Host Institution

Ministry of Parliamentary Relations & Constitutional Affairs, the Republic of Somaliland, Hargeisa, Republic of Somaliland, 26th June District, behind House of Parliament

Focal Point in Host Institution

Mr Jamal Abdi Muse; the Director-General of the Ministry, Mobile: +252 63 44 43 170 /424 67 66, Email: dankaabenimo@gmail.com

Background Information about Host Institution

The Ministry of Parliamentary Relations & Constitutional Affairs (MoPCA) was established in 1995, by Presidential decree No.59/95, Ref: JSL/M/XERM/249/59/1995, dated the 8th November 1995. Throughout this period, there were ten Ministers appointed to lead the Ministry. During this historical period of different presidencies, the MoPCA name changed numerous times. The original name given to the MoPCA in 1995 was “The Relations of the Executive Branch and the Parliament of Somaliland” with the Presidential Decree No.59/95. In 2010, during the time of the 4th President of Somaliland, the Ministry lost its autonomous status, and it was placed under the Ministry of Presidency. Then the role of the Ministry changed again, and it was named, “The Ministry of Parliamentary Relations, Research and Technology” regaining its ministerial status. The 5th President of Somaliland, H.E. Muse Bihi Abdi rearranged the role of the Ministry on 14th December 2017. Following Article 26 of presidential act No.012018-1, the new title of the Ministry became “The Ministry of Parliamentary Relations & Constitutional Affairs”. The President of the Republic of Somaliland, fulfilling his political commitment to the reform on the rule of law has mandated the role of the constitutional affairs for the first time, with which the constitution is the basis for national legislation. The power of the Ministry includes but not limited to reform the Somaliland Constitution, by preparing a national plan to review and amend the constitution where necessary. The Ministry of Parliamentary Relations & Constitutional Affairs envisions a law-oriented society in which both citizens and state institutions abide by the Constitution and whereby the working relationship among the Executive, Houses of Parliament and Judiciary is co-ordinated systematically and effectively to ensure that the interest of the nation is protected and well-served. The mission of the Ministry of Parliamentary Relations & Constitutional Affairs is to create a society where all Somaliland citizens enjoy their constitutional privileges, through strengthening the competence of the Ministry, to promote civic education of the Constitution, and to develop a strong working relationship between government institutions, Houses of Parliament and non-state actors.

POSITION INFORMATION

Organizational unit/ Department:  Law & Constitution Reform Department Duration of assignment: from 1st April till 30th June 2020

Objectives of Assignment

• Provide institutional capacity building program, knowledge transfer and expertise development for the Ministry’s activities in relation with National Plan for Constitutional Reform & Law Review Program & Activities.
• Develop context-specific training schemes and technical skills program for the Ministry’s Law Reform staff /officers, enabling the Ministry to carry out properly law review and constitutional reform plan;
• Develop a 5 Years Strategic Development Plan for the Ministry, including a detailed action plan, implementation plan, activities plan, procurement plan as well as clear recommendations that specifically focusing on Ministry’s statutory mandates; and Conduct a baseline survey and establish baseline data on the status of citizen’s knowledge on the Constitution, improve Civic Education on the rights of citizens enshrined in the Constitution.
• Develop an effective public awareness building strategy that promotes citizen’s knowledge regarding national constitution, laws and legislations, legal and civil rights and fundamental human rights issues.
• Contribute to a policy framework that strengthens the governance and Rule of Law as well as improving the rights of citizens, human rights issues and the civic participation on democratic electoral process; and provide policy and expertise advice to the senior management of the Ministry; the Minister, the DG as well as Directors of departments and their staffs on institutional capacity developments and trends.

Output / deliverables

The Ministry is fully convinced that the engagement of the CD4D2 participant will effectively impact on the efficiency, technical ability and institutional performance capacity of the Ministry of Parliamentary Relations & Constitutional Affairs in carrying out its mandate and tasks effectively. In particular, the Ministry expects that the CD4D2 participant (Institutional Development Advisor) delivers the following results:

• Compile, present and disseminate a comprehensive and detailed 5 Years Strategic Development Plan for the Ministry, including an action plan, implementation plan, activities plan & procurement plan
• Develop a national road-map strategy that ensures that constitutional and law review /reforms plan will take place and being implemented and establish baseline data on the status of citizen’s knowledge on the Constitution, improve civic education on the rights of citizens in the Constitution.
• Set up policies and procedures that the Executive Branch follows when intending to review or introduce new laws and policies and contribute to the improvement and harmonizing of the outdated laws, regulations, acts and any other related laws, in line with the Law Reform Commission mandate;
• Ensure effective engagement, cooperation, partnerships and communications of the Ministry with the UN agencies & partners, Donor Group countries and International NGO's currently working in the Republic of Somaliland;
• Strengthen Ministry’s technical ability & institutional capacity to effectively develop and prepare monitoring and evaluation process, reports as well as training relevant staff of the Ministry and prepare consolidated M & E periodical reports

Responsibilities and accountabilities

• Draft, develop, deliver and present a multi-annual (five years) Institutional Capacity Development Strategic Plan; including a clearly articulated activity plan, implementation plan as well as procurement plan. Also, organize and participate consultation and validation meetings of the Ministry’s Strategic Plan with national & international key stakeholders;
• Develop training schemes, technical development skills and knowledge transfer program for the Ministry’s Law Reform section staff /officers and train on them, enabling to carry out properly the revision and reform strategy envisaged by the Ministry;
• Prepare guidelines to conduct inclusive and participatory nationwide consultations on the constitutional reform approach and prepare a roadmap for national reform plan;
• Engage and coordinate (in consultation with the Minister & the DG) close partnerships and communications with the UN agencies & partners, Donor Group countries and International NGO's currently working in the Republic of Somaliland;
• Organize, prioritize and supervise projects and program work activities, train, mentor and coach staff and team members, and establish sound projects and program strategic planning and performance criteria;

Competencies

Behavioural

• Demonstrates integrity by modelling the Ministry’s values and ethical standards;
• A responsible, honest and reliable person who gets on well with people at all ages, levels and from different social background,
• Has the ability to work accurately and pay attention to the details of each and every job or responsibility that is entrusted to him /her,
• A tolerant, helpful and polite person whilst he/she is working under time pressure,
• Has very strong communication skills, good expertise in team working & team-building with effective reliability and time management,
• Promotes the vision, mission, and strategic goals of the Ministry of Parliamentary Relations & Constitutional Affairs;
• Displays cultural sensitive, gender, religion, race, nationality and age attitude and social adaptability;
• Treats all people in a fair, decent and dignified manner without prejudice or favouritism

Technical

• A good comprehension of working with the Somaliland Government,
• Excellent knowledge and experience on how Somaliland government institutions work,
• Has a clear understanding of the context of Somaliland National Development Plan II (NDP II), SDG target priorities and Somaliland Vision 2030,
• Has the ability to strategically direct activities to ensure alignment with overall objectives and specific goals of the Host Institution (MoPCA),
• Greater writing skills, adherence to very high standards for presentation of proposal /report materials; consistent attention to detail; excellent organizational skills; and ability to prioritize, multitask, and meet deadlines,
• Has the ability to work collaboratively and form solid relationships with the Ministry’s internal and external contacts.
• Skilful with the most common computer programs, such as Microsoft word processing, PowerPoint, Excel and other presentation software applications.

Education and Experience

• University degree (BSc or MSc) in Public Policy and Development Management,
• Proven track record in this field, experience in working with Government Institutions has a strong preference.

Language requirements

• English: Fluent (speaking & writing),
• Somali: Native (speaking & writing)