Country: Pakistan
Closing date: 22 Aug 2019
Form of Employment: Short-term Consultant (National Position)
Starting date: 01 September 2019
Duration: up to 36 working days
Location: Desk work with travel to Islamabad, Lahore and Peshawar.
Background
Democracy Reporting International (DRI) is a non-partisan, independent, not-for-profit organisation registered in Berlin. DRI promotes the political participation of citizens, accountability of state bodies and the development of democratic institutions world-wide. In an upcoming project, DRI Pakistan is planning to engage with national parliamentarians and media to discuss the role of NGOs and how they can effectively assist the socio-economic development of Pakistan in our unique national context. The overall objective of the project is to engage and organise a number of multi-stakeholder consultations to understand the role of civil society in our context and how an appropriate policy framework can make them even more effective in having a meaningful impact and state oversight.
Context
Providing a forum where citizens can actively work to meet their own needs, whether in terms of freedom of expression or provision of services, civil society is an integral part of any democracy and essential for socio-economic development.
In Pakistan, civil society has evolved over the years with periods when the government’s policy has been broadly supportive to periods where the work of CSOs was limited to some extent. Globally, we are seeing a trend in the space for civil society being curbed and the same has been observed in Pakistan in the last few years. Internationally, a debate has been initiated on how to address the issue and efforts are being made worldwide to support the civil society in regaining its position. There is also a need to orient Pakistani politicians and media to understand the positive role of civil society sector and how a better regulation can make them even more effective in contributing to improving the conditions for the population as a whole.
Keeping this notion in consideration, DRI intends to initiate a debate by engaging with parliamentarians, politicians, government bodies, media and the general public with the aim of primarily increasing their awareness of the issue.
DRI is seeking a national expert to engage with and provide technical support to the Parliamentarians at the National and Provincial levels, the country’s political leadership and the relevant Government bodies to highlight the issue of shrinking space for civil society and how this may impact the overall socio-economic development of the country. The engagement with these stakeholders will be through briefings, consultations and one-one meetings.
Your duties and responsibilities:
In order to deliver the component focusing on building the awareness levels of parliamentarians and government bodies on the issue of shrinking civil society space DRI requires the services of an experienced professional to deliver the following:
Identification of key parliamentarians, members of relevant parliamentary committees and government officials who have an interest in and will have an influence on addressing the issue of shrinking civil society space in Pakistan.
Design and deliver consultations and briefings for various stakeholders including parliamentarians and politicians in the Federal as well as Provincial Capitals to increase their awareness of the issue.
Hold one-on-one meetings and briefings and provide technical advice to the Government as well as Parliamentary bodies for sustained efforts to move the issue forward.
Show progressive development towards issue identification and then graduating the debate leading to public action (statement, resolution, public resolution or a successful meeting etc.) through individual and public engagement making sure the whole campaign and engagements are well knit, coherent and goal oriented.
Required qualifications:
- University degree in Development Studies/Human Rights /Law/ Political Science or equivalent.
- Demonstrated experience in engaging/working with public institutions and senior politicians ideally in a campaign setting. Should bring to the table a vast contact based and engagement history with key stakeholders.
- Demonstrated understanding of how laws and policy works and what can be the role of various institutions, procedures, mechanisms to advance a policy agenda.
- Excellent understanding of the issues being faced by the Civil Society in the country and the domestic legal framework applicable to registration and regulation of civil society organisations.
- Excellent communication skills
Interested candidates are expected to ensure their availability for assigned tasks for a period of 3 months starting from September 2019.
DRI values diversity and is an equal opportunity employer. Women and people from diverse backgrounds are highly encouraged to apply!
How to apply:
If you are interested in this position, please send your application (cover letter and CV along with two references) to asia@democracy-reporting.org. Please include “**Pakistan:** Parliamentary Engagement Expert” in the subject line and refer to the source you have found this opportunity. Applying for this position by post mail is possible, please find our address details below.
Closing date for applications**: 22 August 2019**. The position may be filled before the end of the deadline so early applications are encouraged.
Organisation responsible for this vacancy:
Democracy Reporting International gGmbH
Prinzessinnenstraße 30
10969 Berlin, Germany
Tel +49 30 27877300 – Fax +49 30 27877300-10