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Governance Area: Influencing public discourse

Space for change?

Posted on by Phyll Opoku-Gyimah

Often, when I talk about striving to make human rights progress within the Commonwealth, I’m met with raised eyebrows. The Commonwealth? I’ll hear, is that really the right place to be pushing for progress?

It’s a healthy scepticism I come across time and time again, especially from those who are well-versed in the long-lasting impact of the British Empire on its former colonial subjects. The Commonwealth, for many, feels like a vestige of a foregone time, a time in which certain countries were under the thumb of others, a time where the imposition of British law and values upon a litany of diverse and distinct cultures went largely unscrutinised by the global community. And so, the Commonwealth’s origin story, and the fact that its existence cannot be uncoupled from the legacy of empire, continues to ring loud in the ears of many. Especially those who are still dealing with inherited colonial laws that expressly discriminate against certain communities.

‘For the Commonwealth to be seen as a space for change, it must continue to adapt to the wants and needs of its most marginalised citizens’

It was in this light that the Commonwealth Foundation held the first of its Critical Conversations series, bringing together a diverse array of thinkers and doers to examine the Commonwealth’s past and reimagine its future. It was a chance to have an honest conversation about the legacy of the Commonwealth while also discussing its potential as a space for progress, where decision-makers and activists can come together and challenge each other to create a fairer and more positive future.

Although it may seem counterintuitive to some, the Commonwealth has proven itself as a useful space for civil society organisations to come together and advocate for positive change. This wasn’t necessarily a view shared by all panellists, but it is a truth I have seen in action. As Executive Director of Kaleidoscope Trust, the United Kingdom’s leading international lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT+) human rights organisation, I have found that the organising done to create awareness and advocate on LGBT+ human rights issues at Commonwealth-specific fora, such as the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM), has often had a resounding impact.

The work of The Commonwealth Equality Network (TCEN), a network of 62 LGBT+ organisations across the Commonwealth, for which Kaleidoscope Trust acts as Secretariat, is a testament to this. TCEN aims to create a positive and more equal future for LGBT+ citizens in the Commonwealth, in a context where 34 of 54 Member States criminalise homosexuality as a direct result of inherited colonial-era laws. For LGBT+ activists in the Commonwealth, an acknowledgement of the past was the first step toward envisioning a more equal future. And so TCEN went about advocating for this exact thing—a statement of acknowledgement and regret from the UK government.

The network achieved this primarily by centring the voices of young grassroots activists in our advocacy both before and during CHOGM 2018, which was held in London. This simple act, of creating opportunities for the lived realities of LGBT+ people to be heard in high-level diplomatic spaces, was enormously impactful.

It included creating a platform for Melusi Simelane, a young gay man from eSwatini, to talk about the safety and security of LGBT+ people in his country at the Committee of the Whole, during an event for Commonwealth accredited civil society organisations to present priorities relating to CHOGM to high-level Commonwealth officials. It also included working with the Commonwealth Foundation to ensure Zeleca Julien, a lesbian activist from Trinidad and Tobago, was able to speak about her experiences fighting for equality at the opening plenary of the Women’s Forum at CHOGM 2018, the first time an LGBT+ person was granted the opportunity to do so.

Beyond these specific examples, we also aimed for as much LGBT+ civil society representation as possible at Commonwealth events. CHOGM, for example, is a unique opportunity for LGBT+ organisations to come face to face with diplomatic or parliamentary representatives from their countries or regions, an opportunity that few other diplomatic spaces provide. Where they might not be able to safely do so in their own countries, representatives of TCEN organisations were able to hold their national-level parliamentary representatives to account within a Commonwealth space.

TCEN is one of many examples of how the Commonwealth can be used as a force for good, particularly for the LGBT+ community. But TCEN is only the beginning. As our work has continued, we have sought to ensure we are building a more intersectional human rights movement in the Commonwealth, working with youth organisations and those fighting for women and girls rights to make sure that the progress we achieve can also support the aims of other marginalised groups.

For the Commonwealth to be seen as a space for change, it must continue to adapt to the wants and needs of its most marginalised citizens—and that includes examining the mistakes of the past, mistakes that have led to staggering inequalities, and aiming to rectify them accordingly. So long as the Commonwealth can continue to create spaces for the likes of TCEN to make their voices heard, it deserves to be championed as a promising avenue for real progress.

Phyllis Akua Opoku-Gyimah (Lady Phyll) is Executive Director of Kaleidoscope Trust.

Tackling youth violence: inclusion for a change

Posted on by Leo Kiss

At the 1998 World Conference on Youth, the origin of International Youth Day, the late Kofi Annan made his famous opening remarks: ‘No one is born a good citizen; no nation is born a democracy. Rather, both are processes that continue to evolve over a lifetime. Young people must be included from birth. A society that cuts itself off from its youth severs its lifeline; it is condemned to bleed to death.’

There is a fact that gives Annan’s sanguineous metaphor grim new meaning: violence is now the fourth leading cause of death in young people worldwide. Perhaps no other community of nations should seek to understand this fact more urgently than the Commonwealth; sixty per cent of our more than 2.4 billion citizens are under the age of 30. Here we explore three of our recently approved grants projects that are empowering youth so they can overcome this scourge.

‘Too often, discussions on violence in these communities are one-off events, occurring after policy decisions have been taken and without sufficient youth representation.’

In data released in 2017 by the UN, the murder rate in Jamaica stood at 57 per 100,000 of the population, the second-highest recorded rate in the world. Despite significant efforts to address this problem on the part of the Government of Jamaica, the young continue to be severely affected by violent crime as both victims and perpetrators. In a project that will last two years, Fight for Peace International will work in two of Kingston’s worst-affected neighbourhoods: Denham Town and Parade Gardens.

In designing this project, Fight for Peace focussed on how affected communities were being cut off from policy development and decision-making. Too often, discussions on violence in these communities are one-off events occurring after policy decisions have been taken and without sufficient youth representation. To counter this tendency, they will train 1000 youth and civil society leaders to formulate evidence-based recommendations during regular, specially organised meetings. This will provide youth groups with an opportunity to share their perspectives on security policies so, ultimately, these can be tabled at Jamaica’s Commission on Violence Prevention. Youth leaders will also be trained to deliver traditional and social media campaigns, giving them the tools to influence public discourse on the issue.

‘[In South Africa] an estimated 23 people are shot and killed every day, with the highest rates of death by homicide found among 15-29-year-olds.’

The same UN data that put Jamaica’s murder rate among the highest in the world ranked South Africa’s as eighth. Firearms play a significant role in the perpetration of violence in South Africa. The 2000 Firearms Control Act, which introduced measures such as stricter licensing, led to a significant decline in recorded shootings. Still, an estimated 23 people are shot and killed every day with the highest rates of death by homicide found among 15-29-year-olds. With a grant from the Commonwealth Foundation, Gun Free South Africa will support youth groups to deliver their input during the Control Act’s review in 2020. Young people with experience of gun violence will give oral presentations at public hearings to increase the impact of their recommendations. The organisation will also train youth groups to develop and implement safety initiatives in their communities, including the establishment of gun-free zones in schools and other public places. These initiatives will be coupled with awareness campaigns to mobilise support in favour of greater safety.

While young men are more likely to be the victims and perpetrators of violent crime both in Jamaica and South Africa, these projects will develop analyses and policy proposals that address the differing ways in which women and girls are affected, while ensuring they are fully represented at each stage.

Survey data collected in 2013 in Nigeria provides just a glimpse of the burden of violence shouldered by women: 28 per cent of women aged 15-49 have experienced some form of sexual violence. Of the woman surveyed, one in ten had experienced physical and/or sexual violence in the last 12 months alone. The Government of Nigeria has a clear policy framework in place to address the sexual abuse, violence and exploitation suffered by women and girls, including The Child Rights Act and the Violence Against Persons Prohibition Act. But neither has been ratified in all Nigerian states and serious problems persist throughout the country. For example, there has been an alarming rise in reports of so-called ‘baby factories’, in which women are forced to give birth to children who are then taken from them and sold into illegal adoption and potentially also for exploitation. Other reports suggest a worrying rise in the normalisation of abuse in educational settings.

Nationwide ratification of the key laws and their effective application would go a long way in confronting this trend. Grants partner Youth Alive Foundation have identified what they believe to be the principal obstacles to the first step of ratification: a lack of coordinated advocacy, low public awareness, and prevailing cultural beliefs. Their project will create an alliance working across five target states made up of parliamentarians, students, and civil society and media organisations. The alliance will start by carefully mapping existing laws and policies to identify gaps, and, by gathering data in tandem, they will produce authoritative guidelines on how to bring nationwide ratification closer.

Constructive engagement between civil society and government lies at the core of the Foundation’s strategy, and in this new cohort of projects, there is a discernible sense of civil society cooperating with governments and building on their work. These projects do this by broadening and deepening participation of youth groups to strengthen national legislation. They are aimed at achievable and institutionalised change and highlight the importance of including the voices of the young from which there is much to learn.

Leo Kiss is Communications Officer at the Commonwealth Foundation.

For information on our next grant call and all other updates on our grants programme please sign up here. Profiles for each newly endorsed project will be available on the Commonwealth Foundation’s project pages soon.

There is no movement without media: 12 tips for successful engagement

Posted on by Gillian Cooper

Back in the 1990s, when Akhila Sivadas was part of a growing women’s rights movement in India, she and other activists, frustrated with the lack of attention to their cause, recognised that their movement needed effective engagement with the media to grow and succeed.

Akhila now leads the Centre for Advocacy Research in New Delhi, which helps civil society organisations to craft media strategies. They also track and monitor the media on behalf of their stakeholders across India.

‘Akhila reminded civil society partners that they needed to take “media advocacy” as seriously as their policy advocacy goals.’

Akhila, alongside Ambika Raja, a reporter with disabilities at The New Indian Express, led a session on media engagement at a Foundation learning exchange on disability rights. In the presentation, Akhila reminded civil society partners that they needed to take ‘media advocacy’ as seriously as their policy advocacy goals.

Akhila Sivadas (left) and Ambika Raja share their media engagement tips at the disabilities learning exchange in Bengaluru, India

Participants at the exchange expressed scepticism about whether to trust the media, given the current political climate and a tendency toward distortion. There was also understandable confusion over the dizzying array of media channels to choose from.

Here are some of the strategies and tactics that Akhila and Ambika shared in response:

  1. Find kindred spirts in the media. They are certain to exist, but it takes time and research to find the journalists and bloggers who share an interest in your advocacy issue. Interact regularly with reporters whose work you like and understand the kinds of stories they want. This knowledge can be helpful when crafting story ideas.
  2. Clear, confident messaging. A single, compelling idea is more likely to attract attention. Be ready with background information and data to back up your points. Remember that journalists and editors want to get to the heart of the issue, so do not overburden them with all the issues and causes you are working on.
  3. Pique their interest. Remember that media houses have a commercial imperative. They want to feature important stories, but they also want to increase their readership. Prepare your stories and press releases with attention-grabbing titles and clear, well-written messaging. Present an interesting angle to your story—one that discusses not just the issue at hand but also how it might affect the everyday person. Journalists and audiences in particular like ‘human interest stories’: so move beyond events and look for stories.
  4. Track the issues covered in the news. Journalists will be encouraged to write about your issue if you can show evidence that it is under-reported. Providing that evidence takes time and research but it will be worth it.
  5. Social media influences mainstream news. If the mainstream media is ignoring your cause, consider ramping up your social media output, or using alternative media. Journalists are constantly trawling through social media for stories and to identify trends. Create a short video about your cause and tag relevant media and influencers. This may grab the attention of those who can get your story out to a wider audience.
  6. Don’t give up if ‘breaking news’ drowns your story. Let the dust settle on the big story of the day and go back tomorrow—or next week—and try again. Revamp the story, refresh the title, add some new quotes, and continue to nurture your relationships with journalists.
  7. Try newsjacking. If there is a compelling story that has dominated the news, show how the issue you are working on connects to it. For example, if your organisation is working to advance the rights of persons with disabilities and there has been a natural disaster somewhere, build a story on persons with disabilities affected by the disaster, or how you are trying to help them. This is a clever way of amplifying your voice and showing how your issue is relevant to current events.
  8. Choose the best spokesperson for your story. Ensure your spokespeople understand your issue thoroughly and will not distort your message. The best spokespeople are often those with a lived experience of your issue who can articulate it clearly and concisely. Different mediums might require different spokespeople – or a range of different people with different viewpoints.
  9. Data and evidence improve credibility. In the print press, a local story will go to the national bureau and then to the chief editor for final approval. When you pitch your story, include key data and evidence in your pitch. This makes your story more credible and likely to grab the attention of editors. Citizen data from scorecards and audit reports are good sources of local-level data.
  10. Run a fellowship programme for journalists. If there is a lack of sensitivity and awareness of your cause, you need to build the media’s awareness yourself. Consider running a fellowship programme or providing support for young journalists to write about your cause.
  11. Track the work of journalists you like and have worked with already. If a journalist has featured a story on your issue in the past, keep track of their work. You may see the opportunity to interest them in a follow up story to review progress made over the year on your issue.
  12. Use politicians and celebrities to attract newsmakers, but also invite journalists who focus on substance. Inviting Ministers and high profile public figures to your events can attract the mainstream media; however, their presence can eclipse coverage of your issue. The media is likely to be more interested in what the Minister or celebrity has to say than what you have to say. While this is frustrating, civil society can use these events to invite a range of journalists—those focusing on the sound bites as well as those focusing on more in-depth pieces. Both give your issue coverage and reach a range of audiences.

In summary, Ambika reminded us that journalists are doing their best in a challenging climate and that there are journalists out there dedicated to just causes; it is simply up to us to build a relationship with them. Akhila encouraged participants not to give up: ‘Our issues are a struggle and if you start from that premise, you’ll be reminded to just keep at it until you find success.’

Gillian Cooper is Programme Manager of Knowledge, Learning, and Communications at the Commonwealth Foundation. 

Freeing up expression: colonial defamation laws

Posted on by Commonwealth Foundation

In 2014 the Foundation funded a three-year PEN International project in collaboration with PEN national centres in five Commonwealth African countries.

The project supported the PEN network to advocate for the reform of legislation governing freedom of expression and information.

At the start of the project, members from each of the five African PEN Centres (Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, South Africa, Zambia) were taught how to train others to advocate. The capacity of PEN centres was also strengthened to engage with international organisations and processes to help further the cause, including the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) and Sustainable Development Goal processes.

Leo Kiss, the Foundation’s Communications Officer, interviewed Daniel Sikazwe of PEN Zambia, the centre’s Secretary, to understand if the project’s objectives are still being advanced in 2019.

Who makes up PEN Zambia?

Daniel: We are made up of a whole spectrum of writers, including journalists and quite a large population of school-age young people. We work with young women and men to develop their writing, language, and citizenship, because writing—in our view—must promote citizenship.

What was the project supported by the Commonwealth Foundation attempting to do?

Daniel: One of the things this project sought to do was challenge and repeal colonial defamation laws that stifle free speech. Historically, defamation laws were a protective mechanism for British officials to stifle dissent amongst African freedom fighters and advocates, but these laws are still being used.

‘The project aimed to get journalists to appreciate how these laws impact them […] so they are aware and more likely to publish stories on the issues’

People must be able to question the democratic system. The law of defamation shouldn’t be criminal; it should be civil. We are also involved in a coalition campaigning for Freedom of Information legislation.

What methodologies did the project employ?  Did you use print media and radio to help further your advocacy?

Daniel: We are journalists, and so we used our connections in the media to build a coalition between media organisations who were aware of the need for Freedom of Information legislation. This included the Livingstone Press Club, which is a group of 15 media organisations. As a result, we had a lot of press and TV coverage on the need to reform the defamation laws.

We also established a radio programme, the Writer’s Circle. We use that platform to discuss literature, culture, rights: whatever topic is to do with writers and their freedom, and sometimes just to feature writers and discuss their work.

The project aimed to get journalists to appreciate how these laws impact them. Our study looked at how journalists are exercising self-censorship. If we have a topic that we want to be understood more widely among journalists, we do a briefing on the Writers Circle so they are aware and more likely to publish stories on the issues.

The secretariat of PEN Zambia left to right: Marita Banda (Project Coordinator), Daniel Sikazwe (Secretary), and Nicholas Kawinga (President)

How did global and regional advocacy add value to efforts at the national level?

Daniel: As a result of the project, PEN International passed a resolution to address the decriminalisation of defamation. PEN Zambia also engaged with the Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Information and Access to Information at the African Union and the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression in Geneva, so that they would raise the issue with the Zambian government.

How effective was the direct engagement with Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression in Geneva?

Daniel: PEN Zambia and PEN International presented a shadow report to the Human Rights Commission a month before the Government of Zambia was due to appear before it. The report talked about the fact that more needs to be done to repeal the laws that criminalise freedom of expression. As a result, the government was asked to consider appropriate legal reform measures over a period of four years.

‘When musicians sing, politicians may ignore the word at first, but they can’t ignore the sounds. One way or another: they will hear.’

Additionally, we are using case studies from other African countries to demonstrate to government what laws and progress is being made with regard to freedom of expression elsewhere in the region.

How can creative expression influence dialogue and decision-making about policy issues?

Daniel: Performance art is key to this. When musicians sing, politicians may ignore the word at first, but they can’t ignore the sounds. One way or another: they will hear.

Eventually it might affect changes in policy but immediately it means that other voices are being heard. Someone speaking out creatively—through poetry, song, or theatre—is an opportunity for conversation.

When you put something on paper, very few people will read. But where there is a play or concert, people will come. Also, politicians feel less threatened by performative arts compared to hard copies of the written word.

How has this project changed your relationship with government?

Daniel: The project has helped to open up avenues for dialogue with government. We have an open invitation to meet with the Minister of Justice and to help the government implement the African Peer Review Mechanism’s recommendations when the process begins in the next couple of years. We have also recently received invitations to meet with the European Union office in Zambia to discuss freedom of expression advocacy.

What is the situation now with the repeal of criminal defamation laws and freedom of expression?

Daniel: The most visible aspect is that there are more media and freedom of expression groups now raising the issues we have been advocating for. Another step forward is that the Government of Zambia announced in March 2019 that they will table an access to information bill in parliament. There are conversations about constitutional amendments and we see this as an opportunity to press the parliamentary committee which is receiving submissions on the constitution. We will be ready to present our thoughts on freedom of expression and defamation laws in Zambia.

Daniel Sikazwe is the Secretary of PEN Zambia.

Celebrating linguistic diversity in the Commonwealth

Posted on by Myn Garcia

The Commonwealth Foundation is committed to linguistic diversity. Our cultural initiative, Commonwealth Writers, is underpinned by the conviction that stories and storytelling have the power to contribute to social transformation. Our ambition is to influence and shape discourse in the public sphere. We share the hope of Jurgen Habermas that through ‘public opinion the state is able to be in touch with the need of society.’ Nancy Fraser argues that the public sphere can be seen as ‘a theater in modern societies in which political participation is enacted through the medium of talk.’

‘ “This conversation between practitioners, editors, and publishers of translation is an urgent and necessary intervention. It offers us an opportunity to begin a serious discussion about how we can build an infrastructure for translation to push against the myopias that box us in and make our world smaller.” ‘

In March 2019, as part of UNESCO’s International Year of Indigenous Languages, Commonwealth Writers convened a translation symposium in Penang, Malaysia. To support translation is to encourage writing in local languages and the proliferation of diverse narratives. The symposium signals the effort to investigate the imbalances caused by the relative lack of literary translation, starting with South Asia and Southeast Asia. It aims to advance the diversity of—and diversity in—creative expression, and the status of creators.

Bilal Tanweer (third from left) joined Muhammad Haji Salleh, Mamta Sagar, and Jayapriya Vasudevan for a discussion on the politics of translation following the translation symposium in Penang, Malaysia.

Writer, academic, and translator Bilal Tanweer, from Pakistan, reflected on his participation in the symposium: ‘This conversation between practitioners, editors, and publishers of translation is an urgent and necessary intervention. It offers us an opportunity to begin a serious discussion about how we can build an infrastructure for translation to push against the myopias that box us in and make our world smaller.’

‘We argue that dynamism in creative expression and its influence to shape public discourse is one of the manifestations of a diverse, robust, and vibrant civil society.’

On 9 July, the 2019 Commonwealth Short Story Prize award ceremony was held in Quebec City, Canada. This was the first year that the prize started accepting Greek-language submissions, and a story translated from the Greek emerged as the overall winner. This indicates that there is a vast wealth of writing around the Commonwealth yet to proliferate into the mainstream. Cypriot writer Constantia Soteriou won the Prize for her story, ‘Death Customs’, translated by Lina Protopapa. It was also announced at the ceremony that the 2020 Commonwealth Short Story Prize will accept entries in French. This brings to 11 the languages that the Prize is open to receive entries in, which also includes Bengali, Chinese, Greek, Kiswahili, Malay, Portugese, Samoan, Tamil, and Turkish.

Lina Protopapa asserts that translation is ‘a tool of resistance’ in a world that is increasingly turning inward. Linguistic diversity is in keeping with the values of the Foundation and its commitment to promote inclusion across the Commonwealth, which includes a range of differing literary traditions. We argue that dynamism in creative expression and its influence to shape public discourse is one of the manifestations of a diverse, robust, and vibrant civil society.

Myn Garcia is Deputy Director-General of the Commonwealth Foundation.

Understanding the intersection between gender and climate change in the Caribbean: synopsis report

The Commonwealth Foundation convened a two-day dialogue with representatives from several civil society organisations across the Caribbean on Monday June 4 and Tuesday June 5 2018 at United Nations House in Barbados. The workshop was the result of a consultative process with key regional Caribbean stakeholders following COP 23 in Germany. Arising from that process it was determined that there was a need to gain a better understanding of the need in the region with respect to the intersection between gender and climate change, and to determine where the Foundation can add value.

Read the synopsis report below:

Download gender and climate meeting synopsis: first discussion (20994 downloads )

Building a healthy relationship

Posted on by Vijay Krishnarayan

I suppose it’s inevitable that as the end of my term as Director-General nears, I reflect on the Commonwealth Foundation’s journey over the past seven years. I’ll always be grateful to our governments for backing a strategic change in direction in 2012. That focussed our work on people’s participation in governance but coming to that agreement wasn’t straight forward. Some took more convincing than others. A refrain I heard often at the time went ‘the Commonwealth Foundation’s proposed emphasis on governance is well and good but we want to see a focus on development.’

‘Intellectual property regimes are also being used to prevent the search for new drugs that protect public health as globally we face up to anti-microbial resistance.’

My response was and remains a rebuttal of a reductionist world view that posits development and governance as dichotomous. All those who share the Foundation’s outlook raised a cheer when SDG 16 made the explicit connection between inclusive governance and better development outcomes. It was a privilege to see how this works in practice while visiting a Commonwealth Foundation grant funded project in Malaysia this month.

Third World Network (TWN) is a well-respected independent, international, research and advocacy organisation, which since 1984 has been taking up issues of concern to the Global South. They recognise that trade agreements between countries include intellectual property clauses that run counter to the internationally ratified Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs) Agreement and a subsequent Declaration on TRIPs and public health. This affirms the right of countries to use the full flexibility of TRIPs to provide access to medicines to all. Intellectual property (IP) regimes are also being used to prevent the search for new drugs that protect public health as globally we face up to anti-microbial resistance.

TWN saw the need for engagement with governments in the global south on the provision of effective and affordable drugs. With funding from the Commonwealth Foundation they are helping the Ministry of Health (MoH) to navigate IP provisions to improve access to medicines and are providing a civil society perspective on the implementation and monitoring of a national action plan on anti-microbial resistance.

As we met with MoH colleagues, their genuine appreciation for the support they had received from TWN in the design, promotion and monitoring of the AMR national action plan was palpable. In 2012 the Ministry widened the focus of the AMR campaign from health professionals to the public at large and this called for considered and sustained civil society engagement. TWN acts as a champion, a trusted interlocutor and convenor. They raise awareness through events and publications and encourage civil society to participate and monitor progress. This is helping to take the AMR campaign to new audiences such as farmers who use antibiotics in their animal husbandry practices.

‘Getting the message across that [anti-microbial resistence] is an imminent threat that requires urgent action by all of us calls for new alliances and ways of working.’

We also met with colleagues from the remarkable Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative (DNDI). DNDI was established in recognition of the fact that the research and development of drugs doesn’t serve the interests of many on the global south. According to their research, of the 850 new drugs approved between 2000 and 2011 only 4% were for neglected diseases such as chagas, sleeping sickness and leishmaniasis (which with other neglected diseases accounted for 11% of the global disease burden over the same period). They develop new drugs to address these issues and patent them so they can be made available at an affordable price. In Malaysia they have targeted hepatitis c and have partnered with TWN as they have engaged with the Malaysian government so that one major drug is licensed and made available. In this instance TWN provided technical inputs on the TRIPS implications and opportunities to government policy makers.

I left Malaysia appreciating that the simple question ‘How can the most vulnerable people in society enjoy equitable access to health treatment?’ has a very complex answer. As Dr Ying-Ru Lo, the Head of Mission and WHO Representative to Brunei, Malaysia and Singapore said to us health issues are increasingly multi-sectoral and civil society is well suited to helping government agencies (often working in isolation) to make the connections and form the coalitions that are required to deliver public health.

This is inclusive governance in action and the Malaysian experience shows that it is not a luxury item. Getting the message across that AMR is an imminent threat that requires urgent action by all of us calls for new alliances and ways of working. The joined up approach of public health policy makers, DNDI and TWN on drugs for hepatitis c has contributed to the treatment of more than 1,000 people to date. Inclusive governance isn’t just about improving the decisions that shape people’s lives. It’s also about improving the decisions that save people’s lives. Seven years on from making the decision to change its strategic focus, the Commonwealth Foundation can make the connection between participatory governance and better development outcomes – but all that does is remind us of the amount of work that remains to be done.

Vijay Krishnarayan is Director-General of the Commonwealth Foundation.