Background

Those who previously applied need not apply again.

UNDP supports stabilization, state building, governance and development priorities in Afghanistan. UNDP support, in partnership with the Government, the United Nations system, the donor community and other development stakeholders, has contributed to institutional development efforts leading to positive impact on the lives of Afghan citizens. Over the years UNDP support has spanned such milestone efforts as the adoption of the Constitution; Presidential, Parliamentary and Provincial Council elections; institutional development through capacity-building to the legislative, the judicial and executive arms of the state, and key ministries, Government agencies and commissions at the national and subnational levels. UNDP has played a key role in the management of the Law and Order Trust Fund, which supports the Government in developing and maintaining the national police force and in efforts to stabilize the internal security environment. Major demobilization, disarmament and rehabilitation and area-based livelihoods and reconstruction programmes have taken place nationwide. UNDP Programmes in Afghanistan have benefited from the very active support of donors. UNDP Afghanistan is committed to the highest standards of transparency and accountability and works in close coordination with the United Nations Mission in Afghanistan and the UN system as a whole to maximize the impact of its development efforts on the ground.
 
Organisational Context:

Afghanistan’s justice system faces numerous challenges. Justice sector infrastructure has often been destroyed or damaged by fighting or decay during the years of conflict; a large number of Afghanistan’s court houses are in need of construction or rehabilitation. Legal professionals are very often the victims of violence by insurgent groups who target them as agents of the state; threatening of justice officials, particularly in the less secure regions of the country is absolutely commonplace, and assassinations are very common. Corruption is a constant concern; judges and other justice system officials are poorly paid, justice system capacity to prosecute corruption is very limited, and corruption is perceived as rampant both within and outside the justice system. The Government of Afghanistan (GoA) and international community are concerned about bolstering the credibility of the “formal” justice system, recognizing that Afghanistan’s traditional justice system plays a major role in resolving conflicts yet does so at times in violation of national and international human rights obligations, particularly the rights of women.

Following continuous engagement in supporting Afghanistan’s justice sector since 2002, UNDP Afghanistan’s justice sector support has now entered a new phase. The Justice and Human Rights in Afghanistan (JHRA) Project draws on the lessons learned through two previous UNDP justice projects– Strengthening the Justice System of Afghanistan (SJSA) and Access to Justice at District Level (AJDL). The JHRA Project continues many activities piloted by these projects, while also adding several new activities identified as key priorities by Government partners.

The new phase of JHRA has started in January 2013 and it presents the following four project outputs:The 1st phase of JHRA Project was implemented from June 2009- 30 June 2012. The project was designed to support the achievement of the priorities and benchmarks on human rights, rule of law and justice as highlighted in the Afghanistan National Development Strategy (ANDS) and the Afghanistan Compact. The JHRA project worked to improve access to justice at the national and provincial levels in Afghanistan. Programmatic interventions were undertaken by using human rights based approach that simultaneously strengthened citizens’ capacity to claim their rights and enhanced the capacity of justice delivery system actors to deliver justice in compliance with the rule of law and human rights standards. The Project activities included awareness raising through training justice officials, and raising the human rights awareness of community members including school teachers and students, and the general public and villages throughout districts in Afghanistan. It also engaged with the rehabilitation of district justice facilities providing emergency infrastructure works and basic equipment so facilities can function. At the national level, the project assisted the three national justice institutions including; the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), the Supreme Court (SCt), and the Attorney General’s Office (AGO) in strengthening their capacity so as to be able to better contribute to the justice reform process and the realization of human rights in Afghanistan.
  • Output 1: High-level coordination mechanisms for developing policy and legislation in accordance with international and national standards are established and functional in State justice institutions;
  • Output 2: Mechanisms for providing quality access to justice services to vulnerable groups are established and functional;
  • Output 3: Public participation processes and knowledge base for improving access to justice and human rights compliance established;
  • Output 4: Project Support Unit: Internal oversight, monitoring and evaluation capacity in place.

The JHRA Phase II project output 3 includes technical and advisory support to the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) at the strategic policy level which, in turn, will contribute to the meaningful implementation of the AIHRC mandate. This component will be under the leadership of the Public Participation and Knowledge Management Specialist, also component manager of output 3.

The Consultant will provide technical and advisory support to the AIHRC in the area of business rights. It is to be noted that promotion and protection of business rights contributes to the enforcement of other rights, including civil and political rights, economic, social and cultural rights, labor rights and rights enjoyed by specific categories of rights-holders under specific human rights instruments such as the UN Convention of the Rights of the Child.

During the last few years, Afghanistan has witnessed a rapid growth of many industries operating in the mining or extractive sector. Mining communities are often isolated with high illiteracy rates and very dependent on the mining companies for their livelihoods. These communities are often exposed to toxic environmental hazards from mine operation wastes.

  • The rapid growth of some industries is associated with high earnings for the corporations, which have an impact on the local communities who are usually unable to respond to this momentum because of their rural-based background. The growth of corporate businesses is also accompanied by environment degradation, land acquisition or grabbing and poor social conditions among workers.  

Duties and Responsibilities

Scope of Work:

The Business Rights Consultant will provide technical and advisory support to AIHRC management in Kabul in the areas of business rights.

The Consultant will strengthen technical capacity of AIHRC staff to monitor the business rights situation in the Country. An assessment of the existing laws related to business rights will be undertaken to identify specific business rights issues to be addressed by AIHRC.

The consultant’s support will translate into the formulation of relevant tools (guidelines) on ways and modalities to regularly monitor the Government and the private sector on the fulfillment of those business rights issues identified in the aforementioned assessment.

The advisory support and technical expertise provided by the Consultant will also focus on the formulation of specific capacity development interventions to knowledge among AIHRC staff about build business rights. The enhanced knowledge will then enable the AIHRC to educate Government officials and private sector actors about responsibilities they bear in regard to business rights.

Last but not least, the Business Rights Consultant will also provide strategic advisory support to the AIHRC management in the inclusion of relevant business rights elements in the new Strategic Plan 2014 – 2018.

Expected Outputs and Deliverables:

Outputs, Deliverables, Timelines & Schedule of Payments:

The Business Rights Consultants will be responsible for the achievement of the following deliverables:

  • Detailed assessment of all existing laws and policies related to business rights and their level of implementation by the Government of Afghanistan, By end of first week; 15% of lump-sum amount;
  • Formulation of a capacity building programme for AIHRC staff and focused on business rights monitoring, By end of first month; 5% of lump-sum amount;Implementation of at least 2 training programmes for regional and provincial AIHRC staff, By end of second month; 10% of lump-sum amount;
  • Development of relevant tools (manuals, guidelines) to support AIHRC staff in transferring business rights knowledge among Government officials, Members of Parliament, and CSOs, By end of second month; 20% of lump-sum amount;
  • Provide a Monitoring and Evaluation plan for pilot programme implementation and advocacy tools to work with the Government and other stakeholders with an effort to change policy, By end of third month; 20% of lump-sum amount;
  • Inclusion in the new AIHRC Strategic Plan of relevant interventions focused on the monitoring of implementation of business rights by the Government and private sector actors, By end of fourth month; 10% of lump-sum amount;
  • Provide technical and substantive guidance to the AIHRC in the production of a national report on the status of business and human rights in Afghanistan, By end of Fourth month; 20% of lump-sum amount.

Working Arrangements:

Institutional Arrangement:

The Business Rights Consultant will thus be reporting, on a regular basis, to the JHRA component manager, and coordinate with the JHRA Chief Technical Advisor and the JHRA Project Manager.

The Business Rights Consultant will regularly engage with the AIHRC management and staff and will meet other state agencies, donors, and civil society organizations including private sector actors in the course of performing the work.

UNDP JHRA and the AIHRC will provide the Consultant with office space, transportation from/to workplace and relevant line ministries and office.

Laptop will be provided by the Consultant.

Duration of the Work:

The duration of work is four months with a tentative schedule 1 June 2014 – 30 September 2014.

Duty Station
 
The Business Rights Consultant will be based in Kabul with possible field work in target provinces in the pursuit of relevant activities.

Evaluation Method & Criteria:

Individual consultants will be evaluated based on the following methodology:

Cumulative analysis:

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

 

  • responsive/compliant/acceptable, and

  • Having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation. 70%-30%.

* Technical Criteria weight; 70%

* Financial Criteria weight; 30%

Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 49 points (70% of the total technical points) would be considered for the Financial Evaluation. 

Technical Criteria – Maximum 70 points

  • Criteria A Relevance of Education – Max 10  points

  • Criteria B Competencies and Special skills.- Max 5 Points

  • Criteria C Relevance of experience – Max 30 points

  • Criteria D Description of approach/methodology  to assignment.(if applicable) – Max 25 Points

Documents to be Included When Submitting the Proposals:

Interested individual consultants must submit the following documents/information to demonstrate their qualifications in one single PDF document:

  • Personal CV or P11, indicating all past experience from similar projects, as well as the contact details (email and telephone number) of the Candidate and at least three (3) professional references.

 Technical proposal:

  •  Brief description of why the individual considers him/herself as the most suitable for the assignment;

  • A methodology, on how they will approach and complete the assignment. 

Financial proposal that indicates the all-inclusive fixed total contract price, supported by a breakdown of costs.
Notes:

  • The term “All inclusive” implies that all costs (professional fees, travel costs, living allowances, communications, consummables, etc.) that could possibly be incurred by the Contractor are already factored into the final amounts submitted in the proposal.

  • Individuals on IC are not UN staff are therefore not entitled to DSAs. All living allowances required to perform the demands of the TOR must be incorporated in the financial proposal, whether the fees are expressed as daily fees or lump sum amount.

Lump Sum Amount:

  • The lump sum amount must be “all-inclusive”. It will include consultancy fees based on five day working week, and it will include perdiem fees, food incidental and other expenses related to the execution of the assignment. The lump sum amount shall also incorporate the cost of medical insurance and evacuation during the assignment period.
  •  The contract price is fixed regardless of changes in the cost components.

Competencies

Core Competencies:
  • Strong analytical skills;
  • Strong writing skills;
  • Significant experience in working with human rights institutions;
  • Knowledge of business rights in specific and human rights issues in general, in Afghanistan;
  • Very good interpersonal and communication skills;
  • Capacity to adapt to hard working conditions;
  • Excellent command of the English language. Knowledge of the Dari and Pashto languages is an advantage. ;
  • Flexible and adaptable and meets deadlines;
Corporate Competencies:
  • Demonstrates commitment to UNDP’s mission, vision and values;
  • Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
  • Knowledge of UN systems is a strong asset;
  • Strong organizational, reporting and managerial skills;
  • Results oriented, strong team player with outstanding interpersonal and coordination skills;
  • Ability to work independently;
  • Ability to remain calm, in control and good humored even under pressure.
  • Ability to establish substantive professional relationships with all stakeholders;
  • Familiarity with post-conflict environments is an asset.
Functional Competencies:
  • Ability to provide top quality policy advice;
  • In-depth practical knowledge of inter-disciplinary development issues in the business rights sector.
  • Good interpersonal and diplomacy skills that allow for working productively as part of a larger team;
  • Ability to use critical thinking, conceptualize ideas, and articulate relevant subject matter in a clear and concise way.
  • Ability to communicate effectively with and relate to people of different cultures, demonstrating an ability to see issues from other perspectives.

Required Skills and Experience

Academic Qualifications:
  • Graduate degree in Law, Human Rights or related fields.
Years of experience:
  • At least 5 years of professional experience with Afghan institutions and/or Afghan private sector in the areas of business rights;
  • In-depth knowledge of programming on business rights;
  • Proven experience in monitoring and evaluation of human rights related issues.
  • In-depth Advisory expertise on policy making in the human rights sector.

Computer Skills:

  • Proficiency in Microsoft Office software;
  • Proficiency with Online communication, including Skype, etc.
Language requirements:
  • Fluency in English is essential. Knowledge of Dari and/or Pashto will be an asset.