UNDP Jobs - 33175- Expert constitutional dialogue/ civil society stre

Expert constitutional dialogue/ civil society strengthening

Location :

Tunis, TUNISIA

Type of Contract :

Service Contract

Starting Date :

22-Oct-2012

Application Deadline :

14-Oct-12 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

SB-5

Duration of Initial Contract :

Languages Required :

Arabic English French

Expected Duration of Assignment :

1 year

UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence. UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

Background

On October 23, 2011 the people of Tunisia elected a Constituent Assembly. The CA is currently preparing Tunisia's new constitution and acting as its interim parliament. The CA works in an environment of considerable political sensitivity, uncertainty and rapid change.

The UNDP has received from its national partners a request for three types of assistance:

Constitutional Support: to assist the Constituent Assembly in tasks associated with the preparation of the constitution, with particular emphasis on improving its capacity to reach out to civil society.
Constitutional Dialogue: to assist civil society in developing its understanding of the constitution building process and its capacity to engage in constructive constitutional dialogue with the Constituent Assembly and with other stakeholders in the process.
Parliamentary Strengthening: to assist the Constituent Assembly in developing essential infrastructure and in developing the capacities of its members and the Secretariat in connection with their legislative, representational and oversight roles.

Constitution building includes dimensions of both state building and nation building. In its nation building dimension, a constitution can represent a new pact among the people on the values that will guide them in the future. This can only happen through a constitution building process in which civil society has an active role. Where civil society has not had the opportunity to develop strong capacities, assistance can be provided to develop the capacity of civil society to participate in the process.

As part of its planned support, UNDP will set up Support to Constitution Building and National Dialogue in Tunisia (SCBNDT), a project to design and deliver assistance in each of these areas.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the direct supervision of the Specialist on Constitution Building and Civil Society Engagement the Expert will provide:

Support on Civil Society Dialogue:

Provide to leaders in the Constituent Assembly and civil society advice on how they can work together to implement an inclusive constitution-building process.

Strengthening Civil Society Capacity to Participate in Constitution Building:

Ensure that the project designs and implements activities that strengthen the role of civil society in the constitution building process. This will include activities in connection with raising public awareness, providing dialogue platforms for constructive exchanges of opinion, developing consensus building skills and developing resource centres to provide information, advice and networking opportunities to those who wish to participate in the process. There will be special emphasis placed on supporting those who might otherwise be included because of regional or economic disparity, or because of their gender.

Coordination:

Ensure that the project develops and implements activities that strengthen partnerships and coordination between civil society and other stakeholders in the constitution building process, including by facilitating communication and exchange of lessons learned and good practices.

Policy Dialogue and Advocacy:

Serve as an advocate for UN core values and UNDP’s policies on democratic governance in the dialogue with the Constituent Assembly and facilitate the practical implementation of this dialogue through the project activities.

Impact of results:

Create Smooth dialogue between stakeholders to guide the constitution building process.
Integrate Civil Society in the Constitution Building Process by providing plateforms for dialogue, opinion sharing and resources centers for those wishing to participate.

Competencies

Corporate Competencies:

Demonstrates commitment to UNDP’s mission, vision and values.
Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability.

Functional Competencies:

Knowledge and expertise in public administration, democratic governance, parliamentary strengthening and constitution building.
Significant experience in supporting civil society engagement.
Excellent negotiation and representational skills at senior level.
Strong communication and interpersonal skills, ability to foster networks and partnerships, and good working knowledge of information and computer technology.
Displays analytical judgment and demonstrated ability to handle confidential and politically sensitive issues in a responsible and mature manner.
Demonstrates strong intellectual and operational capacity in providing and coordinating advisory services to stakeholders.

Communications and Networking:

Has excellent oral communication skills and conflict resolution competency to manage intergroup dynamics and mediate conflicting interests of varied actors.
Has excellent written communication skills, with analytic capacity and ability to synthesize project outputs and relevant findings for the preparation of quality project reports.
Maturity and confidence in dealing with senior and high ranking members of national and international institutions, government and non-government.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Master’s degree in political science, law, public administration institutional/organizational development or related field.

Experience:

A minimum of 5 years working experience in the area of Civil Society engagement, dialogue and parliamentary or constitution building or other relevant participatory processes.
Excellent project management skills and knowledge of donor policies and funding modalities.
Knowledge of UNDP programming practices is an asset.
Proven familiarity with gender analysis and concepts.

Language Requirements :

Fluency in Arabic and French. English an asset.