Civic Education and Localization of Laws and Policies

Innovation methods

Data sources

SDG(s)

Sustainable Development Goal(s)

5Gender equality

8Decent work and economic growth

16Peace, justice and strong institutions

Disclaimer:

Please be aware that the content herein has not been peer reviewed. It consists of personal reflections, insights, and learnings of the contributor(s). It may not be exhaustive, nor does it aim to be authoritative knowledge.

Title

Please provide a name for your action learning plan.

Civic Education and Localization of Laws and Policies

Challenge statement

Challenge type: If you are working on multiple challenges, please indicate if this is your "big bet" or "exploratory" challenge. Please note: we ask you to only submit a maximum of 3 challenges - 1x Big Bet, 2x Exploratory. Each challenge must be submitted individually.

EXPLORATORY

Challenge statement: What is your challenge? (Please answer in specific terms: "Our challenge is that...”.)

Our challenge is that, communities in Lesotho are mostly not aware of the country's laws and regulations and have less participation in their development leading to Misinformation, Lack of Relevance and Applicability, Low Compliance and Enforcement Issues, Legal Alienation and Marginalization, Inefficient Service Delivery.

Background: What is the history of your challenge? What is causing or driving it? Who is involved? How does the current situation look like? What undesired effects does it produce?

The institutional arrangement within the Government line Ministries have challenges with interoperability of systems and processes. This poses a challenge in optimizing public service delivery leading to an imbalance in improving policy coordination, cooperation, and implementation. The action seeks to resolve coordination problems and shall focus on eliciting socially desirable actions based on rules, standards, and regulations that help coordinate policyholders based on shared expectations. Ordinary citizens lack knowledge on processes, service requirements, applications of laws and regulations.

Quantitative evidence: What (official) data sources do you have on this challenge that better exemplifies the importance and urgency of this frontier challenge? You can add text, a link, or a picture.

Qualitative evidence: What weak signals have you recently spotted that characterizes its urgency? Please provide qualitative information that better exemplifies the importance and urgency of this frontier challenge. You can add text, a link, or a picture.

Value proposition: What added value or unique value proposition is your Accelerator Lab bringing to solving this challenge? Why is it your Lab that needs to work on this challenge and not other actors within UNDP, other stakeholders in the country respectively? Why is it worth investing resources to this challenge?

The action seeks to resolve coordination problems and shall focus on eliciting socially desirable actions based on rules, standards, and regulations that help coordinate policyholders based on shared expectations. Ordinary citizens lack knowledge on processes, service requirements, applications of laws and regulations. A major challenge in legal systems, especially in diverse societies, is the population's understanding of legal requirements. When laws are localized, they are often communicated in the local language and through channels that are accessible to the community. This not only demystifies legal jargon but also ensures that individuals and businesses are fully aware of their rights and obligations. Enhanced legal literacy fosters a more informed citizenry, capable of making decisions that are legally sound and in their best interests.

Short “tweet” summary: We would like to tweet what you are working on, can you summarize your challenge in a maximum of 280 characters?

The AccLab in Lesotho is currently exploring localization of laws and regulations with the aim of improving public participation in enhancement of optimizing public service delivery

Challenge classification

Partners

Who are your top 5 partners for this challenge? Please submit from MOST to LEAST important and state Name, Sector and a brief description of the (intended) collaboration.

Please state the name of the partner:

Ministry of Information, Communication, Science, Technology and Innovation National University of Lesotho

What sector does our partner belong to?

Government (&related)

Please provide a brief description of the collaboration.

Expertise, finacial support

Is this a new and unusual partner for UNDP?

Learning questions

Learning question: What is your learning question for this challenge? What do you need to know or understand to work on your challenge statement?

The hypothesis is that localization of laws and regulations would optimize adherence, requirements knowledge and finally optimize service delivery

To what stage(s) in the learning cycle does your learning question relate?

Sense, Explore

Usage of methods: Relating to your choice above, how will you use your methods & tools for this learning question? What value do these add in answering your learning question?

Direct community engagements through collective inteeligence and co-creation.

Existing data gaps: Relating to your choice above, what existing gaps in data or information do these new sources of data addressing? What value do these add in answering your learning question?

In Lesotho there is a challenge with data generally. The government repository lacks information that is pertinent to most human centered interventions. Direct Engagement with the communities provides enough evidence and becomes the most trusted source of development information. Structured primary data is limited within the government and partners. Where data is available, it is outdated or unstructured to respond to today's community needs

Closing

Early leads to grow: Think about the possible grow phase for this challenge - who might benefit from your work on this challenge or who might be the champions in your country that you should inform or collaborate with early on to help you grow this challenge?

The action will bring about adaptation of legal frameworks and regulatory standards to align with the specific cultural, social, and economic contexts of a particular region or community. This approach is crucial in ensuring that laws are not only relevant but also understood and adhered to by the local population. The effectiveness of this localization directly impacts the level of compliance, awareness of legal requirements, and the overall efficiency of service delivery

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