Advocacy

ADVOCACYWHAT IS ADVOCACY?Organised effort to influence decision-making

Action directed at changing approach of an individual/institution/group

Process to persuade all influential individuals/groups/organisations through dialogue to adopt an effective approach to an issueNEED FOR ADVOCACY IN IDU CONTEXTIDU are often looked upon as criminals, bad elements, negative influencers on the society: IDU remain hidden from mainstream of society

IDU are often not able to access general health as well as tailored services freely as a result of stigma

Often, NSEP & OST programmes for IDU are met with resistance from the general community and law enforcement agencies

Society often forgets the needs of an IDUBENEFITS OF ADVOCACYAdvocacy benefits both implementers and IDU:ImplementersEnables them to implement their programmes without any interference or hassles from the various stakeholdersIDUEnables them to access needed services without fear of stigma/discrimination & ridicule

WHAT TO ADVOCATE FOR?That the following are freely allowed to be implemented for or provided to IDU:HIV prevention including NSEP & OST programmesAccess to general health servicesTreatment of HIV Positive IDUCare and support for HIV positive IDUAccess to other needs, e.g. clothing, shelter, food, etc. CHARACTERISTICS OF ADVOCACYAdvocacy is successful if it is:Based on the foundation that all people have equal human/fundamental rightsFocused on a particular issue/problemConcerned with rights & benefits of IDUConcerned with ensuring that institutions/organisations/individuals work the way they shouldCONTD.Advocacy is successful if it is:Relevant to the social, cultural & political context of the societyPlanned and executed with active involvement of the IDU community

Advocacy ultimately raises issues and forces the community to change the way they think/behave with IDUSTEPS IN ADVOCACYSTEPS IN ADVOCACYAnalysis Strategy Action (and Reaction)Evaluation

STEP 1: ANALYSISThe need for advocacy may arise in different situations:During the initial phase, services may not be adequately accessed by IDU

After initial successful uptake, there may be a sudden decline in the access of services by IDU

During routine service delivery, the programme staff may come across reports of discrimination/harassment of IDU

CONTD.In each of the above situations, the staff should conduct an analysis of the problems, e.g. why are IDU not accessing services; are the reports of harassment being noted by staff too; and so on

The analysis can be done by the PM along with his staff, IDU, and key members from general community who are sympathetic to the causeCONTD.Once it is agreed that there is a problem, the next step is to define the problem: What are the barriers? Who are creating the barriers? Why are there barriers? Nature of the barriers?

STEP 2: STRATEGYOnce the problem is defined, the next step is to formulate a strategy:Describe the situationDefine the objectives of advocacyList out intended (target) audienceList out key activities to implementDevelop timeline for each activityDevelop indicators to evaluate the planned activities & the outcomesSTEP 3: ACTIONCollect information on facts and figures related to the problem e.g. number estimation of IDU, prevalence of HIV among IDU, national and local HIV scenario, policies and programmes of the government, and so on

Tailor the information according to the knowledge & understanding of target audience

Present information in brief, dramatic and memorable fashion CONTD.Incorporate human interest stories/ anecdotesEmphasise urgency and priority of recommended actionSpecify desired action clearlyRespond rapidly to other views and be flexibleFocus on policies, not individual behaviourMessages delivered should be consistent across various audience groupsRemember that the desired outcome will not be immediate so repetition is importantCONTD.Identify other partners with similar issues and form a coalition to advocate togetherOrganise media coverage to publicise appropriate eventsPlan events & involve credible spokespeopleAdvocate at different levels to create maximum impact address meetings with various authorities to get desired changeAdvocacy should be repeated if there is a change in authority/ies managing agenciesKEY TARGETS (AUDIENCE)Law enforcement agenciesReligious leaders/FBOCommunity leadersGeneral community in/near project areaMediaHealth sector (Govt and private): Health workers, organisations providing health care, and health administrative agenciesCONTD.PoliticiansAgencies providing social servicesPharmaciesNGOs working with drugs & HIV NGOs not working with drugs and HIVFamilies of PeersDiverse unofficial groups (i.e., drug dealers, peddlers, pushers) STEP 4: EVALUATIONEvaluation should be carried out at regular intervals to assess the outcome/output of the advocacyEvaluation should be based on the indicators defined in the strategy phaseEvaluation should answer if: The action plan and strategy is working and if not, is there a need to change the strategy and approachCONTD.Evaluation should answer if (contd)There are gaps in strategies adoptedNew members/groups need to be brought in for effective advocacyAdvocacy at a large scale needs to be carried out and availability of resources for the sameCONTD.Evaluation should finally answer if the advocacy has:changed perception of the target audience on issues related to IDU enabled the IDU to access and utilise services freelyThe whole process should then be documented for dissemination to other agenciesCONCLUSIONAdvocacy is key to enabling environment for IDU to access available HIV prevention and related servicesreduction in/revision of stereotyped view of IDU useless, thieves etc.

The success of advocating depends upon following critical steps outlined in this presentation