What is Advocacy?
  • Advocacy is efforts made on ground to obtain rights. Advocacy is a network through which organised people strive to bring about a change in public domain so that they get rights. 
  • Organised, sustained campaign by a section of civil society to get their interest represented and addressed by power centres. 
  • It is a tool, based on organised efforts and actions, that uses the instruments of democracy to strengthen democratic processes; such tools include election related work, lobbying, mass mobilisation, forms of civil disobedience, negotiations and bargaining, and court actions.  
  • It is  people participating in decision-making processes which affect their lives
  • It is the process of  identifying a problem, developing a solution,  directing decision-makers attention to problem and desired solution  and  building support for action to bring desired change
  • Advocacy is the result of a rights based approach 
  • Because advocacy comes from human rights, it uses only non-violent means. It is a rights- based process in which rights of opponents are also respected. 
  • Advocacy is an organised, deliberate, systematic and strategic process intended to bring about a positive change towards fulfilling, respecting, protecting and promoting human rights of marginalised individuals and groups.
  • Advocacy is about increasing the voice, access and influence of marginalised individuals and groups in all decision making processes that affect their lives, towards changing existing power hierarchies and relations. 
  • Policy or public advocacy is different from legal advocacy in the sense that it does not necessarily involve courts or the judicial system. However it is closely concerned with the rights of the underprivileged or the marginalised. Public or policy advocacy involves the creation of public pressure for influencing policy formulation, programme implementation in the interest of the poor, underprivileged and the marginalised. Such advocacy efforts are usually directed towards those groups or individuals who are in decision making positions and could include policy makers, legislators, senior program mangers and so forth.

What Advocacy is not?

  • Extension of Services 
  • Health Education 
  • Advice or Counseling 
  • Providing information about services 
  • IEC
  • Skill training 
  • Advocacy is not a replacement for any of the above either!
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