Human Dignity Initiative

Background

This three-year project is being implemented by UNESCAP in five countries: Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Thailand and Viet Nam.

The project aims to have an impact at a number of different levels, from the local to regional. The immediate objectives of the HDI are to:

• Strengthen local values, social cohesion and civic society partnerships at the community level through the creation of community-based initiatives that aim at providing the support needed by people to perform their functions as useful members of the community.
• Strengthen local level capacities to cope with external forces such as the globalization process and the Asian economic crisis through the use of tools and mechanisms based on social mobilization and participation by community members.
• Enhance understanding of enabling policy measures at all levels that encourage community-based initiatives as a sustainable response to the negative impacts of globalization.

The Human Dignity Initiative evolved out of an increased understanding of the flaws of the economic and social development strategies being implemented in many countries of the Asia-Pacific region, particularly within the context of the Asian economic crisis and the ongoing process of globalization.

The threat of increased levels of absolute and relative poverty and community dislocation produced by adjustments resulting from the globalization process have led a number of governments and international organizations (including UNESCAP) to examine the social impacts of globalization in general and of the present crisis in particular with a view to proposing mechanisms that would ameliorate their effect on the poorer segments of the population. Most of these efforts are concentrated on the need for governments to develop cushions and safety-nets to protect the most vulnerable sectors of society. Experience shows, however, that top-down approaches based on a centralized perception of problems and needs have less chance of long-term sustainability than those driven by problems and needs expressed directly by the communities themselves.

One aspect of the globalization process and financial crisis that has received very little attention is the fact that, in order to cope with the changes facing them, large portions of the population have been forced to abandon long-held cultural and moral values surrounding work and personal ethics and the role of family, community, and nation, etc. Low-income communities often rely on informal networks of relatives, neighbours and friends to act as safety nets to provide support to aspects of their lives that are not properly catered for by formal systems of service delivery. In many instances, the globalization process, including the Asian economic crisis, has resulted in a disruption of the community, forcing rapid changes in status, expectations, and even the geographical location of community members, while also leading to the loss or radical change of these informal networks of support. Many of the programmes implemented in response to the recent economic crisis do not provide an adequate counterbalance to these losses and changes.

The need exists, therefore, for programmes that assist in poverty alleviation efforts while also restoring a sense of identity and self-confidence in the target population. The Human Dignity Initiative aims to achieve this through the formulation of projects that evolve directly out of the experiences and needs of different vulnerable groups and communities and which involve the participation of those groups and communities throughout the entire project cycle. Encouraging the stakeholders to develop a sense of ownership over the project and its activities increases the likelihood that the initiative will become self-sustaining and continue beyond the actual project period. Additionally, situating these local experiences within the broader context of enabling policies at the local, national and regional levels provides an opportunity for government officials and policymakers to learn from the “bottom up” and participate in the creation of policy measures which support community-based initiatives.

This type of human development effort is a vital complement to other initiatives in view of the fact that the problems facing the countries of the region need to be addressed in a multi-disciplinary, multilevel manner.

Target groups:

Local government officials, national counterpart organizations, low-income communities.

Links to related documents:

Summary of Projects and Activities funded through HDI

Diagram of project process

Case studies (*forthcoming)

Photographs (*forthcoming)