Duration:  30 days’ input commencing in July 2020 until November 2020

Location: Lahore (with travel to Islamabad)

1.     Programme Background

The Justice System Support Programme (JSSP) aims to support the Government of Pakistan’s leadership of rule of law reforms and improved criminal justice system performance. The programme is being implemented by Adam Smith International and as part of the cross-UK Government Pakistan Rule of Law (RoL) Programme 2016-20. JSSP is designed to complement UK Government support to justice sector accountability and empowerment of citizens to access justice in KP and Punjab.

2.     Context

The JSSP team is supporting a number of interventions to improve service delivery in the RoL sector. Our work is on the supply side i.e. we are working with government departments to support their delivery of better results. The project is based in two provinces – Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) – with the central leadership being based in Islamabad. Each province has a team delivering work under the guidance of a Provincial Team Leader, the Deputy Provincial Team Leader (DPTL) and Project Manager. Primary engagement in government is with criminal justice agencies such as Home Department, Police, Prosecution, Judiciary, and the Prisons Department.

JSSP has been supporting the Home Department, Prisons and the Directorate of Reclamation and Probation (R&P) on their reform work in Punjab over the last 3 years, which includes;

(1) an institutional assessment of the R&P Directorate with recommendations for up-gradation and risk assessment approved by the Chief Minister Punjab

(2) the review and amendment of the Probation of Offenders Ordinance 1960 and Rules 1961 as well as the Good Conduct Prisoners Probational Release Act 1926 and Rules 1927,

(3) the development and approval of a Probation and Parole Service Act, and (4) revisions to select chapters of the Punjab Prisons Rules.

A substantial amount of this work has now been fast-tracked by the department, particularly in the form of a Prisons Review Committee that includes members from the Prisons Department, the Justice Project Pakistan, and JSSP for finalisation of revised Prison Rules. In relation to this, JSSP also reviewed The Prisons Act, 1894 and the Prisoners Act, 1900, neither of which have been amended in nearly 30 years and has developed new draft legislation for the Department.

The Senior Prisons, Probation and Parole Adviser is expected to work across this area of expertise, chiefly in supporting the institutionalisation of previous work, strengthening the probation and parole service through improved risk assessment and training of officers, and supporting the Prisons department in the release of inappropriately held detainees, promotion of non-custodial measures through further review of laws, their implementation and building greater institutional capacity as well as judicial inspections of prisons.

3.     Line Management

The Advisor reports to and works under the supervision of the Provincial Team Leader and Deputy Provincial Team Leader, and in close coordination with JSSP programme leadership, senior technical advisors and the Project Manager.

4.     Key Responsibilities

The Adviser will be expected to:

·       Support JSSP in providing technical assistance to the Punjab Prisons/R&P Department and Home Department to strengthen their existing systems and processes.

·       Support JSSP in collecting relevant data from the Punjab Prisons/R&P Department to track performance and measure impact of interventions.

·       Conduct technical research, analysis, extensive consultation with mid-ranking and senior staff, observing operations and developing recommendations for the Prisons/R&P Department.

·       Assist the Prisons/R&P Department in developing standards and monitoring mechanisms to ensure compliance.

·       Ensure JSSP has a precise and up to date understanding of the plans and priorities of Government institutions relating to prisons, probation and parole.

·       Develop tools and formats to improve the risk assessment of offenders on probation and parole.

·       Develop guidelines for release of eligible prisoners under existing legal provisions

·       Undertake and lead on trainings for staff in prisons, probation and parole as and when needed.

·       Report to the DPTL and PTL on engagement with counterparts, progress in implementing plans, results achieved, challenges faced, and decisions that have to be made.

·       Contribute to the development of clear and achievable KPIs and MOVs for relevant programme outputs

·       Note any emerging programmatic and human rights risks, ensuring these are reported to the DPTL and Project Manager and subsequently included in the relevant risk registers.

·       Document all meetings with counterparts in the standardised JSSP format as evidence for completion of KPIs and MOVs

Over the course of this assignment these terms of reference may change which could require the Adviser to adapt the scope of work and be flexible in the delivery of said work.

5.     Anticipated Inputs, Outputs and Means of Verification

Inputs

It is anticipated that the adviser will input 30 days between July 2020 and November 2020 to undertake the aforementioned tasks.

Any expected changes to the above number of days will have to be discussed and approved by the Project Management team

Outputs

Using the days above, the Senior Adviser is expected to support the JSSP Programme Team in delivering MoVs against relevant activities to the highest standard of quality and in the timeframe outlined in the JSSP work plan.

Payments to the adviser can be withheld by Adam Smith International if the delivery of outputs are delayed, lack a complete body of evidence (e.g. minutes of consultations with counterparts and references of research), do not match the expectations outlined in milestones and associated MoV in the workplan or are not of satisfactory quality. 

6.     Skills and Qualifications Required

·       Tertiary qualifications in a relevant field and significant experience (7+ years) in international development.

·       Over 5 years of experience in the criminal justice sector of Pakistan, particularly in prisons, probation and parole reforms

·       Substantial knowledge, skills and experience in the rule of law sector (particularly Punjab) and an understanding of its importance in effecting sustainable organisational change.

·       Deep, accurate and up to date knowledge of on-going criminal justice sector reform interventions of the Government of Punjab.

·       Demonstrated ability to develop constructive working relationships with a range of government, private sector and community stakeholders.

Pre-existing relationships with officials in the judiciary, Prisons Department and other criminal justice sector institutions including the Home Department, Prosecutions and the Police is preferred.

·       Strong ability to conduct legal analysis of proposed changes in procedures in the supervision and management of offenders.

·       Strong ability to draft high quality technical outputs such as advice to clients, drafting policy or procedures, standards, designing institutional reforms, or delivering trainingStrong interpersonal skills

·       Demonstrated understanding of the range of capacity building approaches and their applicability to different contexts and needs, and commitment to principles of gender equality and gender mainstreaming.

·       An ability to deliver results in a challenging environment (ideally in a conflict-affected state) – including a proven ability to work under pressure, manage conflicting priorities and produce outputs that are accurate, timely and of high quality.

Female applicants are encouraged to apply.

7.     Values and Obligations

All members of the JSSP team are expected to adhere to the following values and obligations:

·       At all times working collaboratively and openly with other members of the Aitemaad team, proactively providing guidance, advice and sharing experiences in order to solve problems, overcome challenges and manage risks together.

·       Free and open sharing of information gained from government counterparts, DFID/FCO or other international projects with other members of the team.

·       Respect for the confidentiality of the Aitemaad team’s discussions, assessments, decisions and plans or agreements with DFID; sharing information with external parties only when authorised to do so by the Team Leader or Deputy Team Leader.

·       Adhering to decisions taken by the programme’s leadership, and taking collective responsibility for implementing those decisions and communicating them to counterparts or other external parties.

·       Ensuring they have an accurate understanding of policies and decisions made by DFID and the British High Commission that relate to the Aitemaad, and respecting and adhering to those policies.

·       Complying with the channels set out by ASI for all communications with DFID or the British High Commission through the Aitemaad’s leadership structure.

·       Careful coordination with other team members of communications and meetings with government counterparts to ensure coherence of technical advice and as efficient use of counterparts’ time as possible.

·       Constant monitoring of risks to the delivery of Aitemaad’s activities and achievement of objectives, as well as the reputation of the Aitemaad and British Government, and swift referral of those risks to the Team Leader and Deputy Team Leader.

·       Professional coordination with other internationally funded programmes supporting Rule of Law in Pakistan, including briefing those programmes when requested by the Team Leader or Deputy Team Leader.

·       Contribute constructively to team meetings, development of workplans, risk assessment, progress reviews and report writing, as well as external evaluations by DFID or its independent evaluation advisers.

·       Complying with the Aitemaad’s media policy of referring all inquiries from the media to the Team Leader and Deputy Leader before responding in any way to those inquiries.

·       All meetings with officials from the British High Commission should be minuted and those minutes shared with the Team Leader, Deputy Team Leader and Senior Programme Manager at the earliest opportunity.

·       Maximising the impact of the programme’s limited resources by ensuring expenditure on travel, accommodation or other costs is as efficient as possible.

·       Complying with financial procedures designed to protect the financial integrity of the programme and notifying the Senior Programme Manager of any incidents that threaten that integrity.

·       Complying with ASI’s Duty of Care and security procedures designed to ensure safety of personnel and notifying the Senior Programme Manager of any incidence that threaten the security of personnel or assets of the programme.

·       Complying with ASI’s operational and logistical procedures designed to ensure efficient use of resources across multiple projects in Pakistan.