Chapter 1 | Page 27 public sector resource mobilisation; maximisation of international assistance and co-operation; mobilising private sector and societal resources; resource allocation for ESC rights; and quality of resources and resource governance. While a comparative case study method using examples from different country contexts has its advantages, especially in situations where comparable information from different contexts can be effectively collected and analysed, this thesis adopted a single country case study to provide a more focused perspective on the isssues covered. These case studies provide, from different perspectives, an in-depth understanding of the resource dimension in relation to ESC rights, which are built upon the wider context provided by the analysis of State Reports. The Republic of Maldives was selected for these case studies for a number of reasons. First, as a small, middle-income country with significant internal and external challenges to development, a mixed history of progress in human development and a very insecure and volatile human rights policy environment,67 the Maldives offers a rich set of examples of the policy dimension in relation to human rights. Secondly, very little research on human rights and public policy has been conducted on the Maldives; the present study therefore makes an important contribution to existing scholarship. Thirdly, the author of this study has first-hand experience of various aspects of Maldivian society, culture, language, politics and the state of human rights. This enhances the credibility of the case study analyses and adds substantial value to the overall argument. The following section provides a brief overview of the economic, political, social, developmental, and human rights circumstances of the Maldives, which gives the substructure for the case studies in the subsequent chapters of this thesis. 67 For insights into the human rights environment and related challenges in Maldives, see Ahmed Shahid and Hilary Yerbury, 'A Case Study of the Socialization of Human Rights Language and Norms in Maldives: Process, Impact and Challenges' (2014) 6(2) Journal of Human Rights Practice 281-305; Aminath Didi, The Maldives in Transition: Human Rights and Voices of Dissent (PhD Thesis, Curtin University, 2012).