, issued by the respective UN Treaty Bodies are broadly available and disseminated amongst CSOs and lawyers’ community members;
- CSOs and lawyers’ community members enhance their ability to engage in the preparation and submission of alternative reports to the UN human rights mechanisms;
- Increased number and improved quality of alternative reports prepared and submitted by CSOs and lawyers’ community members to the UN human rights committees;
- In more than 1,000 cases members of the vulnerable groups gain access to free and high quality legal services;
- Facilities and space for the benefit of CSOs and lawyers’ community members are in place.

Beneficiaries

Delivery of free legal assistance for the benefit of vulnerable groups and facilitation of free facilities for the CSOs and lawyers' community members

Activity 2. Fellowship programme for the national CSOs and legal community and support of their role in the international advocacy to promote and protect human rights

Capacity development and awareness-raising action for the national CSOs and legal community on human rights with a specific focus on the UN human rights system