Consultant (Prison and Penal Reform)

• Timely submission of all deliverables, including the extent to which these are well-researched, practice-oriented and tailored to the global and national contexts. • Transparency and inclusiveness of the consultation process with CPCJS, CEB, UNODC’s Field Office network, national counterparts and other relevant stakeholders, as applicable, including the maintenance of regular communication and the incorporation of respective inputs. • Quality and relevance of strategic advice and substantive input towards suitable mechanisms and concrete interventions related to promoting international standards on the treatment of prisoners in the different areas that form part of the assignment. • Clear, well-organized and effective consultative meetings and workshops as well as excellent presentations, guidance and facilitation during group discussions, as evidenced by the degree of interest and understanding of the topics by participants. • All final documents formatted, well-organized and written in clear, professional English.

HOME BASED WITH TRAVEL

01.10.26-10.11.26

I. Background of the assignment: 1. UNODC’s Global Programme on People-Centered Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, which is implemented by the Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Section (CPCJS), aims to help reduce crime, to ensure the operation of fair, effective, transparent and accountable criminal justice institutions and to promote equal access to justice for all. Outcome 5 of the Global Programme focuses on advancing comprehensive and gender-responsive penal and prison reform with a view to addressing global prison challenges. 2. The worrying situation in prisons worldwide and its detrimental impact on fundamental human rights, security, public safety, health, and the social cohesion of societies has led the United Nations to repeatedly refer to this issue as a “global prison crisis”. Factors, such as over-incarceration, severe prison overcrowding, high recidivism rates, poor prison conditions and the systemic neglect of prison/corrections services in many countries often render prison systems the weakest link in criminal justice systems. These systemic deficiencies risk undermining the ultimate purpose of imprisonment, namely, to protect society from crime and preventing recidivism, and render prison/ corrections systems vulnerable to emerging threats. 3. UNODC’s strategic approach to prison and penal reform (PPR) focusses on three inter-linked and mutually reinforcing objectives, namely, to: (i) reduce prison population and enhance the use of non-custodial measures; (ii) strengthen prison management and improve prison conditions; and (iii) enhance the social reintegration prospects of offenders. 4. The Office’s portfolio of advisory services and technical assistance programmes spans more than 50 Member States across all continents and is firmly grounded on the United Nations standards and norms related to prison management and the treatment of prisoners. 5. UNODC closely aligns its work on prison and penal reform with and gives practical meaning to the UN System Common Position on Incarceration (2021), which positions the topic as an integral part of the Sustainable Development Agenda, recognizes prisoners as a particularly vulnerable and marginalized group subject to discrimination and exclusion and calls for enhanced UN support in the field of prison and offender management. 6. Subject to the national context, UNODC’s technical support involves the improvement of prison conditions as well as targeted investments in prison staff training aimed at fostering a culture of integrity, accountability, and transparency. Adopting a rehabilitative, inclusive, and gender-responsive approach to offender management, including by advancing respective programmes and services, is equally essential, as is equipping prison and probation services with specialized skills and approaches to effectively address diverse evolving threats, including the prevention of radicalization to violence. 7. Corruption in prisons poses a severe security risk to prisoners, prison staff and prison management alike, it further undermines the rule of law and erodes public trust in judicial system. Unsurprisingly, therefore, corruption is often identified as one of the main obstacles to the effective management of prisons and the treatment of prisoners. The risks are further increased if members of organized crime groups or high-risk prisoners manage to come into a position of power and control with respect to prison officials. Although rare, extreme scenarios have occurred where corrupt officials have abetted coordinated external assaults or escape attempts, posing a significant threat to prison security and endangering both staff and prisoners. The consultant will be tasked with multiple deliverables related to the development of technical guidance material as well as the delivery of advisory services, assessments and capacity-building for prison/corrections services in Ukraine, Iraq and South Africa as specified below. All activities will be conducted in close collaboration with CPCJS, UNODC Field Offices as well as with the Corruption and Economic Crime Branch (CEB) as far as the development of guidance material on corruption risk management in prisons is concerned.

Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in criminology, law, social sciences, business administration, or related discipline is required. A first level university degree in similar fields in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university • At least 10 years of professional work experience in criminal justice and management responsibilities in the field of prison management or the treatment of offenders is required, with a proven exposure to organizational change processes, regulatory frameworks, prison safety and security and the rehabilitation/social reintegration of prisoners, managing corruption prevention policy and measures is required. • Direct involvement in the development, delivery and/or evaluation of training programmes is required; prior experience in delivering workshops/training courses for criminal justice officials and prison officers, in particular, is highly desirable. • International experience and in-depth understanding of crime prevention and criminal justice policies in general, and prison and offender management in particular, is required, including in low- and middle-income countries is desirable. • Strong research, drafting and coordination skills, analytical capacities and ability to synthesize complex inputs into coherent and practice-oriented content and guidance, is required; prior experience in developing practice-oriented and user-friendly guidance and tools in the field of prison and offender management is highly desirable. • Understanding of the UN standards and norms in crime prevention and criminal justice, in particular the Nelson Mandela Rules, the Bangkok Rules and the Tokyo Rules, preferably complemented by exposure to delivering technical assistance on prison management-related issues at international level, including in low- and middle-income countries, is desirable.

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For this post, fluency in oral and excellent writing skills English are required. Knowledge of another United Nations language is an advantage.

Not available.

THE 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.