What are the key budget and financial considerations for NHRIs with an NPM mandate?

Those considering the designation of an NHRI as NPM should not view it as necessarily cheaper than other NPM models. Regardless of the strategy and internal structure that is ultimately decided upon, any NHRI taking on an NPM mandate will require additional human and financial resources. This is also made clear in Article 39 of the 2008 Nairobi Declaration on NHRIs which states that NHRIs should only consider designation as NPMs “if the necessary powers and resources are made available to them.” It is also a clear state obligation under article 18 of the OPCAT to grant the NPM the “necessary resources” for it to be able to carry out its work.

Among the main budget and resource challenges faced by NPMs is the need for dedicated NPM staff. Additional resources are also usually needed for external experts, for example, medical doctors and psychologists, who may be recruited to ensure that NPMs fulfil the criteria of multidisciplinarity. Depending on the model, this might include fees or per diems, and travel costs. Beyond additional human resources, funding will also be required for travel and accommodation for the NPM, as well as to cover, inter alia, the production and publication (and possibly translation) of NPM reports. Funding for training, communication and participation in international exchanges and other fora may also be required.

A second challenge relates to the sheer scope of the mandate, which includes regular monitoring of all places where persons are or may be deprived of their liberty – representing an enormous diversity of places, often across a large geographical area. All NPMs, including NHRIs must find the right balance between quantity and quality of visits, balancing the need to be present in the field and in places of deprivation of liberty, while also allocating sufficient time and resources to analysis and follow-up.  

In addition, the specific nature of the preventive approach poses a significant resource challenge for institutions that have traditionally been more reactive in their work. This is a budget issue in that, regardless of whether an NPM unit has a complaints handling role, it will need sufficient resources so that this role does not overwhelm its capacity to do preventive work.

To ensure financial autonomy and sustainability, good practice is to allocate a set percentage of the total institutional budget to the NPM in the legislation designating the NHRI as NPM, to include it in relevant legislative amendments, or in the internal rules and regulations of the office, again something that is reviewed by the GANHRI SCA.