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General human rights
German support for international agreements and institutions
Primary responsibility for protecting human rights and establishing democratic structures rests with the governments of individual countries. The central frame of reference and practical guidance for this national task are provided by the international agreements and institutions.
Through its development policy, Germany helps ensure that human rights, democracy and good governance are given high priority internationally. It achieves this in the following ways:
- Germany seeks to establish even closer links between realising human rights and implementing the Millennium Development Goals, in both national and international processes. This is designed to empower people in partner countries to drive their own development process. To this end, the BMZ is funding measures of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to further integrate the human rights-based approach into poverty reduction strategies and good governance.
- On the relevant international bodies, including the Development Assistance Committee of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD-DAC), Germany is working to establish more coherent links between human rights and development policy.
- The BMZ is encouraging international financial institutions such as the World Bank and IMF, and the European Union, to adopt a more systematic human rights-based approach in their work. It is also supporting corresponding reform activities.
- The BMZ supports the networking of national, regional and international organisations operating in the field of human rights and development. This plays an important role in harmonising the work and making the measures more effective.
- To strengthen regional human rights systems, the BMZ is supporting the African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights, for example, in establishing effective structures and in cooperating with the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights and other important human rights players in Africa.