Background

UNDP Pakistan designed the Decentralization and Local Governance project (D&LG) to create stronger democratic processes and institutions at all levels of governance, following the 18th constitutional amendment. The project identifies strategic areas of intervention to assist institutional mechanisms for effective, responsive and accountable service delivery for peace and development and ultimately contribute to Sustainable Development Goals. The project focuses on local governance, human rights and social inclusion as core areas of work and the expert will be contributing to the following core components of the project:

1. Devolving Rights in all four provinces

2. Strengthening institutions, processes and mechanisms for promoting a more inclusive democratic culture

3. Supporting Local Level Disengagement and Rehabilitation

UNDPs rights-based approach to democracy building in Pakistan focusses on capacity development of state-established institutions tasked to protect and promote basic rights. In 2010, Pakistan's 18th Constitutional Amendment introduced reforms that significantly changed the governance paradigm by devolving powers to the provinces. The Amendment has also expanded the scope of Human Rights by devolving women's, children's and minorities' rights to the provincial level.

In 2014, Pakistan was granted the special incentive arrangement for sustainable Development and Good Governance under the EU’s Generalized Scheme of Preferences (GSP+). The related export benefits are however conditional. Regarding Human Rights, Pakistan’s government needs to ensure the effective implementation of seven core Human Rights treaties and fulfill related reporting obligations in order to keep its GSP status. Pakistan has initiated so-called Treaty Implementation Cells (TICs) which have been established both at the federal and provincial level. TICs at the provincial level need additional capacity building support to successfully define and actively shape their mandate.

Since 2016, UNDP Pakistan seeks to strengthen the capacity of the relevant provincial institutions and effectively fulfill their mandates with its “Devolving Rights in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa” Project. The overall project aim is to assist the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in implementing and strengthening its Human Rights Policy, which was adopted in May 2018. Several government line departments and institutions are responsible for the protection and promotion of human rights in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, including the Line Department for Law, Parliamentary Affairs and Human Rights. Earlier, in 2014, the Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa passed the “Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Promotion, Protection and Enforcement of Human Rights Act” which resulted in the establishment of a Human Rights Directorate within the KP Line Department for Law, Parliamentary Affairs and Human Rights. One of the project's main stakeholders is the Directorate which is tasked to monitor the Human Rights situation throughout the province and to provide grievance redressal mechanisms for victims of Human Rights violations.

Moreover, as per Pakistan's National Human Rights Action Plan, all four provinces are responsible for the development of such strategies. The federal Human Rights Ministry, through the work of its regional directorates in the provinces, has developed draft strategies for the provinces. Since 2018, UNDP is facilitating the endorsement of the provincial strategies in Balochistan, Sindh and Punjab. Further consultative meetings/workshops on the drafts are necessary involving all relevant provincial stakeholders, in particular the provincial line departments. The strategies need to reflect and be tailored towards the specific ground realities in the provinces. They should entail a clear allocation of responsibilities to the various provincial line departments in charge of the implementation, as well as a plan for the allocation of funds from the federal to the provincial level to realize them. By ensuring provincial ownership, the aim is to take necessary steps towards the approval of the provincial strategy by the competent provincial authority.

In addition, through the Local Level Disengagement and Rehabilitation component the Decentralization and Local Governance Project addresses Local Governance through a rights-based approach, aiming to build resilience in local communities, especially in the vulnerable and at-risk segments of population.  In order to reach this goal, the project engaged newly elected youth counselors to form integration support groups within village level communities selected in consultation with the KP government. Upon successful identification of the vulnerable youth by the local councilors, the integration support committees involved the young people into a coordinated disengagement and rehabilitation process focusing on psycho-social support and livelihood skills trainings.

Duties and Responsibilities

Competencies

The incumbent will serve as a technical resource to oversee, develop and deliver the described targets of the D&LG project component on rights development. He/she will ensure timely reporting of the agreed deliverables including contributing of the D&LG project’s overall contribution of the Country Office to human rights programming in the region. 

Note: The detailed TORs and proposal submission forms/templates are available on UNDP Website as per below link:

http://www.pk.undp.org/content/pakistan/en/home/operations/procurement0/undp-ic-2018-229---international-consultant-as-a-rights-developm.html

Required Skills and Experience