Context
Most partner countries in German development cooperation have ratified the core human rights treaties. Nevertheless, in many places the population cannot adequately exercise their political and civil, economic, social and cultural rights. Global crises such as climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic further exacerbate this problem.
The purpose of human rights is to guarantee that people are able to live in dignity, equality and freedom. As such human rights are a central prerequisite for sustainable development. Human rights have been an official guiding principle for German development policy since 2011. With the BMZ 2030 reform strategy, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) once again emphasises that human rights are an important quality criterion for all projects and areas of development cooperation.
Objective
BMZ and its implementing organisations consistently align their development policy activities with human rights standards and principles.