Result of Service

Specific tasks to be performed by the Consultant: Under the supervision of the UNODC Regional Coordinator – Human Trafficking & Migrant Smuggling based in Bangkok and working in close consultation with other UNODC staff, the consultant will:

Map the formal and practical processes, actors and responsibilities involved in the placement of Indonesian migrant workers to Malaysia;
Identify and assess points within the placement process where integrity risks and vulnerabilities to trafficking in persons may arise;
Assess governance, transparency, accountability, oversight and implementation risks, including gaps between formal procedures and their practical application;
Assess the adequacy and effectiveness of existing safeguards, monitoring, complaint, referral and protection mechanisms;
Document the experiences and perspectives of migrant workers, including prospective migrant workers and returnees;
Identify systemic gaps, enabling factors, risks and existing good practices relevant to the prevention of trafficking in persons and protection of migrant workers;
Analyze information gathered through desk research, stakeholder consultations, interviews, focus group discussions and selected case analyses;
Facilitate a stakeholder validation workshop, including preparation of presentation materials, to present key findings and preliminary recommendations and obtain feedback from relevant stakeholders; and
Produce a draft and final technical assessment report presenting evidence-based findings and practical, context-specific recommendations to strengthen the integrity, transparency, accountability and protection of the migrant worker placement system and reduce vulnerabilities to trafficking in persons. Expected tangible and measurable output(s)/deliverable(s): A. Inception Report and Assessment Methodology
Detailed workplan and timeline;
Proposed methodology and assessment framework;
Stakeholder mapping and consultation plan;
Proposed approach to mapping the migrant worker placement process; and
Tools and guiding questions for stakeholder consultations and data collection. B. Desk Review Report and End-to-End Placement Process Map
Review of relevant laws, regulations, policies, standard operating procedures, bilateral arrangements, existing studies and other relevant materials concerning the placement and protection of Indonesian migrant workers to Malaysia, and
An end-to-end process map covering, at minimum: o recruitment and pre-placement; o documentation and administrative procedures; o pre-departure processes; o exit and transit; o arrival and initial employment; o access to information and complaint mechanisms; o monitoring and oversight mechanisms; o identification, referral and protection of potential victims of trafficking; and o relevant monitoring, inspection and enforcement processes, including safeguards during operations such as raids. C. Stakeholder Consultations, Data Collection, and Analysis
Minimum 10 consultations with relevant stakeholders, including government institutions, recruitment agencies and intermediaries, service providers, civil society organizations, and migrant workers, including prospective migrant workers and returnees, as appropriate; and
Analysis of stakeholder perspectives and other information gathered, covering the implementation of formal procedures in practice, recruitment and placement experiences, integrity risks, access to complaints and remedies, monitoring and oversight, identification and referral of trafficking cases, and protection measures available to migrant workers and potential victims. D. Draft Assessment Report and Recommendations The report shall include, at minimum:
Executive summary;
Methodology and limitations;
Overview of the Indonesia–Malaysia migrant worker placement process;
End-to-end process map;
Analysis of integrity risks and vulnerabilities to TIP;
Analysis of protection, complaint, monitoring and referral mechanisms;
Key enabling factors and systemic gaps;
Existing good practices and safeguards; and
Practical and context-specific recommendations for strengthening prevention, transparency, accountability and protection. E. Stakeholder Validation Workshop
Presentation of key findings and preliminary recommendations to relevant stakeholders;
Workshop materials; and
Concise record of stakeholder feedback, including key comments and agreed or proposed revisions to the assessment. F. Final Technical Assessment Report
Final assessment report incorporating validated findings, UNODC inputs and agreed revisions;
Final end-to-end placement process map;
Final integrity risk and TIP vulnerability analysis; and
Final practical, evidence-based and context-specific recommendations.

Work Location

Home-based with travel in Indonesia

Expected duration

16 November 2026 - 5 March 2027

Duties and Responsibilities

Background of the assignment: The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) provides technical assistance related to combating transnational organized crime, including on trafficking in persons and smuggling of migrants, to requesting Member States. This assistance also aims to strengthen criminal justice systems of States and encourages ratification and successful implementation of international conventions and protocol related to transnational organized crime, in compliance with the rule of law and human rights. The Regional Programme for Southeast Asia and the Pacific 2022 – 2026 is designed to address both present and emerging needs within these regions, with the ultimate objective, namely to secure and reinforce the rule of law in Southeast Asia and the Pacific and ensure vulnerable groups and communities in the region are protected from crime. Human trafficking and migrant smuggling are two forms of transnational crime affecting the Southeast Asia and Pacific region. As the guardian of the Protocol against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea, and Air and the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and Children, which supplement the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime, UNODC promotes global adherence to these instruments and assists States in their efforts to effectively implement them and combat the conduct that they criminalize. UNODC focuses, in particular, on assisting states in developing an effective criminal justice response to these crime challenges. As part of the Regional Programme, UNODC ROSEAP is implementing several projects, including four-year EU funded project called “Ensuring Decent Work and Reducing Vulnerabilities for Women and Children in the Context of Labour Migration in Southeast Asia” or the PROTECT project. The Indonesia–Malaysia corridor is one of the region’s significant labour migration routes, involving multiple actors and processes across recruitment, placement, migration and employment. The complexity of these processes, including the involvement of intermediaries and potential gaps between formal procedures and their implementation, may create vulnerabilities to trafficking in persons and exploitation. There is therefore a need to develop a better understanding of the integrity and protection risks associated with the placement of Indonesian migrant workers to Malaysia. This includes examining safeguards and oversight mechanisms across the placement process, access to complaints and protection mechanisms, and institutional responses to reported cases of exploitation. A comprehensive assessment of these processes and the actors involved will help identify potential gaps, vulnerabilities and areas for strengthening existing safeguards. Against this background, UNODC will engage with a national consultant to undertake an assessment of the placement process for Indonesian migrant workers to Malaysia. The assessment will examine the relevant processes, actors, safeguards and oversight mechanisms, with a view to identifying risks and opportunities to strengthen governance, protection and prevention of trafficking in persons and exploitation along the Indonesia–Malaysia migration corridor. Purpose of the assignment: The purpose of the assignment is to carry out technical Assessment of Integrity Risks and Vulnerabilities to TIP in the Placement of Indonesian Migrant Workers under the PROTECT Project. The assessment will examine the end-to-end placement process, including recruitment, documentation and administrative procedures, pre-departure, exit and transit, arrival and initial employment, and access to protection and remedy mechanisms, with a focus on identifying governance and implementation gaps, weaknesses in oversight and safeguards, and risks associated with recruitment and employment practices. It will also assess mechanisms for identifying, reporting and responding to trafficking and exploitation, including complaint and referral mechanisms and measures applied during monitoring, inspection and enforcement operations, with particular attention to safeguards for potential victims of trafficking. The assessment will generate evidence-based findings and practical recommendations to strengthen the integrity of the placement process and reduce vulnerabilities to TIP and exploitation along the Indonesia–Malaysia migration corridor.

Qualifications/special skills

An advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in social science, criminal justice, international relations, political science, migration studies, or other related fields is required. A first level university degree in similar fields in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree. - A minimum of 5 years of relevant working experience required in trafficking in persons, labour migration, migration governance, migrant worker protection, criminal justice, law enforcement, integrity/anti-corruption, or related areas is required. - Experience in conducting research and assessments, including process mapping, risk assessment and qualitative research methods such as key informant interviews and focus group discussions with government institutions, civil society organizations, recruitment agencies, migrant workers and other relevant stakeholders, is required - Experience in analyzing research findings and translating evidence into practical, policy-oriented recommendations is required. Demonstrated knowledge and experience related to trafficking in persons and/or migrant worker protection, including recruitment and placement processes, exploitation risks, complaint and reporting mechanisms, monitoring, referral and protection systems are required - Experience in analyzing governance, integrity, transparency, accountability and institutional risks within migration or labour mobility processes is required. - Experience working with government institutions and/or international organizations, particularly in Indonesia and/or along the Indonesia–Malaysia migration corridor is desirable. - Experience working on projects related to trafficking in persons, forced labour, labour migration or migrant worker protection in Southeast Asia is desirable.

Languages

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. Fluency in Bahasa Indonesia and English, i.e. oral and written proficiency, is required. Knowledge of another United Nations official language is an advantage.

No Fee

THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.

National Consultant – Technical Assessment of Integrity Risks and Vulnerabilities to TIP in the Placement of Indonesian Migrant Workers