Antecedentes
Libyans successfully elected on the 7th of July, 2012, members of their new National People’s Congress (NPC), the first ever democratic parliamentary institution of Libya. On the 9th of August, the former National Transitional Council (NTC) officially handed over its authority to the newly-elected NPC which is about to form a government and choose a president.In the next year or so will take place the most important step in ensuring long-term democracy and stability in the country: the drafting of a constitution. A Constitutional Committee needs to be formed to that end. It will be formed of 60 representatives (20 for each of the three country’s regions). Once drafted, the draft constitution will have to be approved by referendum before a new round of general elections and local elections can take place, along the new rules that will be enshrined in the constitution.
However, deeply engrained practices built up over forty-two years do not change with the holding of an election and the adoption of a new constitutional framework. Libya has little experience of organizing and participating in electoral and constitution-making processes such as those currently planned. The public has only participated in one free & fair election so far and even then, only 60% of eligible voters cast their ballot.
There is a huge demand amongst the youth for the freedoms and rights that come with a democratic political system. Youth activism – civil and military – has been at the heart of the revolution. Many young people have idealistic expectations of a rapid transformation of the country and expect marked and immediate improvements in political and economic inclusion. Thousands of young men have been on the front-line in the fighting and are experienced fighters and providers of security. Their marginalization in the transition process may lead to some becoming spoilers and threaten the legitimacy of the process itself. Misinterpretation and misunderstandings about rights and responsibilities, expectations and entitlements, and freedoms and limitations may generate tension, confrontation and conflict at a critical time in a sensitive transition process, and while conflict cannot be avoided, it can and should be mitigated by a common understanding among the youth of the basic principles of democratic governance and the different processes that make up a transition to democracy. It is therefore urgent to inject civic knowledge towards the youth population and nurture the role of youth as change agents in their communities.
Deberes y responsabilidades
Training of CE Instructors:The Training of Civic Education Instructors (TCEI) activity will follow methods and use materials developed by the BRIDGE program (www.bridge-project.org). For the purpose of the TCEI, the following BRIDGE modules and resources will be used in the two rounds of training workshops planned:
- Module on Introduction to Electoral Administration
- Module on Civic Education
- Module on Voter Information
- DG (Democracy & Governance) BRIDGE Module on Dialogue
- Train-the-Facilitator Module
The second round of TCEI will be composed of the following events:
- One-week (6 days) introduction workshop on democracy & governance
- 2-week (10 days) Train-the-Facilitator workshop
- One-week (5 days) Civic / Voter Education workshop
- Application workshops (6) in the field
Students for Democracy Program:
The Students for Democracy Program (SFDP) will be conducted in cooperation with the Ministry of Higher Education (MHE) in 10 universities across the country, with financial and technical support from UNDP. This program targets 550 students across the country. It is formed of four sub-activities:
- Introductory course (2 weeks), focusing on human rights, women & minority rights, constitution making, transitional justice, electoral processes and democratization in the Arab world. It targets 500 male & female students (undergraduates) in 10 universities.
- Democracy Festival: it will consist in extra-curricular activities (debates, conferences, art contests, mock exercises, open days, movie projections, etc.). It will take place on the same days than the Introductory Course (during afternoons).
- Advanced course: 50 students from those participating in the Introductory Course will be selected on the basis of their credentials, motivation and a research paper to be submitted.
- Regional forum: Two-day forum held in Tripoli University in the presence of students from other Arab countries that are undergoing as well democratic transitions.
Competencias
Corporate Competencies:- Demonstrates integrity by modelling the UN’s values and ethical standards.
- Promotes the vision, mission, and strategic goals of the project.
- Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability.
- Treats all people fairly and without favouritism.
- The candidate should have strong experience in conducting training and capacity development activities to government staff, civil society and youth; be able to work well with counterparts in government, electoral management bodies, civil society, political parties, and the donor community; and know how to contribute to building national capacity for development.
- Previous experience in drafting civic education guides and background materials.
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, ability to foster networks and partnerships.
- Excellent drafting skills in English and Arabic.
- Demonstrates strong intellectual and operational capacity in providing and coordinating training services to stakeholders in civic education, specifically to Universities, government departments and civil society organizations.
- Excellent organizational skills and ability to work effectively in teams, delivering through and with others.
- Good leadership skills.
- Self-management, including conflict management/negotiating skills.
- Knowledge and expertise in democratic governance, electoral assistance and democratization.
Habilidades y experiencia requeridas
Education:- Masters degree in Political Sciences, Communications, Development studies or related field, or equivalent combination of academic qualification & professional experience.
- Accreditation as BRIDGE Accrediting facilitator
- Minimum 5 years specialized experience in running training workshops, in particular BRIDGE, and working in democracy / governance field.
- Excellent knowledge of the region and its political & social history & challenges
- Excellent knowledge of BRIDGE experience in the Arab Region
- Strong technical knowledge in the field of civic education, as well as a general knowledge of cross-cutting democratic governance issues that are often addressed through civic education programmes.
- Experience in leading BRIDGE workshop facilitation teams
- Strong networks within the regional (Arab world) civic education / civil society development community.
- Experience in working with transitional and emerging democracies and post-conflict environments an asset.
- Previous work experience in Libya in the field of civic education highly desirable
- Fluency in English and Arabic.