Policy and strategy
Development cannot be steered from the outside, yet it can be encouraged. For this reason Hivos places its full trust in the power and creativity of the people who are themselves living in developing countries. If given the opportunity and the means, they can make their own living, fight for their rights and shape their futures.
Poverty is not merely caused by a material lack of resources but also by unfair circumstances in society and politics. To Hivos, alleviating poverty goes hand in hand with fighting these unfair balances of power by giving people the chance to have a greater say in political, economic and cultural matters.
Hivos works on the structural alleviation of poverty. This means that Hivos not only focuses on improving people’s living conditions and their positions, it also aims at removing the root causes of poverty and oppression. To achieve this, Hivos uses a threefold strategy in which direct poverty alleviation, the advancement of civil society and advocacy with regard to decision making reinforce one another.
Direct poverty alleviation offers people the means to escape from poverty on their own: access to resources (including financial services), knowledge to access markets, education and technical tools to generate income.
Civil society building – or the support to local organisations and civil society as a whole – is central to Hivos’ work. Poverty, injustice and inequality will continue to exist as long as poor people are not able to represent their common interests. To alleviate poverty and advocate for better policies, effective organisations and a strong civil society are crucial.
Advocacy for pro-poor policies is essential to making laws, regulations and markets work in favour of poor societal groups. Together with partner organisations, Hivos directs its efforts toward local, national and international governments, organisations and businesses.
Improving women’s rights is an essential aspect of the work of Hivos. Not only does Hivos support women’s organisations, it also requires partner organisations active in other fields to pay attention to the rights and interests of women.
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