Defending Dignity A Manual for National Human Rights Institutions on Monitoring Economic, Social and Cultural Rights CASE STUDY: TESTING FOOD SAFETY IN NEPAL In 2009, the National Human Rights Commission of Nepal (NHRC) became aware of news reports of an outbreak of diarrhoea in the Far-west and Mid-west districts of Nepal. Government data indicated that over 40,000 people were affected by the outbreak and approximately 400 deaths were attributed to it. It was alleged to be the result of the distribution of contaminated food by the United Nations World Food Program. The NHRC collected data from the field and consulted with health workers, officials from the government sector and other stakeholders. In particular, it collected samples of rice and lentils from different affected areas and arranged for them to be tested by the Food Technology and Quality Control Office. A total of 16.5 metric tons of rice was found to be of low quality and non-edible. The report concluded that the Government did not have effective procedures for monitoring and testing the quality of imported food items. 7.1.2. Interviews and focus groups Interviews and focus groups are important tools for collecting testimony and developing case studies. Case studies using qualitative approaches can complement quantitative indicators. For example, a researcher could interview a group of people with disabilities about the access issues they face in their daily lives. Qualitative approaches such as these help shed light on the situation of particular persons and groups, illustrating how the deprivation of human rights they face impact on their day-to-day lives. Such analysis should include narratives from individuals about the reasons they are unable to exercise their rights. This is important from a human rights perspective because it “puts a human face” to the quantitative data. 7.1.3. Surveys Quantitative and qualitative data can be collected through individual, household or community surveys or similar tools, such as written questionnaires, score cards or verbal interviews. One clear advantage of surveys is that they offer a standardized way of gathering data to fill a knowledge gap and build evidence. They can transform stories into numbers in order to make statistical comparisons, including over time, across regions or across groups. However, surveys can be resource intensive. Depending on their design, they can also be too broad to comprehensively analyse specific issues. Finally, translation issues can make surveys difficult to administer in certain situations. 7.1.4. Innovative tools for primary data collection The rise of social media and the spread of services offered via mobile phones has led to an explosion in the quantity and diversity of digital data, generated by people in real time. There is immense potential for agile and responsive decision-making based on this data, if it is adequately harnessed and analysed. By mapping and crowd-sourcing information, researchers can geographically display and analyse information, such as data about the delivery of goods and services in a region. However, this deluge of digital data brings its own challenges with regard to privacy, accessibility, accuracy and selection bias. 72