Strengthening the Principles of Human Rights in the Austrian Development Cooperation

In 2007 the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute of Human Rights won the tender for a 2 ½-year framework contract with the Austrian Development Agency (ADA). Its goals are to further root Human Rights, Democracy and Good Governance, as well as Preventing Conflict and Securing Peace within the work of the Austrian Development Agency and the Austrian Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs (BmeiA). The framework contract is composed of four main subject areas: Consultancy regarding policy-related questions, strengthening of the project and program level, capacity building, as well as digitalised documentation relevant for development cooperation.

The transformation of ADA’s existing policy documents to practice stands at the centre of the frame-work contract. Within the year 2009, the focus of cooperation was on finalising the handbooks to the respective ADA policy documents on Human Rights and on Preventing Conflict and Securing Peace. Further important topics dealt with in the form of background studies and support documents were the challenges to Austrian Development Cooperation within the coming 5 years, fragile states, justice sector reform in Uganda and HIV/AIDS and human rights.

BIM also produced four issues of the quarterly newsletter „Menschenrechte und Entwicklungszusammenarbeit“ (Human Rights and Development Cooperation) again in the year 2009.