Publications
28 February, 2023
As a driver of inclusive economic development, the rule of law enables the design and implementation of legal and policy frameworks that are fair, transparent, coherent, and supported by predictable enforcement mechanisms.
International Investment Agreements (IIAs) are a key policy tool to attract Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) as a source of financing for development. However, they entail significant risks for Least Developed Countries (LDCs) due to their traditionally unbalanced and...
8 December, 2022
Laws that discriminate against women and girls drive the systemic denial of their human rights and block their advancement and empowerment. They prevent women and girls from accessing resources, opportunities and rights. When women and girls can live free from discrimination, with laws that protect their human rights, they realize their full potential and society benefits as a whole.
In support of the ‘Equality in Law for Women and Girls By 2030: A Multi-Stakeholder Strategy for Accelerated...
5 December, 2022
More than 4.3 million people are stateless—that is, they are not recognized as a national by any country. Stateless people are often denied access to education, health care, employment, property ownership, freedom of movement, and political participation, and they are at a heightened risk of abuse and exploitation. The very existence of statelessness is at odds with the aspirations of the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda, and the reduction of statelessness is vital to delivering sustainable...
5 December, 2022
The report Survivor-Centred Justice for Gender-Based Violence in Complex Situations is the result of new research conducted by IDLO, in partnership with the Global Women’s Institute at George Washington University, in six countries across the globe with the aim to identify approaches that centre survivors in all efforts to address gender-based violence (GBV) in complex situations.
The report is informed by country case studies in Afghanistan, Honduras, Papua New Guinea, the...
3 November, 2022
The adverse physical effects of climate change undermine security and increase the risk of violent conflict, especially in contexts characterized by weak governance systems and existing social or economic grievances. The people most vulnerable to the impact of insecurity and conflict arising from climate change are those who already experience systematic exclusion and marginalization, such as women and girls, youth and children, indigenous peoples, and climate migrants.
IDLO’s Issue Brief Rule...
30 June, 2022
In 2021, the impact of the pandemic continued to be devastating, deepening inequalities, exacerbating fragilities and exposing major trust deficits in governance. Conflict, humanitarian and geopolitical crises, increasingly severe weather events, and a global economic downturn affected more people than ever before, with women and girls bearing the brunt of their impact.
Against this grim backdrop, the importance of the rule of law to peace and sustainable development was never more evident....
17 May, 2022
The rule of law is vital to the response to noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). This Toolkit offers tools and resources that provide guidance on how the law can be used to curb NCDs and, potentially, to address other global health challenges. It aims to support the integration of legal approaches in the teaching of public health challenges through an interdisciplinary approach grounded in international human rights law. It addresses NCDs and regulatory and fiscal responses in three countries in...
16 March, 2022
Women and girls have the right to effectively participate in and lead efforts to achieve climate justice. An explicitly feminist approach to climate change, based on the rule of law, is needed to ensure women’s inclusion in decision-making processes related to climate governance, equal access to justice, resolution of conflict over natural resources, and the enactment of inclusive and effective climate laws and policies.
IDLO’s Policy Brief Climate Justice for Women and Girls: A Rule of Law...
10 March, 2022
Equality in law is crucial for gender equality. Laws and policies shape the realities of women and girls in all aspects of life and in all parts of society. Just laws can be instruments to protect, promote and fulfil the rights of women and girls, contributing to just and inclusive societies, where no woman or girl is left behind. However, laws can also deny rights to women and girls and hinder the realization of a just and equal society.
IDLO and UN...
1 March, 2022
Investment Support Programme for Least Developed Countries (ISP/LDC) provides technical and legal assistance, as well as complementary capacity building to LDC governments and private sector entities on investment-related matters, including negotiations and dispute settlement. Assistance under ISP/LDCs is provided at no cost to the beneficiaries, by harnessing the expertise of lawyers and experts working on a “pro bono” or reduced fee basis. ISP/LDCs was developed by IDLO in cooperation with...
28 October, 2021
Climate change is the defining global development challenge of our time, with significant implications for the achievement of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. As the only global intergovernmental organization exclusively devoted to promoting the rule of law to advance peace and sustainable development, IDLO believes that the rule of law is a vital enabler of transformative climate action.
IDLO’s Policy Brief Climate Justice: A Rule of Law Approach for Transformative Climate Action...
31 August, 2021
Community Paralegals and Customary and Informal Justice explores how community-based paralegals and other legal aid providers can strengthen the accessibility and inclusiveness of customary and informal justice (CIJ) systems. It brings together leading-edge research and the grounded experience of IDLO programs in several sub-Saharan African countries to address:
the key functions of community-based paralegals in contexts of legal pluralism, including paralegal support for women and...
28 July, 2021
IDLO’s Annual Report for 2020 offers a tangible demonstration of how its work contributed to global COVID-19 response and recovery efforts over the past year. Throughout the crisis, IDLO offices around the world remained operational, pivoting quickly to support our partners to respond to the unprecedented range of legal and justice challenges presented by the pandemic.
The events of 2020 have reinforced the relevance of IDLO’s mandate to promote the rule of law to advance peace and sustainable...
20 January, 2021
Accessing Justice: Somalia's Alternative Dispute Resolution Centers reviews structural, procedural, and normative dimensions of justice in six Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Centers in Somalia, documenting insights from ADR Coordinators, Clerks, paralegals, and Adjudicators as well as users of the Centers.
An integral part of achieving Sustainable Development Goal 16 is adopting a people-centered approach that ensures inclusive engagement, involving women and marginalized...
20 October, 2020
Legal Empowerment, Social Accountability and HIV Prevention for Young Women and Girls: Lessons from Tanzania and Uganda reviews IDLO's programming in Tanzania and Uganda which integrated legal empowerment and social accountability strategies to accelerate justice for women and girls.
Implemented as part of the DREAMS Innovation Challenge, IDLO's program aimed at reducing new HIV infections among adolescent girls and young women by strengthening demand for quality HIV...