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What we found most useful about the 'Using Shadow Reports for Advocacy' dialogue, was the way the various experts on shadow reporting were sharing their experiences  as well as the sharing by representatives from various organizations  on what they have done in their respective countries, it was insightful to learn  from others the step by step process. The engagement of experts and organizations ( linking the grassroots to the national to the international) made shadow reporting process clearer especially how engagements are done to facilitate constructive dialogues e.g.  how a community based organization working on  water and sanitation in Kibera – Nairobi  or imminent evictions in an area like  Mukuru slums – Nairobi can become an issue in Geneva before the ESCR committee.

Ebony Youth Initiative members got an opportunity to learn  the various struggles organizations and individuals are going through  with regard to realization and enjoyment of human rights from a global perspective. Being a university student fresh from high school , this was a good opportunity to look at  human rights issue  from a global lens( Beatrice Chepkurui).It was an opportunity to reinforce the fact that human rights are contestable (Leonida).

The dialogues were well coordinated thus easy to follow up. The dividing of the dialogue into thematic issues made the discussion more relevant  eg if a participant wanted to follow up on an issue such as shadow reports and advocacy it was easy to do so without getting lost (Peter Matheka).

The immediate feedback to views of members was also very critical and beneficial as this provided  room for further reflections.

During the dialogue, we used the Kenya parallel report on ESCR, October 2008 as a reference point thus we were able through the interactions to deeply understand its importance, how the report  can be used  to enhance accountability among states etc.This  is given that due to globalization, we are no longer citizens of a state but citizens of the globe.

The dialogue helped us  realize that a shadow report  is not just any document written but it’s a  very powerful advocacy issue  and can help give  voice to the ‘voiceless.”

As an  organization we have realized there is more ahead for us to do in order to realize  human rights for our target group.

Some new ideas that we will take away from this dialogue include:

• The discussion reinforced the power of numbers, the  extent to which working together with other organizations can achieve in articulating human rights issues
• It also emphasized  that  governments should not look at  shadow reports as antagonistic towards them but as a  dialogue tool
• Learning the nitty gritty of the parallel report process was very beneficial to us