An in-country consultant to conduct a two-day refresher-training course to first responders including health workers, police officers, legal professionals, and social workers on the referral pathway and survivor-centered case management.

Organisation Background

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Learn more about The Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa
The Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa jobs in Uganda

The Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa (SIHA) is a civil society coalition bringing together grassroots women’s rights organisations from Sudan, South Sudan, Somalia, Somaliland, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Kenya and Uganda. It was established in 1995 by a collection of women’s rights activists, with the view of strengthening the capacity of women’s rights organisations in the Horn of Africa. SIHA aims to contribute to unlocking the massive potential of women’s rights movements in the horn of Africa, by improving the capacity of local organisations, and to build a strong network of grassroots civil society members that are able to interact and support one another in advocating for effective change. More information about SIHA is available at www.sihanet.org

Project Description

SIHA with support from Protestant Agency for Diakonie and Development for Bread for the World is implementing a project dubbed “Stronger Together: Supporting a cohesive Women’s Movement in West Nile, Uganda Phase 2”, with the aim of ensuring that Women market vendors in Arua improve their living conditions by influencing the development and implementation of local policies on issues that impact them directly. “Stronger Together: Supporting a cohesive Women’s Movement in West Nile, Uganda Phase 2” project is working directly with local policy makers, city authorities, women’s rights organizations, women market vendors, persons with disability, religious and cultural leaders in Arua city. The project seeks to build capacity of the target beneficiaries as well as enhance the capacity of frontline workers (first respondents to GBV) including medical/ health workers, police officers, legal professionals, and social workers, WMVs, and WROs memberson survivor-centred case management and update the referral pathway.

The greater northern region and in particular the West Nile region has been faced with number of conflict and political turmoil such as the two-decade civil war between the government and Lord’s Resistance Army, West Nile Bank Front among others which has resulted in to untold suffering. This has been worsened by the outbreak of the covid-19 pandemic and the patriarchal norms and practices that has limited women’s participation in Uganda’s social, economic and political space thus putting women at a more disadvantaged state and yet they represent the backbone of the region’s economy. Women have been exposed to exploitation and other forms of violence due to their vulnerability because of limited financial autonomy and poverty. According to a report by the Global Gender Gap 2020, an estimated 49.9% of women have had prevalence of GBV in their lifetime, 56% have reported having experienced physical violence (15-49 years) while 22% had experienced sexual violence (UDHS, 2016). West Nile has been reported as one of the regions with the highest rates of GBV in the country according to the Uganda country assessment conducted by UNDP in 2015.

Despite the numerous measures that have been put in place to help curb/ address the vice including the various sector specific legal reforms including the Domestic Violence Act 2010, the 2011 domestic violence regulations, the prohibition of Female Genital Mutilation Act 2010, prevention of trafficking in persons Act 2009, the penal code Act 2007, there exists a challenge of lack of will to implement the laws, traditional cultural beliefs and practices such as paying bride price and low literacy levels among others.Report from the Office of Child and Family Protection Unit (Arua central) indicates that there was drastic increase in GBV cases from 300 to 500 cases in 2021 and 2022 respectively. Much as there is increase on GBV cases, society has remained silent and women cannot freely express themselves in both private and public spaces due to fear of withdrawal of all forms of support by the spouse, stigmatization, lack of confidence, ignorance of existing SGBV service providers and fear of being rejected by the society which is linked to the cultural belief of “aruba” which bars women from reporting intimate partner violences/ offences to authorities. Women thus continue to face injustices which has remained invisible to the society and hence a call to close the gender gap in the political, socio-economic and cultural spheres of life.

Justification for the training:

In 2020 December, SIHA conducted a training course on SGBV prevention and response targeted at frontline workers and updated the referral pathway in the first phase of the project. Most participants expressed interest in receiving additional training to improve their capacity to respond to survivors’ needs in a way that does not harm and is respectful of their dignity and desires. Therefore, SIHA will provide a three-day refresher-training course to first responders including health workers, police officers, legal professionals, and social workers on the referral pathway and survivor-centered case management. This workshop will also provide an opportunity for participants to reflect on if and how they have changed their practices since the last training course, what challenges they have encountered and what still needs to be improved. The training will also provide an opportunity for the key frontline workers to update the existing SGBV referral pathway which will be used by the wider community in Arua City.

OBJECTIVES OF THE ASSIGNMENT.

• To build the capacity of frontline workers (first responders) to respond to survivors’ needs in a way that does not harm and is respectful of their dignity and desires
• To review and update the referral pathway and survivor-centered case management portfolio.

METHODOLOGY

The consultant will be expected to design a participatory training plan on the referral pathway and survivor-centred case management that suits the needs and dynamics of the target audience including health workers, police officers, legal professionals, and social workers and some Women Markets Vendors (WMVs).  This workshop will also provide an opportunity for participants to reflect on if and how they have changed their practices since the last training course, what challenges they have encountered and what still needs to be improved. A pre and post-test evaluation will also be conducted to assess their level of understanding on the modules before and after the training.

Expected Results

• Increased number of first respondents (frontline workers) exhibiting knowledge and understanding including Do no Harm on survivor case management using Participants reflections on how they have changed their practices since the last training course, what challenges they have encountered and what still needs to be improved.
• An Updated SGBV referral pathway directory that will be validated by other stakeholders and launched.

EXPECTED DELIVERABLES

1.            Detailed inception report with clear methodology.

2.            Organize and facilitate an empowering workshop on Referral Pathways and survivor centered case management for first respondents

3.            Tools and templates for case management

4.            Updated SGBV referral pathways

5.            An action and work plan on case reporting and referral.

6.            Training report with clear action photos.

Payments and benefits

SIHA will pay the consultant for the assignment an amount that shall be agreed upon following identification of the individual to undertake the exercise.

Payment to the consultant shall be made in two instalments. The schedule shall be agreed upon by SIHA and the consultant before contract signing.

Timeline for the assignment

The assignment will be a 3-day training/workshop for 30 first respondents/front line workers of SGBV survivors including medical/ health workers, police officers, legal professionals, WMV and social workers. this will be scheduled for 29^th – 31^stMay 2023, the report is expected not later than a week  after the training date.

CONSULTANTS DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

Education:

• Relevant degree in the field of Gender, Social Science, Development Studies, law/ human right and any other related field

Consultants Required Skills: The ideal Consultant will have knowledge of and proven expertise on the following

• Experience working with SGBV survivors and First Responders or Frontline workers.
• Excellent knowledge/ understanding of SGBV and systems in place for preventing and responding to SGBV
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills including in knowledge of local in country languages
• Knowledge and sensitivity to the cultural context in west Nile region of Uganda
• Contextual knowledge and experience of vulnerable women in Arua
• Fluent in Lugbara and English

Procedures for submission of expression of interest

SIHA Network requests Interested Candidates to provide their current CV and expression of Interest to humanresourcesiha@gmail.com, copy jackie@sihanet.org and mercy@sihanet.org by 22^nd May 2023. In the email subject line please write ‘Training of First Responders on Referral Pathway and Survivor Case Management”

Applications not following these guidelines correctly will not be considered. SIHA is committed to offer fair compensation based on the successful candidate’s experience and qualifications. Due to the volume of applications SIHA receives, only short-listed candidates will be contacted for scheduling of interviews. Thank you for your interest in SIHA’s work.