“The AIHRC is funded by both the State and international donors, and the proportion of state funding has been increasing in recent years. The SCA encourages the AIHRC to continue to pursue a sustainable funding model that will ensure it can continue to discharge effectively its mandate.

The SCA emphasizes that, to function effectively, an NHRI must be provided with an appropriate level of funding in order to guarantee its independence and its ability to freely determine its priorities and activities. Where an NHRI has been designated with additional responsibilities by the State, additional financial resources should be provided to enable it to assume the responsibilities of discharging these functions.

Funding from external sources, such as from international development partners, should not compose the core funding of the NHRI, as this is the responsibility of the State. However, the SCA recognizes the need for the international community, in specific and rare circumstances, to continue to engage and support and NHRI in order to ensure it receives adequate funding until such time when the State will be able to do so. In such unique cases, an NHRI should not be required to obtain approval from the state for external sources of funding, as this requirement may detract from its independence. Such funds should not be tied to donor-defined priorities but rather to the pre-determined priorities of the NHRI.”