@Mthunzi, the part most people miss is that policy engagement is less about having evidence and more about timing and relationships. Researchers often produce excellent briefs that arrive after the policy window has closed. Effective engagement usually means being in the room before the decision is framed, not after.
Two practical questions worth sitting with: Who is the specific decision maker you want to influence; a legislator, a ministry official, a county health director? And what does your evidence ask them to do differently? Policy engagement gets much easier once those two are clear.
