Hungry people in small villages can’t always talk to policymakers in the halls of power. But with your donations, Caritas can tell government leaders, the United Nations, and others what the world’s most vulnerable people need and what can reduce their suffering. Our Advocacy and Policy team researches important global issues, drawing from information we receive from our grassroots Catholic partners about hunger, climate change, and health crises. Then we bring the voice of the needy to influential groups that can make change.

Food Security: Food supplies are connected. A government policy change or a flood in Asia can make it harder for a family in East Africa to afford rice. Caritas’ advocacy raises awareness about where people are hungry, and the reasons why. We lobby for changes in production and distribution patterns in order to guarantee equal access to sufficient food for everyone.

Global Anti-Poverty Campaign: This campaign bring pressures on national governments to honour the millennium goal commitments by 2015, which will improve access to food, clean water, health care, education, and other resources.

Migration Advocacy Programme: People who go abroad to flee conflict or to work are often exploited and hurt. Caritas speaks out for refugees, migrant workers, and more. Together with other groups, Caritas Internationalis lobbied the International Labour Organisation (ILO) to create standards that ensure housemaids are treated with dignity. In 2011, the ILO adopted a convention saying that domestic workers, including migrants, should get a contract for their work, get their pay, and have time to rest. Caritas monitors the detention of migrants and the way they are treated.

Caritas has also informed the United Nations about the situation of migrants, especially child migrants escaping violence, in places like North Africa.