In order to further ZLHR’s vision, mission and core objectives, the organisation planned and implemented various activities in community, provincial, national, continental and global spaces. Indeed, 2014 was a year in which ZLHR worked to assist people from all social backgrounds and geographical regions through legal support, educative and literacy programmes, researchbased advocacy initiatives, and institutional and policy engagement. 5.1 ZLHR in the Community Equipping communities with knowledge of their constitutional rights and obligations not only contributes to increased rights literacy within society, but also empowers individuals and communities to become active citizens who can engage in local and national affairs, and who can assert and demand their civil, economic and social rights. Through such community interventions, lawyers are also better able to understand the human rights issues affecting communities, compile first-hand evidence of socio-economic issues affecting a particular societal group, and better showcase the value of policy and legal interventions in addressing such challenges. Community activities thus contribute to ZLHR increasing access to social and economic justice, rights literacy and an active, engaged and mobilised citizenry. Mobile Legal Clinics 99 During 2014, ZLHR carried out 32 Mobile Legal Clinics in 7 provinces 99 A total of 2,923 people from different social, economic and political backgrounds benefitted from legal aid services and constitutional sensitisation interventions 99 62% of participants from the targeted communities were women The concept of Mobile Legal Clinics is not a new intervention for ZLHR. Since 2004, the organisation has been implementing ‘Situational Trainings’ – low cost, on-site provision of legal advice and assistance, together with education on issues affecting specific communities. With the realisation of the need for lawyers to be more accessible to communities in an inclement economic environment, ZLHR further developed its ‘Mobile Legal Clinics’ initiative to better respond to beneficiary needs. These Mobile Legal Clinics provide a one-stop accessible service for community members at the local level, with activities centering on the provision of human rights and constitutional literacy sessions, legal support services (consultations, legal advice and public interest litigation), and the creation of a platform for community members to network, dialogue and debate, and learn together about fundamental and other rights issues affecting their welfare and how they can be addressed. ZLHR’s Nosimilo Chanayiwa engaging a client at a mobile legal clinic held in one of Bulawayo’s high density suburbs Other than lawyers becoming more accessible to local communities, the Mobile Legal Clinics are a source of information to community members, facilitate an increase in access to justice and constitutional implementation and protection by and for communities. For ZLHR, lawyers are better able to identify potential Public Interest Litigation cases that can improve conditions for a large number of people and address issues specific to those communities, while the information collected contributes first-hand data and evidence that can be used in research, policy formulation, and advocacy engagement with government and other actors for institutional, legislative and administrative reforms, as well as greater accountability and effectiveness of state institutions and actors. 17 ZLHR Annual Report 2014 5. 2014 in Retrospect