ENG ToR SWEDD LEGAL plateform
Updated on the 12th December 2022
Terms of Reference
1. BACKGROUND AND RATIONALE
The Sahel has the world's most alarming rates of early marriage, maternal mortality and women's literacy. The prevalence of early marriage in Niger is highest in the Sahel (75%), followed by Chad which ranks third (68%) and Mali fifth (55%). The corollary of early marriage is early sexual activity, high fertility and low contraceptive use.
The Sahel Women's Empowerment and Demographic Dividend Project (SWEDD) aims to accelerate the demographic transition and position the region to capture a demographic dividend. Investing in the social and economic empowerment of adolescent girls is key to achieving these goals. Avoiding or delaying early marriage and pregnancy will help reduce dependency rates, increase the participation and productivity of young women in the labour market and will help the region capture an economic dividend.
In this context, a first regional meeting on legal frameworks related to the empowerment of women and girls among SWEDD countries was organized in February 2019, with the aim of sharing good practices, identifying laws harmful to the advancement of women and discussing how to promote the implementation of existing and women-friendly laws in vulnerable areas of the project. This initiative laid the foundation for a collaborative framework between lawyers involved in strengthening the enforcement of existing laws and legal reforms in their countries.
The formal establishment of an exchange group between SWEDD lawyers and pan-African partner institutions is all the more relevant as the second phase of the SWEDD project places prominently, in component 3, the strengthening by participating countries and pan-African institutions of legal frameworks that promote women's rights to health and education, with the implementation of action plans to strengthen legislation, strengthen judicial capacity and promote knowledge and implementation of existing legislation.
With the integration of the African Union as a new strategic partner in SWEDD 2, the establishment of a collaborative platform for exchanges between SWEDD lawyers and pan-African partner institutions will prove useful in terms of supporting this body responsible for codifying policy and legal reforms and facilitating peer-to-peer exchange and policy action in areas related to the promotion of women's empowerment.
2. OBJECTIVES
II.1 General objective
Strengthen the legal component of the SWEDD Project in promoting women's rights to health, education and economic activity or employment and facilitate the implementation of national action plans.
II.2. Specific objectives
* Establish a collaborative platform for exchanges between participating countries and pan-African partner institutions aimed at strengthening legislation, strengthening judicial capacity and promoting knowledge and enforcement of existing legislation and sharing good practices;
* Facilitate the implementation of country action plans taking into account the transversality of the legal approach and ensure the coherence of actions;
* Facilitate coordination of legal activities with pan-African partner institutions;
* Enable the establishment of a comprehensive integrated framework for monitoring and evaluating legal progress to help identify common indicators, address challenges and accelerate the reform process.
3. METHODOLOGY
III.1 Establishment of Country Legal Teams and Pan-African Partner Institutions
Each country participating in the SWEDD Project and Pan-African Partner Institutions will be responsible for setting up a Legal Team in the form of a panel of lawyers.
1. Composition and method of designation:
* Country legal team (present at all monthly meetings, and responsible for writing the terms of reference)
* a focal point lawyer;
* a lawyer representing the Ministry of Health;
* a lawyer representing the Ministry of National Education;
* a lawyer representing the Ministry of Women;
* a lawyer representing the Ministry of Youth
* a lawyer form Ministry of Justice
* Contacts
Main list (advisory group that will attend the annual meeting and will be consulted to advise on strategic directions and to draft terms of reference on specific issues).
* a member of the Committee on General and Institutional Affairs;
* a judge serving in the Public Prosecutor's Office of a national court;
* a lawyer specialized in human rights and in charge of representing victims of GBV and harmful practices;
* a lawyer from a civil society human rights organization;
* a GBV focal point of the General Directorate of the National Police;
* a GBV focal point of the Higher Command of the National Gendarmerie;
Secondary list (advisory group that will attend the annual meeting and will be consulted to provide advice on strategic directions on specific issues)
* a teacher-researcher working in a Faculty of Law;
* a representative of the National Human Rights Commission;
* a magistrate representing the Chancellery of the Ministry of Justice;
The appointment of the members of the EJP must be formalized by sending an official letter by the UCP SWEDD to the Technical Ministries and the services concerned.
* The Legal Team of the Pan-African Partner Institutions (EJIPP) is composed of:
– a Focal Point;
– a lawyer representing ECOWAS;
– a lawyer representing the African Union;
* a lawyer representing ECCAS
The appointment of the members of the EJIPP will have to be formalized at the initiative of the Pan-African Partner Institutions.
2. PROFILE
The members of the Country Legal Teams and pan-African partner institutions should be chosen according to the following profile:
1. Focal Point, parliamentarians, representatives of ministries and structures of the State and pan-African partner institutions.
* be employed in a public administration or a State institution or a Pan-African Institution (except lawyers, teacher-researcher and CSO representatives);
* have a good knowledge of the SWEDD Project, Phase II and its sub-components;
* Experience in developing and disseminating legislation on sexual and reproductive health, education and GBV;
* participate in national, regional or international projects addressing legal issues related to the empowerment of women and girls;
* have led or be able to carry out animation and community mobilization activities on legal texts;
* Lead or be able to conduct advocacy or policy dialogue for the strengthening of the national legal framework on the empowerment of women and girls.
2. Magistrates and lawyers and CSO representatives
* be a specialist in human rights issues in particular in the field of the empowerment of women and girls;
* be an active and committed actor in the defense of human rights, particularly in the field of the empowerment of women and girls;
* have a good knowledge of the SWEDD Project, Phase II and its sub-components;
* Excellent knowledge of national legislation and regional and international texts on sexual and reproductive health, education and GBV;
* participate in national, regional or international projects addressing legal issues related to the empowerment of women and girls;
* have led or be able to carry out animation and community mobilization activities on legal texts;
* Lead or be able to conduct advocacy or policy dialogue for the strengthening of the national legal framework on the empowerment of women and girls.
2. Mandate and responsibilities of Country Legal Teams and Pan-African Partner Institutions
Under the Coordination and supervision of the Legal Focal Points, in liaison with the PCUs and the Pan-African Partner Institutions, the Country Legal Teams and the Legal Teams of the Pan-African Partner Institutions will ensure the implementation of the Country Action Plans of the Legal Component of the SWEDD Project to support all stakeholders in achieving the objectives of the Project. As such, the EJP and EJIPP will have the following missions:
* to take stock of national legislation in the areas of intervention of the Project and to propose appropriate reforms for the establishment of legislation conducive to the promotion and protection of women's rights to health and education;
* develop national action plans to strengthen referrals for survivors of gender-based violence to access legal support;
* to elaborate, in relation with the UCP, the planning of activities, their consolidation and submit them for adoption to the UCP;
* to advocate at all levels for the adoption and/or enforcement of laws and regulations on female genital mutilation, early marriage, continuous schooling of girls and gender-based violence;
* to ensure documentary production in legal matters;
* strengthen the capacities of institutional and community actors in the prevention and management of GBV;
* support the communication strategy for social and behavioural change;
* collaborate with all EJPs from SWEDD participating countries;
* support ECOWAS actions in the development of the regional guide on sexual and reproductive health and rights;
* support the actions of the African Union in its mission to codify policy and legal reforms in areas related to the promotion of women's empowerment.
III.2 Establishment of the Jurist Exchange Group Countries and Pan-African Institutions Project partners
The exchange group of Country Lawyers and Pan-African Institutions Partners of the project is made up of all Legal Focal Points.
It is coordinated in turn by one of the Legal Focal Points (on a voluntary basis) with the support of the PCUs and Pan-African Partner Institutions and will allow the establishment of a framework for monitoring and evaluating the progress and reforms of the legislation of the countries participating in the Project.
III.3 Mandate and responsibilities of the Jurist Exchange Group Countries and Pan-African Institutions Project partners
The missions of the Exchange Group between Country Lawyers and Pan-African Institutions Partners of the project are:
* to allow the sharing of experience between participating countries and pan-African partner institutions on progress in legal reforms in the areas of intervention of the Project in order to generate advocacy and stimulate internal dynamics aimed at improving national legal frameworks;
* enable the development of regional action plans to strengthen referrals for victims of abuse to access legal support;
* to support the actions of the African Union in its mission of codifying political and legal reforms in areas related to the promotion of women's empowerment;
* support ECOWAS actions in the development of the regional guide on sexual and reproductive health and rights;
* support the actions of the African Union in charge of codifying political and legal reforms in areas related to the promotion of women's empowerment.
4. FUNCTIONING OF THE EXCHANGE GROUP BETWEEN COUNTRY LAWYERS AND PAN-AFRICAN INSTITUTIONS PARTNERS OF THE PROJECT
* Establishment of an interactive exchange platform;
* Monthly meeting
