Antecedentes
South Sudan has been plagued with years of civil war and violent political crises. Since its independence, the people, communities, and institutions of South Sudan have had the opportunity to focus on rebuilding the country. However, the years of conflict and insecurity have created an environment particularly challenging for sustainable peace, characterized by severely weakened national institutions. The weakness of the justice and security institutions, paired with a highly militarized environment, contributes to a pervasive culture of violence.
Because of limited capacity, the justice institutions of South Sudan have not been able to ensure universal access to justice and protection of human rights. Many South Sudanese citizens, notably marginalized groups and communities including women, girls, internally displaced people (IDPs) and returnees, remain without sufficient access to fair, effective, and efficient justice, as well as security services. Deficits in the justice and security systems impede the realization of legitimate stability, leaving individuals, families, and communities without adequate safety or security, access to justice, or redress for past and ongoing human rights violations.
The absence of accessible justice has particularly dire impacts on survivors of, as well as those at an elevated risk of being subjected to, Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV). SGBV is common and one of the most critical threats to the wellbeing of women and children in South Sudan. A lingering impact of past conflict, SGBV remains rife, with the lack of access to justice often allowing perpetrators of SGBV to act with impunity. Even when justice is accessible, survivors may refrain from exercising their rights due to fear of stigma or reprisals – an issue exacerbated in the present context.
In response to the challenges of particularly SGBV survivors, UNDP in partnership with the Judiciary of South Sudan, with funding from the Kingdom of Netherlands, supported the establishment of a Gender Based Violence (GBV) and Juvenile Court. Since December 2020, the GBV and Juvenile Court has been hearing cases in efforts to address impunity for gender-based crimes and hold perpetrators accountable. The aim has been to populate the Court with personnel sensitive to and experienced in dealing with SGBV-related issues. This includes ensuring protection of women’s human rights and accountability of perpetrators, as well as prevention efforts of re-victimization and stigmatization.
Despite this, the GBV Court faces challenges in the delivery of justice for victims of SGBV, or adherence to relevant human rights obligations found in the eleven international and regional treaties South Sudan has signed. The court serves with limited financial and human resources and is difficult to access for those not living in the capital city. There are delays in the workings of the court, which also struggles to meet the specific needs of the SGBV victims.
These limitations place the court at a continued risk of failing to uphold human rights, women's rights, fair trial standards, as well as address discrimination against women and girls – all of which may further deter victims from reporting cases and violate the provisions of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) of which South Sudan is a signatory. As the only specialized court in the country, the GBV and Juvenile Court plays a critical role in maintaining a high quality of justice delivered, as it sets both the tone for dealing with SGBV issues in society, as well as precedence for future courts of its kind.
Against this backdrop, UNDP’s Access to Justice, Security, and Human Rights Strengthening Programme with funding from the Kingdom of Netherlands is proposing to conduct four training sessions for five judges of the High Court and Appellate Court and 16 administrative and support staff of the GBV and Juvenile Court on human rights-based and victim-centered approaches to management of the Court, and adjudication of cases to enable them handle parties and Court processes according to human rights standards and principles. Each training session will take three days. The training will contribute to minimizing re-traumatization associated with the criminal justice process, promote trust in the court users and public, and generate good practices for replication by other courts.
Objective
The primary objective of the consultancy is to conduct four training sessions for five judges of the High Court and Appellate Court and 16 administrative staff of the GBV and Juvenile Court on human rights-based and victim-centered approaches to enhance their capacity on management of the Court, and adjudication of cases and handle parties and court processes according to human rights standards and principles.
Scope of Work
The consultant will work with the GBV and Juvenile Court under the guidance of the Director of Research and Training of the Judiciary to achieve the objectives of the consultancy. In particular, the consultant will undertake the following tasks:
- Develop a training curriculum and training materials for the four training sessions on human rights standards including rights-based approaches, victim centered approaches, and administration of justice for gender crimes.
- Conduct four training sessions (each three-days long) for 5 judges of the High Court and Appellate Court and 16 administrative and support staff of the GBV and Juvenile Court on human rights-based and victim-centered approaches to management of the Court, and adjudication of cases to enable them handle relevant parties and Court processes in compliance with human rights standards and principles.
- Prepare training reports detailing the progress and outcomes of each training session
Deberes y responsabilidades
Deliverables
- Five judges of the High Court and Appellate Court and 16 administrative staff of the GBV and Juvenile Court are empowered on human rights-based and victim-centered approaches to management of the Court, and adjudication of cases to enable them handle relevant parties and Court processes in compliance with human rights standards and principles.
- The GBV and Juvenile Court is effectively delivering justice and is handling relevant parties and Court processes in compliance with human rights standards and principles.
- Submission of four training reports detailing the progress and outcomes of each of the three-day long training sessions.
Commitment to Quality Work
The consultant shall use an evidence-based approach and ensure the highest standard of work and timely deliverables at every stage of this assignment. In particular, the consultant shall ensure clarity of objectives and process during the wider consultations; countercheck all facts and figures cited; ensure that the content and format of the Draft Strategic Plan meets the highest standard for such documents; and ensure proper editing and clarity.
Competencias
Competencies:
Innovation
- Ability to make new and useful ideas work
Delivery
- Ability to get things done while exercising good judgement
Leadership
Ability to persuade others to follow
Habilidades y experiencia requeridas
The following qualifications and experience are required:
- Advanced university degree (Master's degree or equivalent) in law, international relations, human rights, gender studies or other closely related field. A first-level university degree in combination with qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of an advanced university degree.
- A minimum of seven years of progressively responsible experience in the field of human rights, women’s rights, access to justice, governance, or a similar field.
- Excellent research skills, including ability to write high-quality research documents, and express ideas in a clear and concise style.
- With strong attention to detail, develop training materials including participant’s pre- and post-training assessment materials.
- Familiarity with and/or previous working experience as a trainer or training consultant or training coach. Experience in South Sudan would be a significant advantage.
- Strong facilitation and training skills; demonstrated ability to recognize and adapt to different learning styles and group dynamics.
- Excellent knowledge in gender mainstreaming is desirable.
- Excellent communication and writing skills in English.
This assignment is for a total number of 12 days, spread over a period of 10 months with effect from 3 October 2022 and must be completed by 31 July 2023.
- First session 3 days 3-5 October 2022
- Second session 3 days 16-18 January 2022
- Third session 3 days 10-12 April 2023
- Fourth session 3 days 17-19 July 2023
Remuneration
The consultant will be paid the agreed amount in four lump sums upon the satisfactory delivery of key deliverables.
Payment Schedule Deliverables or documents to be delivered Payment Percentage
- 1st Installment Completion of the first training session and submission of training report 25%
2nd Installment Completion of the second training session and submission of training report 25%
3rd Installment Completion of the third training session and submission of training report 25%
4th Installment Completion of the final training session and submission of training report 25%
Supervision
The consultant will be supervised by UNDP’s Access to Justice, Security and Human Rights Chief Technical Advisor and Programme Manager or her designated technical lead.
Evaluation Criteria
1. Relevant Educational Experience (20%)
2. Relevant Work Experience as per TOR Requirements (40%)
- A minimum of seven years of progressively responsible experience in the field of human rights, women’s rights, access to justice, governance, or a similar field.
- Excellent research skills, including ability to write high-quality research documents, and express ideas in a clear and concise style.
- With strong attention to detail, write training materials including participant’s pre- and post-training assessment materials.
- Familiarity with and/or previous working experience as a trainer or training consultant or training coach. Experience in South Sudan would be a significant advantage.
- Strong facilitation and training skills; demonstrated ability to recognize and adapt to different learning styles and group dynamics.
- Excellent knowledge in gender mainstreaming is desirable.
3. Communication & language (10%)
- Strong communication skills with excellent knowledge of written and spoken English.
- Knowledge of Arabic is considered an advantage.
- Proficiency and proven experience in the use of Microsoft Office suite (e.g., Word, Excel, PowerPoint) is required.
Financial evaluation (total 30 points)
The financial proposals of all the technically qualified applicants will be scored up to 30 points based on the formula provided below. The maximum points (30) will be assigned to the lowest financial proposal. All other proposals shall receive points according to the following formula: p = y (x/z)
Where:
- p = points for the financial proposal being evaluated
- y = maximum number of points for the financial proposal (30).
- X = price of the lowest priced proposal
- z = price of the proposal being evaluated.