UNDP Jobs - 88029- International Consultant to conduct capacity build

International Consultant to conduct capacity building workshop to present internat-l standards and best practices for protection of the rights of minorities in line with UNCERD and other internat-ly binding treaties protecting rights of ethnic minorities

Location :

Home based with 1 mission to ASHGABAT, TURKMENISTAN

Type of Contract :

Individual Contract

Starting Date :

01-Nov-2019

Application Deadline :

22-Oct-19 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

International Consultant

Duration of Initial Contract :

1 November 2019 - 30 November 2019

Languages Required :

English Russian

Expected Duration of Assignment :

10 working days

UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence. UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

Background

The Turkmen Institute of State, Law and Democracy and the Interagency Commission and its WG are key bodies in Turkmenistan that are responsible for the coordination of actions by all involved state agencies in fulfilling the obligations that the state has taken in the areas of human rights and humanitarian law.

In January 2016, the National Action Plan of Turkmenistan on Human Rights for 2016-2020 was approved by a Decree of the President of Turkmenistan. The objective of the Action Plan is to protect, promote and ensure human rights by defining them in the context of public policy, developing the programs for achieving these goals, further involvement of all relevant government bodies and civil society and allocating sufficient resources for the implementation of these programs. The Government has committed to development of practical mechanisms to promote and protect rights of minorities. One of the specific activities of the NRHAP is creation of the working mechanisms for consultations with ethnic minorities in the country.

The country is a State Party to thirteen core human rights treaties and their optional protocols and is yet to ratify several other important UN treaties and optional protocols. Turkmenistan ratified the International Convention Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) in 1994 and submitted its combined eighth and eleventh periodic reports to the Committee in 2016 and received concluding recommendations in February 2017. The next report on CERD is to be submitted in October 2019.

UNDP is planning to organize a two-day capacity building workshop to present international standards and best practices for protection of the rights of minorities in line with UNCERD and other internationally binding treaties protecting rights of minorities. Given the above context, UNDP is going to recruit an international consultant with the hands-on experience on promotion and protection of rights of ethnic minorities. An international expert will be hired to carry out one three-day mission to Turkmenistan to facilitate two-day workshop.

Duties and Responsibilities

In accordance with the above-mentioned objective of the assignment and under the supervision of the Project Manager, the International Consultant (IC) will have the following objectives to conduct a capacity building workshop and provide technical advice to the Institute of State, Law and Democracy. To achieve the objective, he or she will work to produce the following:

1.Conduct an in-depth review of the concluding observations on CERD (2017) and Turkmenistan’s combined. Review the Roadmap on UPR (2017), National Human Rights Action Plan for 2016-2020, National Action Plan on Gender (2015-2019), the National Action Plan on the Rights of the Child for 2018-2020 and a draft of the National Action Plan to counter trafficking in persons for 2019-2022 and take stock of the recommendations that relate to minority rights;

2. Desk review examining the current laws in Turkmenistan, available regulations and other documents with regards to anti-discrimination and protection of minority rights;

3. Field visit to Turkmenistan to hold:

Individual meetings with the Institute of State, Law and Democracy of Turkmenistan and Ombudsman Office of Turkmenistan.
Two-day capacity development workshop for representatives of the Working Group of the Inter-Agency Commission on human rights to present international experience in legislation and practical models of implementation for promotion and protection of rights of ethnic minorities. The workshop should focus on the following aspects, but not limited:
Human rights-based approach in protection of rights of ethnic minorities and UN obligations;
Overview of the countries’ national legislation on protection of the rights of minorities; existing policies, national programs, and action plans;
Overview of international good practice models, with examples from the Eastern Europe and Central Asia region mechanisms for promotion and protection of the rights of ethnic minorities; Cross-sectoral approach in implementation mechanisms on protecting, promoting rights of ethnic minorities;
Community-targeted and community-oriented approaches in promotion and protection of the ethnic minority rights. Role of civil society in promotion and protection of ethnic minority rights;
Promoting human rights, good governance and access to justice, rights of ethnic minorities to alleviate marginalization and exclusion;

4. Facilitate a debriefing session with the UNCT Human Rights Thematic Team during in country mission;

5. Provide consultancy report with recommendations and proposed suitable mechanisms on protection of minority rights to be integrated in the country.

Deliverables and timeframe:

Deliverable 1:

Draft of agenda of the workshop, hand-out materials, PPP presentations;
Conducted workshop and technical consultations with the Institute of Law, State and Democracy on conducted three-day mission.

Location: Home based, 3-day mission to Turkmenistan. Number of days: 7 days, mid-end of October 2019.

Deliverable 2:

Final consultancy report with recommendations mentioned above.

Location: deskwork/homebased. Number of days: 3 days, October 2019.

Payment Conditions:

This is an installment-based contract that should cover the costs of consultancy required to produce the above deliverables. The final schedule of payments will be agreed upon in the beginning of consultancy. Payment will be released in two installments: 1st installment: 50% (for deliverable 1), 2nd installment 50% (for Deliverable 2), upon timely submission of respective deliverables and their acceptance by UNDP Turkmenistan.

Competencies

Corporate Competencies:

Demonstrates integrity by modeling the UN’s values and ethical standards;
Promotes the vision, mission, and strategic goals of UNDP;
Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
Treats all people fairly without favoritism;
Fulfills all obligations to gender sensitivity and zero tolerance for sexual harassment.

Functional Competencies:

Knowledge of and extensive experience working with UN human rights mechanisms;
Excellent presentation, facilitation and communication skills;
Excellent writing skills, including the ability to convey complex concepts and recommendations, in a clear style tailored to match the audience.
Proven interpersonal skills and ability to work in a multi-cultural environment with sensitivity and respect for diversity;
Diplomatic skills.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Master’s degree in law, human rights, political science, international relations;

Experience:

At least 7 years of working experience in capacity and institution building in the area of human rights, minority rights, anti-discrimination;
Excellent knowledge of UNCERD, practical experience in promotion and protection of the rights of minorities;
Knowledge of the UN human rights system and its methods of operations;

Language requirements:

Fluency in English and in Russian.

Submission of applications:

Interested individual consultants must submit the following documents/information to demonstrate their qualifications:

A proposed methodology for the assignment with description of approaches for technical support;
Cover Letter which contains a brief description of approach to work/technical proposal of why the individual considers him/herself as the most suitable for the assignment;
Financial Proposal with the references to (1) the daily rate for the assignment and within the timing scale indicated in the present TOR, and (2) any other expenses (including transportation costs, accommodation costs, the possibility of vaccination and etc.). Template of the form named «Letter of Confirmation of Interest and Availability in English» can be found at http://www.tm.undp.org/content/turkmenistan/en/home/procurement.html. The UNDP will enter into an Individual Contract based on a lump sum amount. The financial proposal shall represent a detailed, justified and “all inclusive” amount. In order to assist UNDP in the comparison of financial proposals, the financial proposal shall include a breakdown of this lump sum amount, including: a daily fee for the tasks and an estimated duration as specified in this announcement, travel (to and from the missions), per diems, any other possible costs (including vaccinations, dwelling, communication etc.);
Personal CV form including past experience in similar projects and contact details of referees.

Evaluation of proposals:

Individual Consultants will be evaluated based on the combined scoring methodology. When using this method, the award of the contract should be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

Responsive/compliant and
Having received the highest score – out of 100 points

Out of the maximum score, the score for technical criteria equals 70% and for financial criteria 30%.

The technical evaluation will take into account the following as per the scoring provided:

Master’s degree in law, human rights, political science, international relations – 15 pts;
At least 7 years of working experience in capacity and institution building in the area of human rights, protection of ethnic minority rights, antidiscrimination – 15 pts;
Excellent knowledge of UNCERD implementation – 10 pts;
Methodology – 15 pt;
Interview – 15 pt;
Knowledge of the UN human rights system and its method of operations – 10 pts;
Fluency in English – 10 pts
Fluency in Russian – 10 pts;

Financial proposal – 30% of total evaluation.

Additional requirements for recommended contractor:

Recommended contractors aged 65 and older, and if the travel is required, shall undergo a full medical examination including x-ray, and obtain medical clearance from the UN-approved doctor prior to taking up their assignment. The medical examination is to be cleared by the UN physicians, and shall be paid by the consultant.