Innocent Chukwuma is the Executive Director of the CLEEN Foundation in Nigeria working on human rights and justice sector reform.  He is also a Reebok International Human Rights Award winner, and the Hauser Center is hosting him as a Fellow in 2010.

About CLEEN Foundation

CLEEN Foundation is a non-governmental organization established in 1998 and registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) in Nigeria to promote public safety, security and accessible justice. Our priorities are pursued through the strategies of empirical research, legislative advocacy, demonstration programmes and publications in partnership with government and civil society.

From its inception back in the dark and twilight days of General Abacha military regime to the present time, CLEEN Foundation has always believed that respect for human rights and partnership with the community are the cardinal principles on which public perception of safety, security and justice can be improved upon. We have worked assiduously to promote these principles in the relationship between law enforcement agencies and the community they serve in Nigeria and beyond.

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As a domestic practitioner working with international NGOs, how would you describe the interactions between CLEEN Foundation and other organizations in terms of advocacy and policy work? What works and what does not?

The interactions between CLEEN Foundation and international NGOs operating in Nigeria, especially those focusing on human rights issues, have been a learning experience, which is becoming increasingly more cordial and mutually respectful as we grow in understanding each other’s operating demands and a bit more formal in structuring relationships based on shared objectives and strategies of work. But it has not always been like that and many local NGOs in Nigeria are still trapped in tension soaked relationship with INGOs because of politics of donor funding, decentralization of aid decisions by major donor agencies and increasing interventionist role INGOs have assumed since the inauguration of elected civilian government in Nigeria in 1999, which has made them more of a competitors in many circumstances than collaborators or partners of local groups. Local groups are becoming increasingly afraid that if the situation continues a lot of them might be out of business and deny society their services.

In spite of these difficulties, the concept of partnership between local and international NGOs still has real value as a philosophy underlying institutional development. Its key value lies in the assumption of a relationship that goes beyond funding, to a real long-term commitment to the development of national organizations. It is therefore important for local groups to know what they are going into before they agree to collaborate with international groups and insist on having some formal discussion and possible  agreement about what the partnership is intended to achieve, which would enable them to decide whether it’s worth their while or not. However, no two situations are exactly alike. Context, shared values and culture defines what works and what may not work.

How would you characterize the relationship between your organization’s mission and mandate, with the pursuit of justice and human rights?

Our organizational mission and objectives of promoting public safety and security are at the heart of pursuit of justice and human rights. Apart from being part and parcel of fundamental rights equation, promotion of safety and security are the base upon which advocacy for human rights  flourishes and without which they become a mere academic exercise.

Furthermore, our strategy of focusing on the supply side of justice in partnership with government is very critical in promotion of human rights and justice, especially in developing societies such as ours. The reason is that many mainstream human rights advocacy groups that make demands for respect for human rights on governments in our region sometimes appear to ignore the fact that in transitional societies, state institutions may lack capacity to deliver on demands made on them, including respect for rights, and unless they are assisted in building these capacities (among other strategies) they may not improve on their records.

What do you plan to teach here at Harvard Kennedy School next year, and why is it so important?

I plan to teach two courses at the HKS next year. The first is Criminal Justice Reform in Africa, focusing on informal policing systems, which are often forgotten in discussions about justice reform, in spite of the dominant role they play in poor people’s search for safety and security in the continent. The second course is management of non profits in Africa, looking at the challenges and creative solutions NGOs in the region have adopted in institutionalizing their operations and responding to the harsh environment in which they work.

The two courses are important as they would expose the students to developments in the two sectors in Africa and prepare them for possible research interest or development work in the region when they graduate.

By coming to Harvard, how would you like to bridge the gap between research and practice, and how can your experiences in the field give insight to the complexities of this interaction?

The acknowledged gap between research and practice is primarily a gap between two sharply contrasting kinds of knowledge, which should complement each other in other to get a fuller picture of knowledge. Therefore, bridging the gap requires platforms for constant dialogue between the two communities – research and practice - as there is no silver bullet approach. My experience of working with academics and practitioners in criminal justice reform in Nigeria has thought me that constant dialogue among major stakeholders and willingness to learn as well as sharing help a lot.

However, we should not forget the fact that academics will also be academics and practitioners will always be themselves, hence the complexities of the problem of bridging the gap. The opportunity of spending a semester in Harvard is for me though a learning period on the efforts of the Harvard’s Kennedy School in bridging the gap as much as it is a sharing one  of my own experiences in that regard.