Caritas Internationalis is committed to addressing poverty and injustice, including by creating conditions for sustainable development. Advocacy is one of the means to address injustice, which is one of the root causes of poverty.
Caritas Internationalis has accumulated expertise in the field of advocacy and today offers this expertise to train others through collaboration with academic institutions and institutions of high education. It is in this perspective that Caritas Internationalis collaborates with the Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna of Pisa to hold the advanced education course in “Development Law, Policy and Advocacy” (DELPA), beginning on 14 January 2021.
Caritas at the United Nations. Photo by Ryan Worms/Caritas
The aim of the course, which will be in English, is the training of qualified operators to carry out advocacy or activities related to the processing and implementation of development policies within non-governmental or international or national organisations, which operate in the areas of development and protection of human rights. Trainers will include members of the advocacy department of Caritas Internationalis and other experts invited by the confederation.
“We welcome the collaboration with the Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna of Pisa because we deeply believe in the value of training and in sharing our knowledge and experience. This initiative has the added value of being among the few development cooperation courses focused on advocacy,” – said Aloysius John, Secretary General of Caritas Internationalis.”
The course comprises two parts: a first 120-hour teaching module, which, through a multidisciplinary approach, will deal with several issues under the Agenda 2030 for sustainable development, such as poverty and inequality, migration, climate change and empowerment. A second module will consist in a 120-hour training internship to be held at institutions and organizations collaborating with Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies, including Caritas Internationalis. The course is worth 13 university training credits.
“It is our desire to contribute to the training of advocacy professionals who can speak up for the rights of the most vulnerable.,” says Aloysius John.
“At this time of pandemic, Caritas is focusing particularly on advocacy activities to address the current serious social injustices, especially at the economic level. For example, we are committed to calling for the cancellation of poor countries’ debt and the reallocation of funds to local community development programmes run by faith-based organisations such as Caritas. The fight for the rights of the most vulnerable requires incisive and qualified preparation to address the issue.” Caritas Internationalis is pleased to collaborate with the Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna for the training of new qualified operators.
All those interested in applying for admission to the course must do so no later than 1st December 2020. For further information, please consult the website