Consultancy for the development of alternative reports/submissions on the implementation of the United Nations Human Rights Treaties

Result of ServiceThe consultant will undertake the preparation and submission of alternative report to one of the UN Treaty Bodies in line with the reporting guidelines and country review calendar of the respective UN Treaty Body. Work LocationHome-based (Baku, Azerbaijan) Expected duration22.04.24 to 15.06.24 Duties and ResponsibilitiesOHCHR is seeking the services of 12 national consultant/s to undertake the preparation and submission of alternative report/s to one of the UN Treaty Bodies in line with the reporting guidelines and country review calendar of the respective UN Treaty Body. Consultant/s will be selected among civil society actors, including members of national civil society organizations (CSOs), human rights defenders (HRDs) and lawyers’ community members, who have a catalytic role in enhancing the implementation of the UN human rights treaties at the domestic level. UN Treaty Bodies consider it necessary that the dialogue with State parties is based on information not only from State parties, United Nations entities and national human rights institutions, but also from civil society, to ensure a well-informed and constructive dialogue. For this purpose, UN Treaty Bodies encourage civil society actors to engage in the UN Treaty Bodies’ reporting process by participating in the national reporting preparations and providing their inputs into the State party reports in the form of alternative reports, sharing their views and assessment of the State party’s implementation of a particular UN human rights treaty and of relevant human rights recommendations. The alternative report as a minimum should contain information related to the various substantive rights guaranteed under a specific UN human rights treaty, including the status of access, exercise, and enjoyment of the rights enshrined in the treaty, as well as recommendations for steps to address/improve enjoyment of these rights. The alternative report should be as specific, reliable and objective as possible. Development of an alternative report will need to follow the UN Treaty Bodies’ country review and reporting calendar to ensure timely preparation and submission of alternative reports. For this purpose, candidates are required to select, for the preparation of an alternative report, a UN Treaty Body that is expected to review Azerbaijan’s human rights record under a respective human rights treaty in the near future. According to the calendar of country reviews of UN Treaty Bodies, the closest country reviews of Azerbaijan would include reviews by the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (the fifth periodic review of Azerbaijan), the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (the seventh periodic review of Azerbaijan) and the UN Committee on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families (the fourth periodic review of Azerbaijan). Therefore, candidates are advised to consider selecting these Treaty Bodies for the preparation of an alternative report. This consultancy is a part of a project “Protecting human rights of vulnerable groups in Azerbaijan”, implemented by OHCHR and funded by the European Union. One of the project objectives is to support the engagement of civil society actors, including members of national CSOs, HRDs and lawyers, in promoting and safeguarding human rights through the utilization of UN human rights mechanisms. The scope of the work shall include: - Carrying out an assessment of the implementation of a specific UN human rights treaty. - Writing alternative reports reflecting the implementation progress of the Concluding observations and recommendations on Azerbaijan issued by the selected UN Treaty Body. - Performing necessary activities for developing alternative reports, including data collection, legislative analysis, identification of major issues, development of relevant recommendations, conducting surveys and other necessary activities. - Submission of an alternative report, once finalised, to the respective UN Treaty Body in line with UN human rights treaty bodies’ review and reporting calendar. - Preparing narrative report on completion of assignment upon the submission of the alternative report or once the alternative report is ready for submission depending on the UN human rights treaty bodies reporting calendar date. Qualifications/special skills- Recognized 1st level degree in Law, Political Science, International Relations, Social Sciences or other related disciplines. - Two years of experience in human rights and rule of law (Engagement in civil society initiatives aimed at promoting and increasing the use of national human rights protection system and mainstreaming international human rights principles into the national human rights agenda) is required. - Knowledge of civil and political, or economic, social and cultural rights, as well as the UN human rights mechanisms is desired. - Experience in research, monitoring and reporting is required. LanguagesProficiency in written and spoken Azerbaijani is required. Additional InformationNot available. No FeeTHE 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.