Background

In Iraq, under the government of Iraq, the Ministries of Justice, Interior, Defence all operate separate prisons, detention centres and holding facilities, notwithstanding that by law, MoJ and its Iraqi Corrections Service (ICS) should have full authority over all detention facilities. As for the juveniles’ detention facilities, they were moved under the Ministry of Justice during July 2018. 

The ICS do not have any strategic plan or a road map for the reform of prisons in Iraq including juveniles’ detention facilities. During the UNODC mission in November 2018, the ICS stated that the general situation of prisons under the MOJ is extremely difficult in terms of severe overcrowding (some prisons having over 150% occupancy), inadequate infrastructures, failure to meet the basic needs of prisoners. Overcrowding and overall poor detention conditions lead to health issues in prisons and are contributing factors to violent conditions that are harmful to the physical and mental conditions of prisoners. Furthermore, Iraqi prisons do not offer proper rehabilitation and/or reintegration programmes. It was mentioned that prisoners are only benefiting from psychological support, but it is not clear what kind of support, who is providing it and given the limited prison staff combined with overcrowding. According to statistics provided by the ICS during November 2018, only 23 detention facilities are operational with a capacity of around 26,000. The total number of prisoners is at least 33,000 with 29,068 are sentenced prisoners and 3,932 inmates in pre-trial detention.

Iraq’s juvenile justice system also needs urgent attention. Under the current Child Law, children can be held responsible for criminal actions from the age of nine and the maximum sentence for a child is 15 years. Presently, 1,113 children are in detention, both sentenced and pretrial. Of these 1,040 are boys (960 sentenced and 80 in pre-trial detention) and 83 are girls (9 sentenced and 73 in pretrial detention). The number of juvenile detention centres is very limited; there are five in Baghdad with a restricted number of places and one of these five institutions is an observation centre for juvenile offenders only for boys in pretrial detention and all of them are simple buildings lacking the needed infrastructure and rehabilitation/education programmes. Children are also detained in adult prisons either upon request of their families to be closer to home or due to lack of space in the juvenile detention centres. According to September 2018 figures, 473 children (419 boys and 22 girls)  are held at the Basra prison for adults, most of them sentenced for their association with ISIS.

Thus, prison reform is an area that needs immediate attention. In order to develop a viable approach for the country, a comprehensive research/study is needed as a first step to understand the complexities of the situation, the prison system and the status quo of detention facilities under the MoJ. Such a study will shed light on the legal and regulatory frameworks, the organizational structures, prison staff, physical infrastructure, security, prison registers and data as well as assess prisoner well-being, including that of violent extremist prisoners and children associated with violent extremist groups (this includes accommodation, access to basic services, sanitation, rules governing prison visits, exercise/recreation, education/vocational training, rehabilitation and disengagement programmes as well as reintegration programmes after release.

Duties and Responsibilities

2. SCOPE OF WORK, RESPONSIBILITIES AND DESCRIPTION OF THE PROPOSED ANALYTICAL WORK

The National Consultant will work under the overall guidance of the UNODC Regional Representative for the Middle East and North Africa and the direct supervision of UNODC Criminal Justice Programme Manager and in close coordination with the Lead International Researcher. The key responsibilities for the consultant include supporting the Lead International Researcher as an interpreter/researcher in the following: 1) Developing a research plan and methodology for carrying out prison assessment in Iraq with regard to relevant international standards, norms and instruments; 2) Developing a research plan and methodology for assessing detention facilities for children in conflict with the law in Iraq with regard to relevant international standards, norms and instruments; 3) Assessment mission for prisons and detention centers in Iraq; 4) Developing relevant reports on prisons and detention facilities in Iraq including recommendations for both topics; 5) Conducting validation workshops to discuss the reports’ findings and recommendations.

                Expected tangible and measurable output(s)/deliverable(s):

1. Support the Lead Researcher in primary desk research, research plan and methodology on the Iraqi Corrections Service’s (ICS) current key challenges and adherence to relevant international standards and norms, prioritizing the high-security prisons holding men and women, by conducting preparatory work, calls/meetings, gathering relevant legislation and local research material and providing written translation.

1. Support the Lead Researcher in the primary desk research, research plan and methodology on conditions of detention and the treatment of children deprived of their liberty under the Iraqi Juvenile Corrections Service (IJCS), with a focus on children in detention for alleged association with terrorist and violent extremist groups and children detained with their mothers, by conducting preparatory work, calls/meetings, gathering relevant legislation and local research material and providing written translation.

1. Accompany the Lead Researcher during the prison and detention facilities assessment phase and provide interpretation/translation:

• Support the consultations, explanatory sessions and discussions of early findings with all concerned actors (Ministries and CSOs) involved in prison reform juvenile justice in Iraq.
• Written translation of relevant documents and research material. 

1. Accompany the Lead Researcher during the Validation workshop(s) and provide interpretation/translation: 

• 1 to 2 validation workshops to openly discuss the reports’ findings and the recommendations for moving forward.

Competencies

• Strong communication skills and abilities to convey the purpose clearly;
• Experience in the United Nations or another international organization is preferred;
• Up-to-date knowledge and practical experience of UN programmes, policies, guidelines and procedures, as well as with UNODC’s criminal justice and security sector reform programme is an asset;
• Knowledge in the field of criminal justice and prison reform is a strong advantage; 
• Work experience in the MENA region, in particular on issues related to prisons and juvenile justice is required;
• Knowledge of the Iraqi political context is preferable;

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

• Advanced university (Bachelor) degree in law or political science or international affairs or related field (20 points)

Experience:

• Strong communication skills and abilities to convey the purpose clearly; (10 points)
• Experience in the United Nations or another international organization is preferred (10 points)
• Knowledge in the field of criminal justice and prison reform is a strong advantage (10 points)
• Knowledge of the Iraqi political context is preferable (10 points)
• Work experience in the MENA region, in particular on issues related to prisons and juvenile justice is required (20 points)

Language Requirements:

Fluency in Arabic and English, with excellent drafting and communication skills. (20 points)

Important Note:

Interested candidate has to access procurement notice ref: IRQ10-IC035/19 – National Researcher for UNODC at the: following link:

http://procurement-notices.undp.org/view_notice.cfm?notice_id=59269

Please do not send your application through this website and send the complete application to (ic1.undp.iq@undp.org) only

Only application with complete supporting documents received in ic1.undp.iq@undp.org before or at the closing date will be processed.