Result of Service

A. Inception and Work Planning: Inception Report and Workplan successfully developed, reviewed and approved by the PM and RR. B. Desk Review and Situational Analysis: Comprehensive desk review and situational analysis completed, including a stakeholder mapping matrix, with outputs reviewed and approved by the PM and RR. C. Regional SOP Framework: First Draft Regional SOP Framework developed and approved by the PM and RR. D. Review and Validation: Regional SOP Framework reviewed and validated through three (3) national workshops and one (1) final half-day regional online workshop. Workshop outcomes were documented, and the SOPs revised accordingly, with reports approved by the PM, RR and participating Member States. E. Final Regional SOP Package: Final Regional SOP package successfully developed, incorporating stakeholder feedback and validation outcomes, and approved by the PM and RR.

Work Location

Home Based

Expected duration

5 Nov 26 – 31 Mar 27

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the supervision of the Project Manager (PM) on GBV and the Regional Representative, and in close coordination and collaboration with the Project Managers in ROSAF and UNODC Headquarters in Vienna, Austria, the consultant will undertake the following substantive duties and responsibilities: A. Inception Report The consultant shall

Prepare an inception report and workplan
Prepare an annotated outline of the proposed Regional SOP Framework
Develop consultation strategy and propose stakeholders for engagement;
Conduct stakeholder mapping to identify key technical actors. B. Desk Review, Situational Analysis and Stakeholder Consultations The consultant shall:
Conduct a desk review of relevant international, regional and national frameworks, criminal justice guidance documents;
Undertake a situational analysis identifying key challenges affecting case progression, evidence management from the inception of a case to conviction;
Stakeholder consultations
Data Collection and analysis C. 1st Draft SOPs with tools Development of a comprehensive and operational 1st draft SOP document that standardises procedures for building prosecutable GBV cases, including:
Step-by-step procedures across all criminal justice actors
Standardised documentation templates and reporting formats
Evidence handling and chain of custody protocols
Case-building that includes gender responsive, trauma-informed, disability inclusive approaches
Expert Reports and Expert Witness procedures
Develop practical implementation tools including templates, checklists and standard reporting formats.
Submit the draft SOPs to UNODC for technical review D. Review Workshops, and Revision of SOP Framework
Provide validation methodology, technical inputs and preparation with experts in the field of GBV
Validation will ensure applicability across legal traditions, alignment with institutional roles
Strengthened coordination for case-building and prosecution
Facilitate structured discussions using guiding questions at workshops Support UNODC in facilitating and conducting stakeholder review and validation processes for the draft Regional SOP Framework.
Consolidate comments received during review workshops on the draft SOP Framework;
Maintain a comprehensive comment matrix demonstrating how comments have been addressed
Refine SOPs based on UNODC, stakeholder feedback E. Final SOPs, Assessment and Recommendations
Comprehensive Regional SOPs, validated and submitted to UNODC for final approval
Implementation Roadmap focused on improving case progression, across the justice chain
Supporting Implementation tools that includes templates, checklists
Monitoring and Evaluation framework embedded within the SOPs to measure criminal justice outcomes beyond compliance, including case quality indicators, coordination, conviction trends N.B. The consultant will deliver a complete, fully operational regional SOP document that provides detailed, step-by-step procedures across the criminal justice chain. The SOPs will be designed as a practical tool that can be directly used by practitioners and institutions, while remaining adaptable for formal adoption within national legal and institutional frameworks. For the purpose of this assignment, SOPs are defined as:
Detailed, step-by-step operational procedures;
Clearly assigned roles and responsibilities across institutions, for case strengthening;
Standardised processes for evidence collection, documentation, transfer, and use in court;
Practical tools, templates, and checklists to support implementation. These SOPs are not legal instruments, but operational guidance aligned with international standards and designed for application across diverse legal systems in the Southern African region. Importantly, the SOPs will NOT duplicate existing multisectoral GBV protocols. Instead, they will complement existing frameworks by focusing specifically on the criminal justice, evidentiary, and prosecutorial dimensions, providing operational clarity on how services translate into evidence, for successful convictions. The SOPs will provide a harmonised operational framework while remaining adaptable to national legal systems and institutional mandates. This gap on the evidentiary guidance required to progress a GBV case, has been identified through regional discussions with UN entities, national criminal justice actors around. Furthermore, the consultant will review all mechanisms to ensure that there are no duplicative structures. The consultant will draw on targeted consultations, regional expertise, existing evidence, good practice to develop a practical and operational regional framework. The consultancy focuses on the development, review, validation and finalisation of a Regional SOP Framework. Subsequent implementation, operationalisation or national contextualisation activities that may be undertaken by participating in Member States fall outside the scope of this consultancy.

Qualifications/special skills

An advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in criminal justice, criminology, law, political science, management, social sciences or other related fields is required. A first-level university degree in the aforementioned fields in combination with two (2) additional years of qualifying work experience, may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree. Formal qualifications or certifications from a recognized national or international customs authority, police academy, or military-training institution, supplemented by specialization in criminal justice, crime prevention, or law enforcement, in combination with four (4) additional years of qualifying work experience, may be accepted in lieu of the first level university degree.

A minimum of 7 (seven)years professional technical experience in international/regional GBV Programming, and multisectoral and criminal justice systems is required;
Experience in presenting and communicating multisectoral information in GBV is required
Professional technical experience in the field of GBV, and criminal justice, including a track record of conducting various types of drafting at the international level, preferably with experience in conducting evaluations for the United Nations is desirable;
Experience in working in a team is desirable;
Demonstrated experience in developing Standard Operating Procedures, prosecutorial guidelines, or criminal justice operational manuals is desirable;
Knowledge and experience of the UN System and in particular of UNODC is desirable;
Knowledge of gender-based violence in the Southern African region desirable;
Experience in criminal justice drafting is desirable;

Languages

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. Fluency in English, i.e. oral and written proficiency, is required for the assignment. 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.

International Consultant to Develop Comprehensive Regional Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for GBVAWG Criminal Justice Responses