The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) is the United Nations Agency entrusted with the mandate to assist Member States in their efforts against corruption, illicit drugs, crime and terrorism. As part of its mandate, UNODC has been providing technical assistance in the area of justice sector reform globally and in Nigeria specifically for several years and has built up a knowledge base of successful practices in all the areas of crime prevention and criminal justice reform, including with a strong focus on sectoral approaches to such reforms. UNODC also has strong relationships with national and international counterparts in the region and the capacity to mobilise its global network for efficient delivery of its mandate.  It is therefore well placed to assist the Government of Nigeria (GoN) to improve its justice system as a necessary means of enhancing good governance, respect for human rights and the rule of law.

Given the foregoing experience, the European Union (EU) and the Government of Nigeria (GoN) have entrusted to UNODC the responsibility to implement the European Union Project –“Support to the Justice Sector in Nigeria”. The project is currently being implemented at the Federal level and in nine (9) States namely Anambra, Bayelsa, Benue, Cross River, Imo, Osun, Katsina, Lagos, Yobe, and the Federal Capital Territory.

The project’s specific objectives include supporting the efforts of the Nigerian Government to improve justice delivery through:

• Effective coordination and cooperation among justice sector institutions, with improved legal and policy framework;
• Enhanced operational structures and capabilities of officials in the sector; and
• Increased access to justice and respect for human rights and the rule of law, especially for disadvantaged and vulnerable groups. It will also improve mechanisms for accountability and engagement of civil society with justice institutions, thereby enhancing respect for human rights and public trust in the justice system.

Position: National Consultant to Establish, Facilitate and Provide Support to Nigerian Ban Association (NBA) in the Development and Roll out of a National Pro Bono Policy

Duties and Responsibilities

Purpose of the assignment

The consultancy is designed to assist the Nigerian Bar Association to develop strategies, guidelines and processes for the establishment and implementation of a pro bono programme at the national and State levels. It has been found that prisons are overcrowded because pre-trial detention is overused in most countries worldwide and in many developing countries including Nigeria. The size of the pre-trial prisoner population is larger than that of the convicted prisoner population. The project is aimed at providing free legal services to the most vulnerable groups as well as contributing to reduction of the number of persons in pre-trial detention.

Pre-trial detention

According to Nigerian Prison Service report, as at June 30 2014, over two third of Nigeria’s nearly 56,78 prison inmates were pre-trial detainees. Many had been held in detention for years awaiting trial in appalling conditions. Few could afford the services of a lawyer and the government-funded Legal Aid Council had only 122 lawyers country-wide. This situation contradicts the provisions of international standards, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) that provide for the limited use of pre-trial detention, especially for minor offences. Efforts made by the Federal Government in the past to tackle this problem have proved unsuccessful. Usually, where a criminal suspect is represented by a lawyer, there is high likelihood that there will not be protracted pre-trial processes. It is envisaged that the pro bono programme of the NBA will provide indigent inmates on pre-trial detention or charged to court for alleged criminal offences the opportunity to receive free legal representation. This is an innovative solution proposed by the NBA and civil society at a stakeholders meeting convened by the NBA to tackle the problem in a most practical and cost effective way. The project’s support for the development and implementation of the Pro bono policy is expected to contribute to the reduction in the number of Nigerians in pre-trial detention. This will be carried out through the provision of technical and logistical support to the Nigerian Bar Association to work with its State and local branches to make free legal services available to an increased number of inmates awaiting trial.

Specific tasks to be performed

Under the supervision of the UNODC Country Representative and in direct consultation with the Project Coordinator the incumbent will perform the following duties:

• Organize and Facilitate a two day workshop for NBA Vice Presidents and other officials on the implementation of the policy to introduce the guidelines to be used for the implementation of the pro bono policy;
• Organize and facilitate a training of the leadership and focal persons of the ten branches of the NBA who will be responsible for the implementation of the policy including agreeing with NBA on the invitees and an agenda for the workshop;
• Prepare a draft of the policy and guidelines and present to the NBA for internal consultation and adoption;
• Submit a final report on the outcome of the workshops and the entire consultancy;
• Contribute to the development of the methodology with timelines for the assignment.
• Facilitate a Strategy workshop around the Theme “Reducing Pretrial detention- Making pro bono work in Nigeria”;
• Develop and present a strategy for the roll out of the guidelines in ten (10) States;

Expected outputs

The consultant will be expected to submit the following:

• A report on the workshops organized under the project;
• 10 Copies each of the pro bono policy and guidelines developed;
• A final report containing recommendations including suggestions and actions necessary for the successful implementation of the pro bono policy in Nigeria.

Reporting

Under the direct supervision of the Project Coordinator, The contractor shall consult closely with  UNODC during all phases of the consultancy At all times, the consultant shall provide access to intermediate products of the assignment. In addition, to submission of the work products, as described in the contract, the contractor will report initially (first 3 weeks) by e-mail on a weekly basis to UNODC on the status of works. This reporting obligation may be changed in consultation between UNODC and the contractor.

Dates and details of how the work must be delivered:

Time frame for the Assignment

• The assignment will be conducted over a period of 60 days over nine months period;
• The following reports shall be submitted as will be agreed between UNODC and the consultant;
• Two weeks after the expected end date for the policy dialogue, the consultant shall deliver to UNODC a draft of both the pro bono policy and the guidelines.

Other reports will follow as highlighted below:

• Report of the roundtable workshops to introduce the guidelines in 10 States;
• Report of the entire assignment among others.   

Competencies

Corporate Competencies:

• Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
• Highest standard of integrity, discretion and loyalty.

Functional Competencies:

• Excellent understanding of Justice Sector Reform issues and/or fields directly relevant to the project;
• Knowledge in conducting training sessions and good facilitation skills;
• Good understanding of change management, including system development and organizational skills;
• Commitment to quality;
• Excellent understanding of organisational issues;
• Commitment to professionalism;
• Commitment to effectiveness, accessibility, accountability, transparency and fairness of the justice system;
• Excellent oral and writing communication skills;
• Timely and accurate submission of reports and other required documents;
• Substantive and linguistic quality of documents prepared;
• Commitment to confidentiality of the assignment and handing over of products and documents paid for by UNODC used in the delivery of consultancy outputs
• Commitment to deadlines;
• Objectivity, honesty and fairness;
• Logic and ability to operate systematically;

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

• Post-graduate degree (Master's degree) in Law, Criminology, Political or Social Science, Criminal Justice, or International Relations. A University First degree in related fields in combination with additional 10 years of relevant qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of a Post-graduate degree.

Experience:

• At least 10 years of progressively responsible professional experience in the relevant area (Justice Sector Reforms, experience doing pro bono work.).
• Experience in developing strategies, policies in the justice sector.
• Proven experience and knowledge of the Nigerian criminal justice system.
• Previous experience with the United Nations System, European Union funded projects or other international organisations would be an asset.
• Previous Experience working with the Nigerian Bar Association is essential.
• Have excellent written and spoken English skills

Language:

• English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat.
• For this consultancy, fluency in English (both spoken and written) is required.

Performance Indicators

Indicators to evaluate the consultant’s performance are:

• Timeliness in the submission of the documents required;
• Substantive and linguistic quality of all documents prepared;
• Acceptance of all the required outputs by UNODC.
• Selection Criteria
• Potential candidates’ suitability will be assessed strictly according to the following selection criteria. Only applicants who attains 70% or more in the technical evaluation will be considered. Candidates who scale through the technical evaluation will be invited to submit a financial proposal in accordance with UN rules for procurement of individual consultants. The technical criteria will be weighed against the financial proposal on a weight of 30/70 with the technical proposal weighing 70%.
• Remuneration
• Successful candidate will be remunerated in an agreed ratio of about three (3) instalments tied to different deliverables as will be stated in the contract.

How to Apply

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