Capacity Assessment Manual for National Human Rights Institutions THE AFGHANISTAN INDEPENDENT HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION (AIHRC), MAY – JULY 2011 The AIHRC had over 600 staff and 14 Regional and Provincial Offices. This presented particular challenges for the CA process. The length of the assessment visit had to be extended to four weeks and the CA team had to be enlarged. Because of the security situation, it was necessary to gather staff in two locations, Kabul and Bamyan, for the CA team to meet them. The team had to split into two, with each sub-team participating in group discussions separately from the other. It was critical to ensure full exchange between the two sub-teams so that nothing was lost or missed from the discussion groups. The CA process is participatory and inclusive. All staff of the NHRI should have the opportunity to participate in the group discussions and ideally all should do so. This is necessary for the CA to achieve its principal objective, to provide a comprehensive picture of the capacity needs of the NHRI from all perspectives. Every staff person has personal experiences and perspectives that are important to the CA. Different departments and different categories and levels of position may have different capacity needs. It is important to understand the issues both horizontally and vertically. It is not always possible, for practical reasons, to ensure the participation of everyone. For example, some staff may be ill or on leave or required to attend to an urgent human rights crisis. However, all CAs of NHRIs conducted to date have ensured that all staff members are invited to participate and that arrangements are made to ensure that the team hears the views of every staff member who wants to express them, including by making special provision for those not physically present in the office when the groups meet for the discussions. Each discussion will take about 90 minutes or about two hours if interpretation is required. The reflections and insights that we derived in the course of the capacity assessment come from honest, committed and well-motivated personnel of the NHRC. These showed that they are more than willing to take giant strides to pursue effective and efficient promotion and protection of human rights. My experience as member of the capacity assessment team firmed up my resolve to make more meaningful the responsibilities reposed to me. HOMERO RUSIANA Philippines Commission on Human Rights Team member for the National Human Rights Commission of Nepal CA 2013 Within any type of organisation, it can be easy for management and frontline staff to become disconnected, especially when there are regional and central offices. CAs can unify an NHRI by drawing on all internal and external institutional knowledge in an egalitarian manner to diagnose strengths and weaknesses and agree on a way forward. The simple act of asking every single person’s views within an NHRI is incredibly empowering. It fosters a greater sense of ownership in, and commitment to, the CA process and the organisation as a whole. ASHLEY BOWE Samoan Ombudsman’s Office Team member for the CAs of NHRIs in Philippines and Uzbekistan, 2018 Chapter 3: The recommended steps in conducting a capacity assessment for a national human rights institution | 27