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I work for the Development Initiatives Network, which is a non-governmental organisation based in Lagos in Nigeria. We work on environment and development issues from a policy research and advocacy perspective.

What is your experience of using research-based evidence to influence development policy?

Research-based evidence is central to the work that we do. We do not offer services in the community. Using research-based evidence is an important aspect of engaging with policy-makers by providing credible evidence about areas in which we have determined a credible need for policy interventions.

What do you think are the most important tricks of the trade?

I think that it is important to be very organised, especially for NGOs. There is a general perception that NGOs are not as organised as for-profit or private sector organisations. The first thing, then, is to be more organised and to be focused on what the problems are and on finding solutions.

Do you have any 'good news case studies'?

Being a relatively new organisation, this is still an evolving body of work. We have had significant impact, especially in connection with forestry policy in Nigeria and on issues relating to legal interventions as part of the overall response to HIV/AIDS. If we take the latter case, right up until 1996 there was very little happening in terms of new policy approaches or legal interventions. Since that time, whilst the policy environment has improved, there has not been a great deal of improvement in responses at the legal level, particularly in terms of trying to tackle discrimination or stigmatisation of people living with HIV/AIDS. Through organising other civil society groups to focus on these issues, as well as doing research to show where the needs are, we have been able to bring to legislators at the national assembly the need to have new legislation specifically directed at dealing with discrimination.

Do you have any 'horror stories'?

Not really, our experiences have been positive so far.

What three things could CSOs do to increase their policy impact?

I think that CSOs need to work with other like-minded organisations that are working on similar issues. Networking and alliance building is very important because we are likely to have greater social impact when we work with others who have the same or similar goals and objectives.

There is also the issue of building capacities. Within our organisation, to be able to do research more effectively and to engage with policy-makers, capacity-building is critical. Unfortunately, not a lot of CSOs are doing this at the moment.

What three things could policy-makers do to increase their use of research-based evidence?

I think that if we accept that the policy-making environment is becoming more open as a result of having democratic governance now, then policy-makers should go beyond the normal traditional sources of information and seek out civil society actors and have an understanding of how we operate in the social sector. There should be a willingness to learn from the experiences and the knowledge that we have gathered and not maintain this idea that we are not really critical actors in national development. We are critical actors and policy-makers should have a collaborative approach to working with NGOs and other civil society groups.

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