Two Faces of Poverty Conference

PRIMER for High School Students

The Commission on Legal Empowerment of the Poor (CLEP)


Click here for an electronic copy of the report of the Commission on the Legal Empowerment of the Poor, "Making the Law Work for Everyone"

The Commission on Legal Empowerment of the Poor (CLEP) was an international initiative made up of 21 commissioners (former heads of state/government, current ministers, jurists, economic researchers, etc…). It was created to address the challenge of putting in place the Millennium Development Goals for the billions of poor people living outside of the rule of law and/or working in the informal economy – that is, working under the table, and not having access to basic labour rights and requirements.

The CLEP worked for three years to find ways of implementing legal empowerment. They conducted 22 national consultation processes, launched five technical working groups, drew on their own experience, reviewed relevant literature and talked with people from various backgrounds and ways of life.


What is Legal Empowerment?

Simply put, legal empowerment is “a process of systematic change through which the poor and excluded become able to use the law, the legal system, and legal services to protect and advance their rights and interests as citizens and economic actors” (“Making the Law Work for Everyone,” page 3). That is, making access to legal protection and economic opportunity the right of all, and not merely the privilege of a few.


The Four Pillars of Legal Empowerment


First Pillar: Access to Justice and the Rule of the Law

Laws are necessary to enforce the rights and obligations of society. Effective and enforced laws that protect the rights of the poor can go a long way in achieving economic development. However, creating and implementing these laws are difficult for various social and economic reasons, and to ensure that the poor have access to them is quite a challenge. For these laws to function for all, the firm commitment of states and public institutions is critical.

Key steps that need to be taken:

  • Improve identity registration systems (i.e. birth certificates) – no user fees and for all
  • Remove or change laws and regulations that are biased against the rights, interests, and livelihoods of the poor
  • Create new organizations and strengthen existing ones that work in the interests of the poor
  • Integrate informal legal procedures, with which the poor are already familiar, into the formal legal system
  • Ensure that the poor are educated about the legal systems and have easy access to it
  • Establish impartial courts, which take into account the livelihoods of the poor


Second Pillar: Property Rights

Ownership of property is a fundamental human right. A functioning property system contains: a system of governance; rules that define rights and obligations between the individual, the public, and the government; a functioning market; and social policy. However, in a dysfunctional system there is discrimination and a lack of opportunity for the poor to break through the cycle of poverty. The poor must be included in the formal economy to allow them to improve their standard of living and livelihood

Key steps that need to be taken:

  • Build an efficient, accessible property rights system that brings the poor into the formal economy
  • Establish clear laws that make wives and common-law partners co-owners of men’s property
  • Design non-discriminatory inheritance laws
  • Create a functioning market for the exchange of assets (housing, equipment, etc.). This market should be accessible, fair and accountable.
  • Ensure that each nation’s property rights are enforceable by law and that all property owners have access to same rights and standards


Third Pillar: Labour Rights

The poor spend most of their waking hours working and are barely able to survive on their earnings. It is thus important to recognize the labour and human capital of the poor. The economy’s legitimacy depends upon basic labour rights. Further, the development of human capital is necessary for sustained growth.


Key steps that need to be taken:

  • Guarantee fundamental rights at work, especially freedom of association, collective bargaining, and non-discrimination
  • Improved quality and enforcement of labour regulations
  • Extend labour rights to workers in the informal economy. These must include health and safety regulations, hours of work, minimum income and child labour prohibitions.
  • Create more opportunities for education, training and re-training


Fourth Pillar: Business Rights

The poor are entitled to labour rights not only when working for others but also when developing their own businesses. Additionally important is access to protections and opportunities, such as: the ability to contract, to make deals, to raise investment capital through shares or other means, to contain personal financial risk (i.e. through limited liability), and to pass ownership on from one generation to the next.

Key steps that need to be taken:

  • Guarantee basic business rights; including the right to vend, to have a workspace, and to have access to necessary services (shelter, electricity, water, sanitation)
  • Allow owners to separate their personal assets from those of the business
  • Promote access to inclusive financial services that offer savings, credit, insurance, pensions, and other tools for risk management


For Further Thought

Below are some questions designed to get you thinking a bit more about legal empowerment. After each question there are some relevant pages from the Commission’s final report: “Making the Law Work for Everyone: Volume I” (available on the CLEP website HERE). However, we encourage you to think and talk about these questions before checking the report. Independent thought is always best; these references need only round out your own ideas!

  1. Who are “the poor”? What are some of the big problems that they face?
    • See: Chapter 1 - pages 15-16, 18; Chapter 2, pages 31-39
  2. Do you think legal empowerment (i.e. the Four Pillars) can help answer some of these problems? If so, how? If not, why?
    • See: Executive Summary pages 1-11
  3. The National Consultation in Mozambique said, “Many people do not know what their human rights are and are unaware of the meaning of having a right.” What are human rights? How do they play out in your day-to-day life? Imagine a life without human rights – how would things be different?
    • See:  Executive Summary, page 4; Chapter 2, pages 29-31
  4. A large portion of the developing world’s economic activity is informal. What effects does this have on national economies? On the individuals who participate in informal economic activity?
    • See: Executive Summary, pages 2-4; Chapter 1, pages 13-15; Chapter 3, pages 47-56; Chapter 4, pages 69-70
  5. Many of the world’s poor do not have a legal identity (official proof that they are who they say they are, such as a birth certificate or ID card). Why is ensuring that people have a legal identity important?
    • See: Chapter 2, pages 28 and 32; Chapter 4, page 61; Chapter 5, page 88 (“Tactics for Champions and Change Agents”)
  6. Why is it essential that the poor have a voice in the legal empowerment movement (AKA legal empowerment as a “bottom-up” initiative)?
    • See: Executive Summary, page 9; Chapter 1, page 20; Chapter 2 pages 26-28; Chapter 5, page 77
  7. Many of the world’s poor do not have access to financial institutions such as banks. Likewise, much of the property owned by the poor is not legally recognized. What problems does this situation create for business owners?
    • See: Chapter 2, pages 34-35, 38; Chapter 3, pages 47-54; Chapter 4, page 67
  8. According to the CLEP report “Making the Law Work for Everyone,” one of the key tasks in implementing legal empowerment is managing stakeholders. who are stakeholders, and why is working with them so significant?
    • See: Chapter 5, pages 79-82, 84-85
  9. The four pillars of legal empowerment are connected to and reinforce each other. What are some of the reasons why women’s and indigenous peoples’ concerns must be specifically considered when implementing these pillars?
    • See: Executive Summary, pages 2, 6; Chapter 1, page 18; Chapter 2, pages 35-36; Chapter 4, page 70

Key Terms and Definitions

Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)
Eight goals set out by the United Nations designed to cut poverty in half by 2015

Human Rights
Interdependent and indivisible rights entitled to all human beings free from any form of discrimination; often expressed and guaranteed by international law(definition adapted from the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights)

Informal Economy
Economic activity (i.e. trade) that isn’t monitored by the government, taxed, or included in gross domestic product (GDP) calculations

GDP (Gross Domestic Product)
total market value of a nation’s goods and services produced in a year

Civil Society
Voluntary associations that are neither commercial businesses or state organizations; these may include international bodies (such as the United Nations or World Trade Organization), religious groups, neighbourhood groups, social movements, etc.

Human Capital
Investments in people, such as education and on-the-job skills training

Asset
Something valuable that a person or business owns, benefits from, or has use of; assets have the ability to generate income (www.businessdictionary.com)

Collateral
An asset that is surrendered to a lender if a borrower cannot make loan payments; in most situations, borrowers must have some form of collateral in order to take out a loan (www.businessdictionary.com)

Limited Liability Companies
Allow businesses to be a legal entity distinct from their owners (if a business fails, the entrepreneur’s family will not lose everything)


In Case you Have More Questions


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