Historique

UNDP is the UN's global development network advocating for change and connecting countries to knowledge, experience and resources to help people build a better life. As a founding Cosponsor of the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), and guided by the health-related MDGs, responding to HIV is one of the organizations’ priorities. Under the UNAIDS division of labour, UNDP is responsible for leading the UNAIDS response in addressing dimensions of AIDS relating to: development planning and mainstreaming; governance; and human rights, gender and sexual diversity. UNDP is also responsible for providing support to governments in their implementation of policies and programs that protect the human rights of people affected by HIV.
    
While globally the number of new HIV infections is decreasing, Eastern Europe and Central Asia (EECA) is one of two regions in the world where new HIV infections are still on the rise, with the estimated number of people living with HIV (PLHIV)  having reached 1.4 million [1.1–1.8 million] by 2011. Mortality from AIDS has also experienced a 21% increase in the region over the period 2005-2011. The Russian Federation and Ukraine, the two most populous EECA countries, together account for almost 90 percent of newly reported HIV cases. Levels of treatment in the region are low with approximately 20 percent of those in need of antiretroviral therapy receiving it. While there has been a significant improvement in the legal environment relevant to HIV in the region, certain gaps still persist. In July 2012, the Global Commission on HIV and the Law, an independent international expert body to which UNDP served as secretariat identified such shortcomings which hinder the protection, upholding and fulfillment of the human rights of people living with, or affected by HIV. These gaps include, but are not limited to: breach of confidentiality, stigma and discrimination, criminalization of transmission, criminalization of the behavior of key populations, and others. At the same time, the Commission emphasized the improvement the region has experienced, also in terms of opportunities to protect the human rights of people living with HIV.

In cooperation with governments, other UN agencies, international organizations, and civil society actors, UNDP works to develop the capacity of national legislators, government offices and civil society actors on matters of HIV and the Law. In implementation of its Regional Project “HIV, Rights and Universal Access in Eastern Europe”, co-funded by the European Commission, UNDP seeks to support and develop the capacity/expertise of non-state actors (NSA) to address the nexus between human rights, laws, and HIV, as well as to foster effective and efficient dialogues and cooperation between governments and non-state actors in this area. More specifically, the Regional Project aims to:

• Strengthen the advocacy skills of non-state actors to lobby effectively for improved access to HIV and AIDS prevention, treatment, care and support, especially for key populations;
• Enhance the quality of services provided by NSA and public sector and the integration of prevention, treatment and care services;
• Strengthen partnerships and coordination among NSA and, if relevant, with public bodies in a country or on a regional level, supporting development of regional ownership strategies.

The expected results from the Regional Project are:

• Service providers in key sectors, including health care, law enforcement and the media, are better able to observe rights;
• Improved capacity of people living with HIV and populations at risk to advocate for and access health and other services;
• Country and regional mechanisms for monitoring rights infractions strengthened;
• A clear understanding and broad consensus built around the harmful impact of punitive laws and policies in the region;
• High-level leadership for local, national, regional action to ensure good practice fostered.

In the framework of this project, UNDP and the International Development Law Organisation (IDLO), in collaboration with the East European and Central Asian Union of PLHIV (ECUO), will be conducting capacity building trainings for participants from Ukraine and Russia in June 2013 in order to increase opportunities and abilities of the community to use the law in protecting, upholding and fulfilling rights of PLHIV, improve legal literacy and access to legal services. The trainings will bring together people living with HIV and affected communities, human rights lawyers and legal aid service providers. The trainings aim to enhance understanding of HIV-related laws, policies and regulations and of how to hold national authorities accountable for ensuring that people living with HIV are able to enjoy the highest attainable standards of health, including access to services they need. The trainings will also cover how to officially register complaints and where to access quality legal services for any human rights infringements of people living with and/or affected by HIV.

UNDP seeks an international consultant to assist, together with two national experts per country, in preparation and conducting national capacity building trainings.

The consultant reports to the Programme Specialist on Rights and Law at UNDP’s Practice on HIV, Health and Development, Regional Centre for Europe and the CIS in Bratislava (Supervisor).

Devoirs et responsabilités

With support from UNDP staff and in close cooperation with partners and project associates, participates in preparation for and conduction of two capacity building trainings for people living with HIV and/or affected by HIV to improve legal literacy and access to legal services;

As part of the preparatory work:

• Develops a brief overview paper (backgrounder for the trainings, based on HIV and the Law in Eastern Europe and Central Asia report by the Global Commission on HIV and the Law);
• Develops a presentation on key challenges and good practices in the CIS region and Georgia in protecting the rights of PLHIV through the use of various national and international mechanisms, including monitoring and reporting of rights violations, strategic litigation and provision of quality legal services;

During the national trainings for participants from Ukraine and Russia, in partnership with two national trainers for each country:

• Contributes to the development of formats of the legal empowerment trainings for each country individually, while considering the legal issues, constraints and good practices, as well as the scope of participants;
• Contributes to overall facilitation of the capacity building trainings;
• Makes at least one presentation on key challenges and best practices in the former Soviet region in protecting the rights of PLHIV through the use of various national and international mechanisms, including monitoring and reporting of rights violations, strategic litigation and provision of quality legal services;

Contributes to presentations and discussions and provides input on issues related to:

• Health-related rights guaranteed through international treaties, conventions, covenants and agreements, adopted in, Ukraine and Russia, respectively;
• Key obstacles and barriers to the enjoyment of rights and access to services by PLHIV and/or affected by HIV in both community and prison settings;
• Mechanisms for monitoring, documentation and reporting of violations of rights of PLHIV and/or affected by HIV to international bodies, authorities and institutions such as the European Court on Human Rights;
• Other issues discussed during the trainings and related to the main and underlying objectives of capacity building events;
• Takes notes of the participants’ comments and feedback and the group discussions, produces reports, and contributes to the meetings’ reports.

Deliverables:
A brief paper (backgrounder);
A presentation on key challenges and best practices;
Two trainings for PLHIV for participants from Russia and Ukraine;
Two brief narrative reports, each submitted after each capacity building training, summarizing key issues that emerged during the training and highlighting priorities that need to be addressed at the national level in relation to legal awareness, protection of rights, and access to legal aid services.

Payment schedule will be agreed with the selected consultant before contract issuance.

Compétences

Corporate competencies:

• Commitment to the principles set forth in the UN High Level Declarations on HIV and AIDS;
• Adherence to strict confidentiality and protection of medical secrets, privacy and anonymity of people living with, or affected by HIV.

Functional competencies:

• Very good understanding of the HIV response systems and legal systems of the region as evidenced by experience/scholarship;
• Very good understanding of the legal and practical aspects of HIV and co-infections in the region;
• Very good understanding of work of non-state actors – civil society organizations, networks, community groups and others;
• Excellent organizational skills, ability to work independently and in a team, strict adherence to completing assigned tasks in a timely manner;
• Quality-oriented professional, constructive approach to obstacles and delays in planned performance;
• Excellent communication skills, oral and written.

Qualifications et expériences requises

Education:

• Minimum Masters’ degree in law, public international law, or another relevant field.

Experience:  

• Five or more years of relevant regional experience in the field of law, human rights and public health. Experience in working with legal aspects of HIV issues is an advantage;
• At least two years of experience in training and facilitating capacity building events for non-lawyers. Experience in training and facilitating events for people living with, or affected by HIV and AIDS is a plus;
• At least two years of international experience in strategic lawyering and legal advocacy;
• Experience in reporting and contributing to reports.

Language skills:

• Fluency and ability to communicate in Russian, and very good knowledge of English.

Publications:

• At least one recent relevant publication in the field of human rights, law, public health, or HIV, concerning the EECA region, in English;
  
• Additional publications in English and/or Russian are an advantage.

Evaluation of Applicants
Individual consultants will be evaluated based on a cumulative analysis taking into consideration the combination of the applicants’ qualifications and a financial proposal with breakdown of lump sum amount.

The award of the contract should be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

• a)  Responsive/compliant/acceptable;
• b)  Having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation.

Only the highest ranked candidates who would be found qualified for the job will be considered for the Financial Evaluation.

Technical Criteria -70% of total evaluation - max. 50 points

• Academic background (education, courses, additional qualifications) - max 12.5 points
• Publications - max 10 points
• Relevant work experience training, facilitating and reporting - max 20 points
• Communication skills and languages - max 7.5 points

Financial Criteria - 30% of total evaluation - max 21.5 points

Application procedures
Qualified candidates are requested to apply online via this website. The application should contain:

• Cover letter explaining why you are the most suitable candidate for the advertised position. Please paste the letter into the "Resume and Motivation" section of the electronic application.
• Filled P11 form including past experience in similar projects and contact details of referees (blank form can be downloaded from http://europeandcis.undp.org/files/hrforms/P11_modified_for_SCs_and_ICs.doc ); please upload the P11 instead of your CV.
• Financial Proposal* - specifying a total lump sum amount in USD for the tasks specified in this announcement. The financial proposal shall include a breakdown of this lump sum amount (number of anticipated working days, travel, per diems and any other possible costs). Please note, that costs related to mission (per diems, travel, etc.) should be included into the financial offer.Payment schedule will be agreed prior contract issuance.
• Incomplete applications will not be considered. Please make sure you have provided all requested materials.

Please note that the financial proposal is all-inclusive and shall take into account various expenses incurred by the consultant/contractor during the contract period .g. fee, health insurance, vaccination and any other relevant expenses related to the performance of services...). All envisaged travel costs must be included in the financial proposal.
The selected candidate is responsible for obtaining necessary visa, if applicable. UNDP will strive to support the application process.

Payments will be made only upon confirmation of UNDP on delivering on the contract obligations in a satisfactory manner.

Individual Consultants are responsible for ensuring they have vaccinations/inoculations when travelling to certain countries, as designated by the UN Medical Director. Consultants are also required to comply with the UN security directives set forth under dss.un.org.
General Terms and conditions as well as other related documents can be found under: http://europeandcis.undp.org/home/jobs.

Qualified women and members of minorities are encouraged to apply.

Due to large number of applications we receive, we are able to inform only the successful candidates about the outcome or status of the selection process.

FC: 30079