Introduction

Rationale: Many standard reference materials on NHRIs identify two phases for NHRI development: (1) establishing, and (2) strengthening the NHRI. However, because there are important and distinct steps before the actual establishment of the NHRI, and because UNCTs may be asked to play a unique role in this early stage, a preliminary or “pre-establishment” phase has been added to the Toolkit. Although the three phases, pre-establishment, establishment and consolidation, are presented in separate chapters, they are not “cut and dried” in real life. The phases may overlap and may not proceed in a linear way. The actual situation on the ground and the needs of the institution will always dictate how to proceed in any given circumstance.

What is the pre-establishment phase? The pre-establishment phase is the first of three phases. It sets the groundwork for establishing of NHRIs in this Toolkit (the other two phases, establishment and consolidation, are addressed in “Establishing NHRIs” Chapter 8, and “Consolidation” Chapter 9).

Pre-establishment includes the following milestones:

• Assessing the country’s readiness to establish and NHRI, having regard to the country situation, including opportunities and risks;
• Where appropriate, supporting the development of national consensus to establish a NHRI;
• Stakeholder engagement; and
• Providing information on the models or types, and attributes, of NHRIs and supporting the development of appropriate legislation.

UNCT role: UNCTs will have important responsibilities in each of these steps if the UN is requested to support the creation of an NHRI. There are also standard operating procedures related to the initial and follow up requests from the country that should be followed to ensure coordination at the UNCT level and ensure that the expertise and support of the UNDP and OHCHR are harnessed.

This Chapter should be read together with Chapter 6, which sets out, step by step, the programmatic steps that should be considered in the UN planning cycle in relation to a given NHRI.

Many UNCT staff themselves may not have good knowledge of NHRIs or how to begin the process of developing support at the country level. UNCT’s own capacity needs may also have to be developed. As the Chapter moves through the various steps in the pre-establishment phase, opportunities to develop the UNCT’s own capacity will be identified.