Overview : ACCESS TO JUSTICE AND RULE OF LAW PROJECT Call for Proposals for small grants CSOs/NGOs implementation of grants to establish community based entry point to referral pathways through the engagement and training of female community leaders as community paralegals Background The United Nations Development Programme South Sudan (UNDP) Support to Access to Justice and Rule of Law Project aims to contribute to national priorities as articulated in the South Sudan Development Plan (SSDP) Conflict Prevention & Security Pillar. The specific Rule of Law Sector Objective is “to strengthen the Rule of Law in South Sudan by enforcing and maintaining law and order, providing equitable access to justice and a functioning criminal justice system, increasing security in communities, and promoting and protecting human rights for all.” UNDP’s strategy in promoting rule of law is twofold. First, providing support to the priorities of the rule of law institutions (Judiciary, Ministry of Justice, Police and Prisons) as articulated in their institutional strategic and/or action plans. Second, promoting access to justice by strengthening community and civil society initiatives. UNDP’s Access to Justice and Rule of Law Project provides linkages between justice providers and communities through various activities including awareness raising on human rights, constitutional protection, gender based violence and access to legal redress; advocacy on legal and policy reform (mainly through involvement with civil society actors); support to legal aid initiatives and capacity building of civil society, in particular indigenous CSOs and NGOs, to better address rule of law and constitutional rights issues. This includes providing support for the establishment of Justice and Confidence Centers (JCCs) which provide a variety of information services to clients, including the provision of basic legal, human and constitutional rights information, advocacy, mediation and reconciliation services. The centers also provide services including visitations to prison inmates and operationalizing gender desks in police stations. At the local community level, however, South Sudanese continue to face serious challenges in accessing effective justice services and remedies. The lack of legal knowledge amongst the majority of the population especially women poses a major challenge for them to claim their rights when face human rights violations. On the basis of this, the grant intends to complement ongoing services provided by UNDP supported JCCs and Legal Aid Grantees for increased service delivery and outreach to the public. In this regard, the project intends to support legal empowerment of community female leadership to enable them meet the basic local justice service needs of the people through the provision of legal aid services and onward referrals to justice delivery institutions and related service institutions. |