The programme was launched in January 2009 with the aim of building the capacity of civil society organisations to be able to effectively engage policy markers and influence policy formulation, planning and implementation at local and national levels.  

The capacity of CSOs and CBOs to deliver on their advocacy, policy analysis and research agenda has brought their credibility and effectiveness in engaging and influencing policy formulation, planning and implementation at local and national levels into sharp focus. This is because most of them lack the necessary capacity in advocacy, policy analysis, participatory techniques and methodologies, knowledge and skills in rights-based approaches etc. This means that they are unable to engage with decision-makers and policy-makers and also unable to make claims on their rights and entitlements on full-time basis. This is not unique to CSOs in Uganda. CSOs in most parts of Africa are equally affected by lack of capacity and ineffectiveness in dealing with government processes that are less open and transparent and where accountability is an exception rather than the rule. In this respect, weak civil society has meant that most decisions that are taken are skewed to favour the already privileged sections of society and those in positions of power.

So due to such environment, UDN has over the years been challenged to popularize and make available the Community Based Monitoring and Evaluation Model so that other organizations are able to adopt it and use it for advocacy purposes. The programme will meet the demands from different civil society organizations and CBOs to train them on the approach and hence influence policy markers at both national and international level. It is on this background that the UDN capacity Building Programme was created to bridge the gap and train civil society organizations in lobbying and advocacy in addition to the CBMES methodology.