Background

Corrupt judicial systems are a major impediment to ensuring access to justice for ordinary citizens. In Asia and the Pacific one out of four people on average reported paying a bribe to the courts within the preceding 12 months, according to the TI’s Global Corruption Barometer 2016.               

The recently approved 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, at the core of which are the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), includes for the first time a Goal on Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions (SDG 16) with targets on reducing corruption and delivering justice for all. The judiciary is the ultimate guardian of security and the rule of law. When corruption occurs in the judiciary, it undermines the very principles of fairness, due process of law and accountability, weakens the legitimacy of institutions and triggers insecurity. Therefore it is essential that the judiciary leads by example when it comes to integrity.

To strengthen law enforcement and tackle the corruption-security nexus judiciaries should champion integrity as part of their judicial reforms. In order to be effective, judicial integrity standards need to be anchored in broader judicial performance frameworks.   This requires not only that the Courts develop judicial integrity codes, but also that the conditions for their implementation are in place – in terms of drivers (court management and leadership), systems (policies, resources, court proceedings) – and that results are monitored (affordable and accessible court services; users’ satisfaction). Otherwise, experience shows judicial integrity standards are not translated into practice.

The Project Judicial Integrity Champions in APEC, has three objectives:

1. Launch a network of judicial integrity champions in APEC that support each other in their reforms through peer learning, both at regional and national levels
2. Create ownership by the Courts of a methodology for self-assessment of judicial integrity and performance that identifies capacity gaps
3. Pilot the methodology in at least one country in the region, with a Court in the region undertaking a self-assessment of judicial integrity and developing a capacity development plan on that basis

Beneficiary countries include Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, and Thailand. Other selected APEC members in the Asia-Pacific will be invited to share their expertise on a pro-bono basis (such as Australia, Japan, and Singapore).

Duties and Responsibilities

Objective and Scope of Work

The international consultant will develop a self-assessment methodology that is meant to be used as basis for Courts to evaluate their performance in terms of integrity and overall excellence, and to provide guidance on how to improve their performance.

The methodology will build on the current International Framework of the International Consortium on Court Excellence while reflecting key international standards in the area of judicial integrity, in particular the article 11 of the UN Convention against Corruption.

Of particular relevance for the update of the methodology will be the Evaluative Framework of Article 11 of the UNCAC, the Implementation Guidance of the Bangalore Principles, the Istanbul Declaration on Judicial Transparency, the Resource Guide on Strengthening Judicial Integrity and Capacity. In addition the methodology will build on UNDP’s long-standing experience with institutional capacity development in the context of UNDP Capacity Assessment Methodology User‘s Guide.

The consultant will be guided in the development of the methodology by the discussions of the Advisory Committee set up for the Judicial Integrity Champions in APEC Project. The Advisory Committee will include, amongst others, the founding members of the International Consortium on Court Excellence, the US Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, as well as well-known judges and key international experts in the area of judicial integrity.

The self-assessment methodology on judicial integrity and performance will provide the main background document for discussion at the APEC Judicial Integrity Champions Workshop to be held in March 2018 to launch the peer-learning network. During the workshop, participants will be expected to provide comments on the methodology before it is finalized in order to ensure ownership and inclusiveness. It will be revised based on the comments received from the workshop participants and is expected to be finalized by May 2018.

The methodology will be piloted in one country between June 2018 and March 2019, with a court undertaking the self-assessment of judicial integrity, receiving peers’ recommendations and developing a capacity development plan.  Two country missions will be organized by UNDP once the self-assessment is completed to discuss the results and to design the capacity development action plan accordingly. The mission team will include UNDP experts and at least two judges and/or experts.

The results of the pilot will be shared with members of the Judicial Integrity Champions Network in a workshop at the end of the project, hosted by the country that conducted the self-assessment by August 2019.

Under the overall guidance of the Governance Advisor and in cooperation with the Programme Officer on Governance and Peacebuilding at UNDP Bangkok Regional Hub, the consultant will perform the following tasks:

• Develop a concept note suggesting amendments to the International Framework of the International Consortium on Court Excellence as a basis to initiate consultations with the members of the Advisory Committee (November 2017);
• Develop and refine the self-assessment methodology on judicial integrity and performance based on the guidance provided by the Advisory Committee during the remote consultations and phone calls (November 2017 – January 2018).
• Design an online survey to collect relevant information for the creation of the Judicial Integrity Champions in APEC peer-learning network (November 2017);
• Finalise the methodology developed based on the comments and feedback received by Advisory Committee members during the APEC Judicial Integrity Champions Workshop by May 2018.

Expected Outputs and Deliverables

The consultant will submit the following deliverables/outputs:

Institutional Arrangement

The consultant will report directly to the Governance Advisor in UNDP’s Bangkok Regional Hub and shall work under overall supervision of the Regional Team leader on Governance and Peacebuilding.  The Governance Advisor will review the progress and quality of the outputs prior to the issuance of payment.  Review/approval time required to review/approve outputs prior to authorizing payments is 7 – 10 working days.

Duration of the Assignment

The period of the assignment will cover maximum 32 working days between 8 November 2017 and 8 June 2018.

Duty Station

The consultant will be home based, with one mission to participate in a validation workshop in March 2018 (dates and destination to be confirmed).

Competencies

• Strong sense of integrity is essential
• Excellent communication and organization skills
• Effective interpersonal skills
• Strong communication and reporting skills and ability to work in a team

Required Skills and Experience

Requirements for experience and qualifications: 

I. Academic Qualifications:

• Master's Degree, preferably in law, political science, or other relevant social science or development studies

II. Experience:

• At least 10 years of experience as a judge and/or international expert in judicial reforms;
• Familiarity with the International Framework of the International Consortium on Court Excellence and/or the Evaluative Framework of Article 11 of the UNCAC;
• Experience with judicial integrity reforms;
• Knowledge of different judicial systems in the Asia-Pacific region.

III. Language:

• Fluent in spoken and written English

IV. Competencies:

• Strong sense of integrity is essential
• Excellent communication and organization skills
• Effective interpersonal skills
• Strong communication and reporting skills and ability to work in a team

Price Proposal and Schedule of Payment :

Consultant must send a financial proposal based on Lump Sum Amount. The total amount quoted shall be all-inclusive and include all costs components required to perform the deliverables identified in the TOR, including professional fee, travel costs, living allowance (if any work is to be done outside the IC´s duty station) and any other applicable cost to be incurred by the IC in completing the assignment. The contract price will be fixed output-based price regardless of extension of the herein specified duration. Payments will be done upon completion of the deliverables/outputs and as per below percentages:

• 25% at the inception of the contract, with the participation in the Advisory Committee consultations as a lead consultant to develop the methodology (November 2017);

• 50% upon delivery of the methodology for discussion during the validation workshop in March 2018;
• 25% upon submission of the final methodology to be piloted in one country in May 2018.

In general, UNDP shall not accept travel costs exceeding those of an economy class ticket. Should the IC wish to travel on a higher class he/she should do so using their own resources

In the event of unforeseeable travel not anticipated in this TOR, payment of travel costs including tickets, lodging and terminal expenses should be agreed upon, between the respective business unit and the Individual Consultant, prior to travel and will be reimbursed.

Travel costs shall be reimbursed at actual but not exceeding the quotation from UNDP approved travel agent.  The provided living allowance will not be exceeding UNDP DSA rates. Repatriation travel cost from home to duty station in Bangkok and return shall not be covered by UNDP.

Criteria for Selection of the Best Offer

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

a) Responsive/compliant/acceptable, and

b) Having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation.

* Technical Criteria weight; 70%

* Financial Criteria weight; 30%

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

Annexes:

Annex I - TOR_ Judical Integrity_APEC

                     Annex I-I Materials to be considered in the development of the self-assessment methodology on judicial integrity and performance:

• International Framework of the International Consortium on Court Excellence
• Evaluative Framework of Article 11 of the UNCAC
• Global Principles for the Capacity Assessment of National Human Rights Institutions Capacity, as an example of institutional self-assessment methodologies developed by UNDP
• UNDP Capacity Assessment Methodology User‘s Guide, illustrating UNDP experience with institutional capacity development
• A Transparent and Accountable Judiciary to delivery Justice for All

Annex II- General Condition of Contract

Annex III - Offeror’s Letter to UNDP Confirming Interest and Availability for the Individual IC, including Financial Proposal Template

All documents can be downloaded at : http://procurement-notices.undp.org/view_notice.cfm?notice_id=41616