Secretariat and resources There should be a secretariat to support the coordinating committee and to manage activities relating to the national plan between committee meetings. Core staff of the secretariat may be provided by the focal agency on a secondment basis. It is important to ensure that some at least of the secretariat’s staff is provided by other organizations. This will enhance the secretariat’s human rights expertise and promote new ideas and approaches. Organizations that might consider supplying staff include national human rights institution, human rights NGOs, legal bodies or law firms and business corporations. Senior secretariat staff should be selected by the coordinating committee according to criteria it has developed itself. It is unlikely that a large secretariat will be needed. Where local resources are scarce and support is sought from international donors, a large secretariat may be perceived as inappropriate and even wasteful. The intensity of secretariat activity will vary over the life of the plan. During the developmental phase there will be a high level of activity, while during the implementation phase the focus of activity will shift away from the coordinating committee and the secretariat and the level of activity will be much lower. The government should allocate adequate financial resources to permit the holding of committee meetings and public meetings, to meet the expenses of the secretariat and to cover the costs of the media programme. 50