Emplois au PNUD - 40511- Request for Expressions of Interest: Conduct of a

Request for Expressions of Interest: Conduct of a Conflict Analysis in DRC and Countries Across the Great Lakes Region of Africa (Uganda, Burundi and Rwanda)

Lieu :

Multiple locations (in DRC and in region), REPUBLIQUE DEMOCRATIQUE DU CONGO

Type de contrat :

Individual Contract

Date de commencement :

01-Oct-2013

Date limite de candidature :

30-Sep-13 (Minuit New York, États-Unis)

Niveau du poste :

International Consultant

Durée du contrat initial

Three Months

Langues requises :

Anglais Français

Durée prévue de la mission :

Three Months

Le PNUD s’engage à recruter un personnel divers en termes de genre, de nationalité et de culture. Nous encourageons de même les personnes issues des minorités ethniques, des communautés autochtones ou handicapées à postuler. Toutes les candidatures seront traitées dans la plus stricte confidentialité. Le PNUD ne tolère pas l’exploitation et / ou les atteintes sexuelles, ni aucune forme de harcèlement, y compris le harcèlement sexuel, et / ou toutes formes de discrimination. Tous/tes les candidats/tes selectectionnes /ées devront ainsi se soumettre à de rigoureuses vérifications relatives aux références fournies ainsi qu’à leurs antécédents.

Historique

Project Title: Support to the PSC Framework and RBA Programme in the DRC and the Great Lakes.

Significant progress has been achieved in the Democratic Republic of the Congo over the past decade. The local and regional peace processes initiated at that time laid the foundation for relative peace and stability in large parts of the country and the Government has begun some reforms with a view to facilitating economic recovery and democratization. However, eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo has continued to suffer from recurring cycles of conflict and persistent violence by armed groups, both Congolese and foreign. The consequences of this violence have been nothing short of devastating. Acts of sexual violence and serious violations of human rights are used regularly and almost daily as weapons of war. Displacement figures are among the highest in the world and persistently hover near two million people. The implementation of the country’s reconstruction, security sector reform and poverty alleviation program is regularly disrupted.

Despite these challenges, the recent crisis has created a window of opportunity to address the root causes of the conflict and put an end to recurring cycles of violence. Building on the efforts already underway by the International Conference of the Great Lakes Region and the Southern African Development Community, the signing of the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework for the Democratic Republic of Congo and the region (referred to as the PSC Framework) represents a core element of a comprehensive approach that considers the structural causes fuelling instability in the country and in the wider region. The PSC Framework includes the establishment of national and regional oversight mechanisms to follow up implementation of the commitments of the signatories. To this end, a Special Envoy for the Great Lakes Region has been appointed to lead, coordinate, and assess the implementation of national and regional commitments under the PSC Framework.

To address the commitments outlined in the PSC Framework, and to support the efforts of the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the UN Good Offices, and the UNCTs in the region to enhance stability and further the agenda of reconciliation, tolerance and democratization, the Regional Bureau for Africa is establishing a programme to address some of the national and cross border dimensions of the conflict. The recommendation for a conflict analysis was also discussed and agreed as part of the way forward at the UNDP meeting on a regional approach to the Great Lakes, which was held in Kinshasa in July 2013. To lay the foundation for the commencement of the RBA programme and to establish the baselines and generate the contextual and situational analysis necessary to ensure successful programme implementation, UNDP positioning and advocacy with national stakeholders, BCPR at the further request of the Office of the Special Envoy, will support the conduct of a conflict analysis exercise in the Eastern DRC and the key countries in the Great Lakes region. This exercise will help shape a common understanding of the context, the conflict dynamics and their implications at local, national, and regional levels, as well as strengthen the efforts to link the Office of the Special Envoy with the UNCTs in DRC and surrounding countries. Building on this analysis, the programme being developed by RBA will seek to further the cooperation between UNCTs and the UN Good Offices in strengthening national capacities for conflict prevention. This will be done with a view to ultimately strengthening cross-border collaboration on conflict prevention activities. BCPR will further support the implementation of these cross border and local community efforts at conflict prevention and insider mediation.

The Consulting Firm will therefore contribute to shaping the conflict analysis that will inform the development of the programme, by identifying the key conflict dynamics and drivers at local, national and regional levels, paying particular attention to the stakeholder analysis, the interconnectedness of the actors, the existing formal and informal structures and frameworks and how they are impacting on the conflict environment especially at cross-national and regional levels.

Devoirs et responsabilités

A Consulting Firm will be hired to conduct the research. The firm shall provide the services of one consultant for each of the countries – DRC, Uganda, Burundi and Rwanda, as well as a senior research consultant. The senior research consultant will be responsible for coordinating the work of the consultants, ensuring that the regional dimension is reflected in the research, and for quality assurance of the various national reports produced by the other consultants. The senior research consultant will also ensure that preliminary findings are shared, cross-referenced, and validated.

The Consultant(s) will carry out the following tasks:

Desk review of existing conflict analyses: the Research Consultant(s) will be required to review available information with regards to conflict dynamics in the DRC, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, respectively, including the analysis of UN actors such as MONUSCO and UNCTs, where relevant;
Analysis of the dynamics and causes of conflict at national level: the Research Consultant(s) will participate in field missions throughout the countries in question to develop an anatomy of conflicts prevailing at national level. Amongst others, the Research Consultant(s) will look into: a) the role of natural resources in the conflicts; b) weakness of the state; c) customary law vs. constitutional/statutory law; d) inter-group/inter-ethnic conflicts and tensions; e) land issues; and other relevant areas;
Analysis of the dynamics and causes of conflict at sub-national level, particularly in border communities: the Research Consultant(s) will participate in field missions in their respective countries of assignment to develop an anatomy of conflicts prevailing at sub-national level, with a particular focus on the conflict dynamics and drivers in border communities. Amongst others, the Research Consultant(s) will examine the key factors of fragility and conflict in these provinces, the existing formal and informal structures driving the conflicts, while also developing a taxonomy of the key actors and their interconnectedness in the border communities that present both challenges and opportunities to peace and stability.

Methodology

In consultation with the Coordinator, Conflict Prevention and Recovery, BCPR, the Senior Research Consultant will organize a research methodology conference with the national researchers at a location in the region agreed with the Coordinator, to work through UNDP’s Conflict-related Development Analysis (CDA) framework, which shall guide this research; to develop and agree work plans and timelines and to assign responsibilities to the researchers. The research may also benefit from the integration of other conflict analysis methodologies such as UNDP’s Institutional and Context Analysis framework into the CDA framework where appropriate. An international advisory board will be established to review and comment on the research reports. The international advisory board will operate remotely. The Coordinator, Conflict Prevention and Recovery in consultation with RBA and the Office of the Special Envoy, may convene a validation conference within the region, involving key partners and stakeholders to review and validate the final research report. The research report will be in English language.

Expected Outputs and Deliverables

Based on the activities described above, the Research Consultant(s) will deliver the following outputs:

An inventory of existing conflicts at regional, national, sub-national, particularly border community levels, identifying their types, main causes, and key factors that could help mitigate them. A more detailed inventory of key risks factors/ conflicts at regional, national, sub-national, and border community level;
A synthesis report that includes the typology of conflicts, their main causes and concrete strategic recommendations to the UN to address them, in light of the PSC Framework and the UN’s capacities and comparative advantage. The report should include a problem tree (capturing both national and regional dimensions); timelines (national and regional); a proposed division of responsibilities for UN and international and national partners, in a manner that is consistent with the commitments of the PSC Framework; an inventory of key information resources and mechanisms with regards to conflict analysis; as well as proposals for monitoring and evaluation mechanisms consistent with the PSC Framework. The national level reports will be attached as annexures to the synthesis report;
Recommendations for possible programmatic interventions – both in the short term and in the long term as part of the RBA programme and to be implemented by UNCTs in the respective countries to mitigate these conflicts, as well as options for integrating these approaches throughout the UN’s broader response under the auspices of the PSC Framework.

Institutional Arrangement

The four Research Consultant(s) will be supervised by the Senior Research Consultant, with broad oversight and supervision of the project to be conducted by the Coordinator, Conflict Prevention and Recovery of UNDP/BCPR, New York, working closely with RBA and the Office of the Special Envoy and in particular with the Peace and Development Advisor deployed there. The Consultant(s) will work closely with the UNCTs and UNDP Country Offices in DRC, Uganda, Burundi, and Rwanda in undertaking and coordinating the research processes at national level.

The consultancy will be field-based, with support to be extended through the provision of office space (as needed) in each location, support services, as well as logistical support to facilitate field missions and travel, where possible. The consultants should be able to make their own arrangements if need be.

Compétences

Corporate Competencies:

Good knowledge of UNDP/UN rules, regulations, policies, procedures and practices;
Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
Highest standards of integrity, discretion and loyalty.

Functional/Technical Competencies: Substantive and technical expertise in one or more of the following issues:

Conflict analysis/assessment tools and doing conflict analysis from a development perspective;
Strong research and analytical skills;
Facilitating multi-stakeholder national/local dialogues for conflict management;
Demonstrable ability to engage with sensitivity, strategic foresight, and political acumen in situations involving multiple – especially political – actors and stakeholders;
Good understanding of UNDP programming modalities, particularly in crisis and post-conflict settings;

Behavioral Competencies:

Strong communication and advocacy skills;
Ability to work in a complex environment requiring liaison and collaboration with multiple actors;
Excellent analytical, organizational and negotiation skills, especially resource management systems.

Qualifications et expériences requises

Education:

Advanced degree in social sciences, preferably with specialization in peace and conflict studies and/or peacebuilding, with related experience in participatory development and country or region-specific familiarity.

Experience:

Substantive experience (minimum 10 years) in implementing conflict transformation/peacebuilding/development programmes, and in undertaking conflict/ political analysis;
Knowledge of relevant methodologies and tools for undertaking conflict/ political analysis;
Significant knowledge, and first-hand experience, in the Great Lakes region, with an appreciation for the various conflict dynamics within countries and across the region;
Knowledge of the DRC;
Experience in inter-agency policy processes;
Extensive experience of providing policy advice (including report writing) at international level;
Experience in the usage of computers and office software packages (MS Word, Excel, etc).

Language:

Full working knowledge of English and French, including excellent writing skills.