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JUSTICE AND HUMAN

RIGHTS IN AFGHANISTAN 2014 3rd QUARTERLY PROJECT PROGRESS

REPORT

UNITED NATIONS DEVELOPMENT

PROGRAMME

UNITED NATIONS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME

DONORS

Denmark Italy

Netherlands Switzerland UNDP

PROJECT INFORMATION

Project ID: 00068012

Duration: January 2013 – December 2015

Strategic Plan Component: Rule of Law

CPAP Component: Access to Justice, Human Rights

ANDS Component: Governance, Rule of Law, Human Rights

Total Project Budget: USD 34,402,039

Annual Budget 2014: USD 7,841,973

Unfunded amount 2014: USD 626,074

Implementing Partners: Ministry of Justice, Supreme Court, Attorney General’s Office,

Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission, Afghanistan Independent Bar Association,

UNDP Afghanistan

Responsible Agency: UNDP

Chief Technical Advisor: Dr. Doel Mukerjee

Acting Interim Project Manager: Augustine Bahemuka

OIC Rule of Law: Hedayatullah Mohammadi

COVER PAGE: Students at an English class supported by JHRA at the Ministry of Justice. Credit: UNDP,

22 October 2014.

http://www.scubahurghada.com/nederlands

ACRONYMS

AIBA Afghanistan Independent Bar Association

AIHRC Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission

ASGP Afghanistan Sub-national Governance Project

AWP Annual Work Plan

CBDR Community-based dispute resolution

CEDAW Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women

CLRWG Criminal Law Reforms Working Group

CRC Convention on the Rights of the Child

CSO Civil society organization

DDA District Development Assembly

DoJ Department of Justice

EUPOL European Police Mission in Afghanistan

EVAW Elimination of Violence against Women

FGDs Focus Group Discussions

FRU Family Response Unit

GBV Gender Based Violence

GDMA General Directorate of Municipal Affairs

GIRoA Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan

HRSU Human Rights Support Unit

Huquq MoJ Legal Affairs Department

ICCPR International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights

ICESCR International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

LAGF Legal Aid Grant Facility

LEP Legal Empowerment of the Poor

LoA Letter of Agreement

LOTFA Law and Order Trust Fund of Afghanistan

M&E Monitoring and Evaluation

MoFA Ministry of Foreign Affairs

MoI Ministry of Interior

MoJ Ministry of Justice

MoU Memorandum of Understanding

MoWA Ministry of Women’s Affairs

NAPWA National Action Plan for Women in Afghanistan

NDS National Directorate of Security

NHRI National Human Rights Institute

NLTC National Legal Training Center

NPP National Priority Programme

NTA National Technical Assistance

PLAU Public Legal Awareness Unit

PPD MoJ Planning and Policy Department

RoL Rule of Law

RoLIS Rule of Law Indicators Study

SOPs Standard Operating Procedures

Taqnin MoJ Institute for Legislative Drafting and Legal Research

TCC Technical Coordination Committee

ToR Terms of reference

UNAMA United Nations Assistance Mission to Afghanistan

UNCAT United Nations Convention against Torture

UNDP United Nations Development Programme

UNODC United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime

UPR Universal Periodic Review

TABLE OF CONTENTS

I. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .................................................................................................................... 1

II. RESULTS: ......................................................................................................................................... 3

OUTPUT 1: High level coordination mechanism for developing policy and legislation in accordance

with international and national standards are established and functional in State justice

institutions .......................................................................................................................................... 3

EXPENSES FOR THE YEAR ................................................................................................................ 7

OUTPUT 2: Mechanisms for providing quality access to justice services to vulnerable groups are

established and functional ................................................................................................................ 14

EXPENSES FOR THE YEAR .............................................................................................................. 18

OUTPUT 3: Public participation processes and knowledge base for improving access to justice and

human rights compliance successfully established. ......................................................................... 24

EXPENSES FOR THE YEAR .............................................................................................................. 27

OUTPUT 4: Project Support Unit: Internal oversight, monitoring and evaluation capacity in place 32

EXPENSES FOR THE QUARTER ....................................................................................................... 34

III. GENDER-SPECIFIC RESULTS ....................................................................................................... 36

IV. PARTNERSHIPS .......................................................................................................................... 37

V. ISSUES ........................................................................................................................................... 38

VI. RISKS .......................................................................................................................................... 39

VII. LESSONS LEARNED .................................................................................................................... 39

VIII. FUTURE PLANS .......................................................................................................................... 41

IX. ANNEXES ................................................................................................................................... 43

A. ANNEX 1: FINANCIAL TABLE ...................................................................................................... 43

B. ANNEX 2: EXPENSES BY OUTPUT .............................................................................................. 44

C. ANNEX 3: EXPENSES BY DONOR................................................................................................ 45

D. ANNEX 4: RISK LOG ................................................................................................................... 47

E. ANNEX 5: ISSUE LOG ................................................................................................................. 49

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I. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Justice and Human Rights in Afghanistan

Project (JHRA) phase II aims to increase the public’s trust in Afghan justice institutions to

create the necessary foundation for the re-establishment of State legitimacy. JHRA Phase II

was initiated on 1 January 2013.

JHRA provides important support to (i) establish functional high-level coordination

mechanisms for developing policy and legislation in accordance with international and

national standards with the Ministry of Justice (MoJ); (ii) establish functional mechanisms to

provide quality justice services to vulnerable groups through Afghan counterparts; and, (iii)

establish public participation processes and knowledge base for improving access to justice

and human rights compliance through government institutions, Afghanistan Independent

Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) and civil society organizations (CSOs).

Output 1:

In an important step forward for the Human Rights Support Unit (HRSU) of the MoJ, the

Human Rights Support Regulation was passed 4 August by the Council of Ministers thereby

formalizing the mandate of the unit and establishing an inter-ministerial task force that will

take decisions for the government on human rights issues. This ensures that HRSU will be

able to support the government to ensure legislative compliance with Afghanistan’s

international human rights commitments, monitor implementation of international

conventions and provide human rights training to government officials.

Work on the Rule of Law Indicator Study (RoLIS) also made significant strides during this

quarter. After several months of fine tuning and consultation with the national working group

to ensure national ownership, a set of 130 indicators was finally submitted to the group for

their review and approval. Subsequently, the indicators were presented to the UN results

group and a working group was formed to prioritize and trim the number of indicators for the

survey to provide recommendations to the national RoLIS working group. Also during this

quarter, a company was contracted to carry out Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) and

interviews in the provinces for the RoLIS.

Output 2:

Q3 saw months of effort come to fruition as the lawyers registered with the Legal Aid Grant

Facility (LAGF) took up the facility’s first cases. A total of 247 cases were distributed in four

provinces. The LAGF has already had many successes in individual cases, and as of the end

of the reporting period, 64 criminal family cases were resolved. Also this quarter, JHRA

supported the opening of the sixth regional AIBA sub-office in Helmand province. In

addition to operationalizing the LAGF in Helmand, the opening of the office will enable law

students in the province to take their licensing exams at the provincial level.

This quarter, advocacy efforts towards the establishment of a specialized Elimination of

Violence against Women (EVAW) court began in earnest. An international and a national

consultant held meetings with justice sector actors and civil society stakeholders in order to

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garner support for the proposal, which was initially proposed in the VAW report of MoWA.

As a result, a committee made up of JHRA, the legal advisor to the Ministry of Women’s

Affairs (MoWA), and the head of the legal department of MoWA was established to review

and design the plan. It is expected the draft design will be ready for wider consultations and

advocacy to the Supreme Court in Q4.

Output 3:

The final draft of the Communication Strategy developed in coordination by the Public Legal

Awareness Unit (PLAU) was adopted by the MoJ. Providing PLAU with guidelines on how

to engage with State and non-State actors, the Communication Strategy and subsequent

Action Plan will operationalize the MoJ’s Legal Awareness Strategy produced in 2011.

Following the plan’s adoption, a contracting company is now coordinating with PLAU to

carry out the implementation phase, and orienting regional staff in the document.

Output 4:

In Q3, an international evaluator and a national evaluator started their work on JHRA’s mid-

term evaluation. On 25 Aug, they began several weeks of meetings with various strategic

partners, government counterparts and donors. The first draft of the report is expected 1 Nov;

the final draft is expected 20 Nov. Recommendations of the mid-term evaluation will help

redesign the project for its remaining period. Further, a management review was undertaken

by an external UNDP expert to provide an overall assessment of the project’s management

structure and the relationship between the project management, including the pillar managers,

and its government counterparts. The evaluation will give recommendations on how to more

clearly define the roles within the project management structure and how to improve the

relationship between the project and its government counterparts so that the project can

engage government more substantially and effectively.

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II. RESULTS:

OUTPUT 1: High level coordination mechanism for developing policy and

legislation in accordance with international and national standards are

established and functional in State justice institutions

Output 1 focuses on increasing the capacity of the Government of Afghanistan to produce

informed and compliant high-level policy documents and legislation by strengthening key

departments of the MoJ, including their coordination with line ministries and institutions.

This output is aligned with NPP 5: Law and Justice for All, particularly Component 1 on

“Improving the Legislative Process”, and NPP 6: Human Rights and Civic Responsibilities. It

is expected that at the end of the project period, the results of this output will provide the MoJ

with mechanisms, such as the Legislation Committee, for coordinating the development of

policy and legislative documents with other ministries, and improve coordination between the

MoJ Policy and Planning Department (PPD), MoJ Institute for Legislative Drafting and Legal

Research (Taqnin), including the Translation Board, and HRSU.

1.1. Increase capacity of the Legislation Committee to enable sector-wide

coordination and strengthen policy making.

Indicator 1.1: Mechanism established for activating Legislation Committee meetings.

During this quarter, negotiations were undertaken to provide additional support to the

Criminal Law Reforms Working Group (CLRWG) for the finalization of the Penal Code of

Afghanistan.

The Government of Afghanistan is currently in the early stages of reforming its criminal

laws, with an aim of achieving an updated and consolidated penal code containing all

criminal provisions applicable in Afghanistan. The goals of reform include the consolidation

of all criminal provision of law into a single penal code, codifying in the penal code the

principles of Sharia (as was recently done in some of the counties), updating, modernizing

and clarifying the offenses and punishments set out in the penal code (removing unnecessary

offenses and adding new and emerging ones), increasing the effectiveness of the penal code

in preventing, reducing, deterring and fairly punishing criminal behaviour, and ensuring

conformity with international standards and Afghanistan’s obligations’ under the treaties and

conventions it has ratified.

To achieve the goals of reform, the first vice president’s office requested an international

expert familiar with Sharia and international law, as well as the context of the Afghan legal

system, to scrutinize the preliminary draft provided by the CLRWG and review it within the

context of national and international standards, Sharia and emerging crimes.

This analysis will be undertaken on the completed draft on the general part of the law,

including the chapters that pertain to financial and economic crimes, terrorism, and internal/

external related crimes. The expert, who will be hired with the support of UNDP and will

work for 75 days, will be expected to undertake review and scrutinize the preliminary draft of

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Afghan Penal Code provided by the CLRWG and to make constructive recommendations and

revisions for further enhancement of the draft based on comparative analysis with global

Islamic jurisprudence best practices and emerging crimes. The expert will report findings,

recommendations and revisions to the CLRWG.

1.2. Strengthen MOJ policy-making capacity through the PPD.

Indicator 1.2: Two strategic documents developed for MoJ and justice sector institutions.

The two annual targets for this Activity Result are: 1) “MoJ Strategic Plan finalized” and 2)

“1393 RoLIS conducted”. The first target has already been achieved. The second target is

progressing according to schedule, with field roll out of the survey planned for Q4. This

Activity Result is on target.

PPD of the MoJ, which is supported by JHRA, is drafting a resource empowerment proposal

for the Capacity Building for Results Facility administered by the World Bank. In order to

prepare a draft proposal for the program, PPD met with six central directorates of the MoJ.

During Q4, PPD will meet with seven other directorates. The proposal is expected to be

submitted in Q4.

At the request of the interim leadership of the MoJ the PPD is also conducting a capacity

assessment of the MoJ Legal Affairs department (Huquq) directorate. Through FGDs and

interviews with the different committees of the Huquq, the PPD is conducting a review that

will enable better planning of training and workshops for the directorate and streamline the

Tashkeel. The assessment is expected to be submitted in Q4. Also during this time period, the

PPD completed the MoJ’s activity report for the second quarter and submitted it to the

leadership of the ministry. In addition, the directorate completed a strategic plan for the

Gender Unit of the MoJ. The plan will assist in operationalizing the strategic plan of the MoJ

and covers capacity building, training and recruitment of women for the MoJ. The draft of the

plan has been submitted to the leadership of the MoJ and is awaiting comments.

Also this quarter, the PPD staff worked on developing indicators for the action plan which

operationalizes the strategic plan of the MoJ. The indicators are expected to be submitted in

Q4. The department also prepared short-, medium- and long-term plans for the MoJ for

discussion at the London Conference which focused on four areas: elimination of corruption,

improving case management strategies, increasing access to justice for Afghan citizens, and

expansion of legal aid services through the LAGF.

PDD, under the supervision of the leadership of the MoJ, is also working on a human

resource policy for the MoJ and a Communication Strategy for the Public Legal Awareness

Unit. The first drafts of these documents have been completed and are under review.

Work on the RoLIS, which is to provide a baseline for the justice sector in Afghanistan,

moved forward significantly in this quarter. After several months of fine-tuning and

consultations with the national working group to ensure national ownership, a final set of 130

indicators was submitted to the national working group for their review and approval.

Subsequently, the indicators were also presented to the UN Results Group, which included

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Figure 1: Government officials discuss the Law on

Obtaining Rights at a conference in Herat. Credit:

UNDP, 1 September 2014

representatives of various agencies. At the meeting the decision was made to form a UN

working group on RoLIS to provide the national working group with technical and advisory

support on the proposed set of indicators.

On 16 September, a company was contracted to carry out FGDs and interviews in the

provinces to collect data for the qualitative indicators. The company will begin its work in

Q4. Administrative data collection is planned for Q4 in order to gather information for the

quantitative indicators. In addition, a document review was in conducted order to check

documents including the Afghan Constitution, national laws, and policy papers for

compliance with Afghanistan’s international human rights treaties. These documents were

reviewed for agreement with international conventions ratified/signed by Afghanistan.

Finally, a frequently asked questions sheet was prepared and approved by working group and

is expected to be printed in Q4.

1.3. Increase the MOJ’s capacity to effectively reform law through the Taqnin

(including the Translation Board).

Indicator 1.3: 20% of documents listed on the legislative calendar that are supported with

translated resources & international best practises.

The annual target for this Activity Result is

“Two laws drafted/reviewed and translated by

the Taqnin reflecting international best

practices.” The work undertaken by JHRA

through the consultative conference on the Law

on Obtaining Rights as well as the assistance

provided to the MoJ on the drafting of the

Family Law, requested by the minister and the

legal advisor to the first vice president’s office,

feeds into this target by providing the Taqnin

with international expertise and customized best

practices for two draft laws. This activity is

therefore on target.

During this quarter, a three-day consultative workshop was held on the draft Law on

Obtaining Rights. Forty-five participants, including representatives of the Department of

Justice, CSOs, defense lawyers and UN agencies, participated. The conference offered an

opportunity for various justice sector stakeholders to provide input into the formulation of the

law. The law covers rights arising out of civil contracts and specifies the role, responsibilities

and jurisdiction of the Huquq in addressing civil disputes. The previous version of the law

dated back to the Taliban regime. Previously, people with issues arising out of civil contracts

often took their cases to the wrong place, such as the police, resulting in human rights

violations. The updates to the law will ensure that all civil cases come to the HuquqThis same

issue was also highlighted during the consultation process for the assessment on how to

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define the boundaries within which traditional dispute resolution mechanisms can be utilized

for civil matters, which is being undertaken under Component 3 of JHRA.

In this quarter, too, a request was received from the MoJ by JHRA to provide technical

support for the preparation of the final draft of the Family Law through an international

exposure visit to an Islamic country which has recently developed contemporary legislation

for the empowerment of women. It was also suggested that an expert in the selected country

should be recruited to assist the team for the substantive inputs into the family law draft.

However, this is still under discussion. Therefore, to speed up the discussions, a terms of

reference (ToR) for an international expert on family law was drafted and submitted to MoJ

leadership.

Meanwhile, JHRA continued to support capacity building activities for government

employees in the form of English classes for both genders and computer classes for women.

This quarter, the basic and pre-intermediate English classes had 10 students. Twenty-four

women graduated from the basic computer class.

1.4 Strengthen the MOJ’s capacity to produce human rights compliant Government

policies and laws through HRSU.

Indicator 1.4: 25% of laws and regulations received or drafted by the Taqnin that are

reviewed by HRSU for human rights compliance.

In a significant step forward for HRSU, the Human Rights Support Regulation was passed by

the Council of Ministers 4 August. This regulation establishes a legal basis for HRSU’s work,

giving the unit the authority to work with government agencies and obliging them to

cooperate. Publication of the official gazette of the regulation is planned for Q4. The launch

will provide an opportunity for HRSU to educate government officials of various agencies

about the regulation and the unit’s work.

In Q3, HRSU, supported by JHRA, continued with its work reviewing pending and current

legislation. The unit reviewed the draft Law on Prohibition of Recruitment of Children in

Security Forces for alignment with international human rights conventions signed by

Afghanistan and shared its recommendations with the Taqnin. The majority of its

recommendations were accepted. The unit also reviewed the draft Regulation on Orphanages;

proposed recommendations will be shared with the Taqnin in Q4. In total, 39 laws, 17

regulations and 10 strategies and agreements currently on the books were reviewed for

compliance with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), and the

results were shared with the Taqnin for endorsement and action. HRSU is also currently

developing a report on cultural rights and intellectual property in Afghanistan which will

include a review of current laws.

The unit also continued work on a number of knowledge products to meet the demand for

additional information on human rights voiced during previous training sessions with

government officials. In order to inform government officials of their obligations under the

ICCPR, the unit continued its translation of the document. The translation of the Cairo

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declaration was completed this quarter. The Recommendation Action Plan on International

Human Rights Mechanisms has been updated to include Convention on the Elimination of

All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and Universal Periodic Review

(UPR) 2013 recommendations and shared with the Human Rights Taskforce for the

information of its members once it begins meeting in Q4. It is expected to be finalized in late

November. The revised action plan will be published in Q4 with new priorities and targets for

each ministry. HRSU has also started developing a manual on legislative review for

parliament.

HRSU has also developed a draft of guidelines for tracking the implementation of

international human rights conventions by State institutions in order to make this process

more systematic. With the aim of supporting the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA), the

unit also reviewed the Protocol on Ending Women Circumcision for alignment with national

laws and forwarded its findings to the ministry. During this quarter, HRSU also continued its

regular training for National Directorate of Security (NDS) staff with workshops in August

and September, and reviewed the impact of its March-May training for Ministry of the

Interior (MoI) staff. According to the review, a majority of participants in the training said

they would use the information received in their work.

EXPENSES FOR THE YEAR

During Q3 2014, a total of USD 315,835 was spent for this output. For more details, please

see Annex 2.

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Table 1: Q3 2014 Progress for Output 1

2014 Baseline 2014 Annual Targets Q3 2014 Planned Q3 2014 Actual Comments

1.1 Legislation

Committee meetings

are not producing

clear directives for

legislative review.

1.1 Five directions of

legislative review

provided by the

Legislation

Committee in a

formal legislative

review tool.

Support Legislation Committee in the

preparation, coordination and distribution of

relevant information and analysis for policy

discussions.

ToR to engage an international expert to reform the Penal

Code of Afghanistan were developed and shared with the

legislative advisor to the president’s office.

1.2 MOJ Strategic Plan

not yet finalised.

1.2.1 MoJ Strategic Plan

finalized.

1.2.2 1393 RoL indicators

study conducted.

Assess the capacity of MoJ systems,

procedures and individual staff competency to

analyse justice issues and provide policy

recommendations.

PPD staff initiated work to develop a draft proposal for

CBR Tier 2 Programme. Meetings were held with six

central directorates of MoJ (Admin & Finance Directorate,

Legal Aid Directorate, Huquq Directorate, Juvenile

Rehabilitation, General Directorate, and Taqnin General

Directorate).

The PPD conducted a capacity assessment of the general

department of the Huquq.

The PPD prepared MoJ’s central and provincial

directorates’ activities report for Q2.

PPD conducted four working group meetings on RoLIS

and assisted the working group by providing technical

support.

The PPD revised the draft gender strategic plan for the

MoJ Gender Unit.

PPD conducted a meeting with all the leadership of the

ministry and prepared the MoJ long-, medium- and short-

term plans for the London Conference on 1) elimination of

corruption; 2) creating a system of legal cases; 3)

improvement of the quality of legal service; and 4)

expansion of legal aid services through LAGF.

PPD staff developed an action plan for the MoJ strategy

(2013-2017). The action plan is developed in six sections

(code of activity, description of activity, code of sub-

activities, sub-activities, implementer, and date of

implementation, expected results and indicators).

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Design and implement a capacity development

plan based on the assessment, including

professional development of staff through

educational exposure to international

expertise.

MoJ reviewed staff and nominated two members for a

scholarship program to complete their masters’ degrees at

local universities.

Support MOJ PPD in the initiation and

facilitation of an annual baseline/RoL

Indicators study conducted to inform policy

and planning.

The implementing company to conduct FGDs and

interviews in the five provinces of Afghanistan on RoLIS

signed the contract on 16 Sept.

Four working group meetings on RoLIS were conducted

on 16 Aug, 1, 15 and 30 Sept.

A FAQ sheet on RoLIS was developed and shared with

the working group members. The FAQ contents and

design was approved by the Chair of working group on 21

Aug. The FAQ is being printed for wider dissemination.

Facilitate commitment to provide data and

collaborate on the annual baseline/RoL

indicators study from key Government

institutions (SC, AGO, MOI, MOJ, MOWA,

MOLSAMD) and international partners.

The document review assessment sheet on RoLIS was

completed on 24 Aug after collection of information on 19

indicators from SC, police and CPD, and AGO.

A final set of 130 indicators was developed and submitted

to the working group for review and subsequent

endorsement on 24 Sept. The working group is reviewing

the set, which includes both qualitative and quantitative

indicators.

A meeting with 17 UN results group members was held on

4 Sept to present the qualitative and quantitative indicators

that were developed for RoLIS and Monitoring and

Evaluation (M&E) purposes in the justice and rule of law

sector of Afghanistan. The decision to form a UN working

group on RoLIS was taken at this meeting.

A request was received from the chair of national working

group on RoLIS to expose the group to knowledge and

information on M&E systems in the justice sector in other

countries of a similar context. Turkey was identified for

this proposed visit.

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1.3 The MOJ Taqnin has

an annual legislative

calendar for 1392.

Two documents

from the legislative

calendar have been

translated by the

Translation Board

and reviewed based

on international best

practises.

1.3 Two laws

drafted/reviewed and

translated by the

Taqnin reflecting

international best

practices.

Support the Taqnin and the TU in the

establishment and implementation of an

annual legislative and translation calendar to

plan law-making.

A three-day consultative workshop was organized to

review the Law on Obtaining Rights for 45 participants

from the Department of Justice (DoJ), CSO, defense

lawyers, and UN agencies (42 M 3 F).

The ToR for engaging an international expert on family

law reform in Afghanistan were developed and shared

with MoJ leadership. The ToR is currently under the

review of MoJ.

Support the Taqnin on global legislative best

practices during law making process.

The Translation Board translated and edited the following

legislative documents:

1) Water Law (Dari-English)

2) Anti-Hoarding Law (Dari-English)

3) State Cases Act (Dari-English)

4) Law on Afghanistan Single Chamber of Commerce

(Dari-English)

5) Indian Road Traffic Act (English-Dari)

6) Kyoto Protocol on Climate Change Convention (Dari-

Pashtu)

7) Scientific Foundation Charter of Economic

Cooperation Organization (Dari-Pashtu)

8) Multi-lateral Agreement for the Establishment of an

International Research Center for Land-locked

Developing Countries (Dari-Pashtu)

9) Valley Organization Charter (Dari-Pashtu) 10) Islamic Jurisprudence of Cooperation Contract (Arabic-

Dari)

11) Assistance to Taqnin on identifying Arabic Laws for

research purposes

12) Translation of RoLIS indicators (English to Dari)

13) Translation of manual for Documental Auditors for

Internal Audit Department of MoJ

English classes for MoJ staff:

JHRA supports two levels of English classes – elementary

(8 M, 2 F) and pre-intermediate (4 M, 6 F) – with 10

students each (including four from the Gender

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Department).

Each class completed ten units of the course books and

eight examinations: four tests and four quizzes.

Computer classes for MoJ women officials:

Completed lessons on basic Microsoft Word (24 F). All

graduated and 85% received a high or middle score.

To start intermediate Excel class for 15 female staff.

Intermediate class is still in progress. Establish business process to ensure laws

entering Taqnin are reviewed by HRSU on

human rights compliance when relevant to

human rights.

This has been formalized through the HRSU regulation,

passed on 4 Aug, and rigorous coordination has been

established between HRSU and Taqnin to prioritize laws

in the Legislative Calendar for HRSU review.

1.4 HRSU reviewed 10%

of documents in the

legislative calendar

in 1392.

1.4 25% of laws drafted by

the Taqnin are

reviewed by HRSU.

Increase coordination between HRSU and the

Taqnin through engagement on the Executive

Committee and trainings to ministerial legal

focal points.

HRSU reviewed the draft law prohibiting the recruitment

of children by military groups from a human rights

perspective and comments were shared with the Taqnin.

Recommendations included alignment with International

Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

(ICESCR) Order No. 30, paragraphs (b, c, d); Convention

on the Rights of the Child (CRC) recommendation No. 65

and UPR recommendation No. 16, 114, 115, 116, 117 on

non-attendance and/or presence of children in armed

conflict.

HRSU reviewed the Regulation on Orphanages in light of

international conventions and proposed recommendations

to be shared with the Taqnin.

HRSU completed its review of 39 laws, 17 regulations,

10 strategies and agreements for compliance with the

ICCPR, and submitted this to the Taqnin for review,

endorsement and action.

HRSU reviewed the following laws for compliance with

Article 15 of the ICESCR. The findings will be developed

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into a report on Cultural Rights and Intellectual Property

in Afghanistan.

o Law on Author Rights

o Law on Inventor and Discoverer Rights

o Law on Rights and Privileges of Cadre Members of

Teacher Training Institutions and Islamic High

Schools

o Law on Mass Media

o Regulation on Organizing Exhibitions for Cultural and

Historical Monuments.

Support Taqnin and HRSU in the organization

of trainings in law-making and law-making

processes for Government officials and

legislators as relevant to legislative calendar.

Draft handouts on “Human Rights and the Afghan

Constitution” and “Juvenile Justice” have been completed

and shared with the MoJ Amendment Committee for

enrichment.

HRSU is drafting a handout entitled “Police

Responsibilities in Detecting Crime.”

HRSU continued its review and translation of the ICCPR

and completed its translation of the Cairo Declaration into

Pashto.

HRSU has started developing a manual on legislative

drafting and review for parliament. The unit is holding

consultations with MPs involved in the legislative drafting

process.

The updated Recommendation Action Plan on

International Human Rights Mechanisms has been updated

to include CEDAW and UPR 2013 recommendations and

shared with the Human Rights Taskforce for comments.

Facilitate the adoption of the Regulation on

HRSU and sensitisation of Ministries. The Government of Afghanistan Regulation on Human

Rights Support was approved by the Council of Ministers

on 4 Aug and sent to MoJ for publishing into the Official

Gazette.

The Dari page of the HRSU website is completed and

operational. Work on the Pashto page is ongoing.

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Support the HRSU in provision of technical

support to MoFA to develop and submit State

Reports on the UNCAT/ICCPR and UN Res.

1325.

According to official letter No. 761 dated 1/05/1393 of the

MoFA and instructions of Minister of Justice, the unit

reviewed the Protocol on Ending Women Circumcision

(Khafaz) in light of Civil Law, Personal Status Law, the

EVAW Law, the Criminal Code, and the Constitution.

HRSU’s review indicated that all national laws were in

compliance with the protocol, and recommended its

adoption by the State. These findings were sent officially

by the MoJ to MoFA.

HRSU developed a draft of guidelines for tracking the

implementation of international human rights conventions

by State institutions and setting indicators based on rights

enshrined in human rights conventions, using ICCPR and

United Nations Convention Against Torture (UNCAT) as

models.

Human rights trainings held through key focal

points, with particular focus on MoI, AGO,

NDS.

HRSU conducted two one-day workshops for 16 (M) NDS

staff on 16 Aug and 15 (M) NDS staff on 15 Sept at the

NDS Training Center. Topics included concepts,

principles and characteristics of human rights; provisions

of UNCAT; rights of suspects and the accused; and

judicial processes.

HRSU reviewed the primary school textbook on Life

Skills at the request of the MoE. HRSU will continue its

curriculum review, and submit its findings to MoE.

HRSU reviewed the impact of a five-part workshop

conducted for 18 MoI staff in Mar-May 2014. Analyses of

the training’s effectiveness and recommendations for long-

term follow up have been submitted to MoI for

endorsement.

14 | P a g e

OUTPUT 2: Mechanisms for providing quality access to justice services to

vulnerable groups are established and functional

Output 2 aims to enhance the Afghan public’s access to quality justice services through the

improvement and provision of legal representation, strengthening of coordination between

State and non-State justice providers, and increasing the number and capacity of trained

justice officials at the sub-national level. This output supports NPP 5 component 3

(“Increasing meaningful access to justice”) and component 4 (“Building institutional capacity

to strengthen justice delivery”), and includes working with the service providers of the justice

institutions – courts, prosecutors’ offices, EVAW Units, Huquq Departments, Family

Response Units (FRUs), Afghanistan Independent Bar Association (AIBA) chapters, and

National Legal Training Centers (NLTCs).

Overall this component is mandated to provide services to vulnerable people. In 2013, the

key procedures and mechanisms for expanding the services of State justice providers to

communities were identified and established through the LAGF, and the State and traditional

justice platforms. It is expected that in 2014 these mechanisms will provide actual services to

the Afghan people through expanded and expedited legal services.

2.1. Establish independent Legal Aid Grant Facility and supporting mechanisms.

Indicator 2.1: Number of cases supported through the Legal Aid Grant Facility

disaggregated by criminal, civil, detention and women’s cases.

The annual target for this Activity Result is “400 cases and instances of legal advice provided

through the Legal Aid Grant Facility.” The first tranche of funding for legal aid cases through

the LAGF was disbursed to AIBA in Q2, and a call for applications for support through the

facility was sent to registered defense lawyers. In Q3, 190 lawyers were registered with the

facility. It was expected that the LAGF will distribute at least 400 cases by the end of the

year. Therefore this activity result should meet its target.

15 | P a g e

Q3 saw lawyers registered with the LAGF take up the facility’s first cases. A total of 247

cases were distributed and, as of the end of the reporting period, 64 criminal and family cases

were resolved, going a significant way to accomplishing the yearly target for this activity.

The LAGF is currently

operating in four

provinces: Herat,

Helmand, Balkh and

Nangarhar. Of the total

number of clients

served, 49 were female

and 198 were male. To

ensure LAGF services

are able to reach those

who require assistance,

a public awareness

campaign was

mounted. By providing

legal aid to women,

children and indigent

men in a country where there is limited legal assistance

available, it is expected that the LAGF will contribute

greatly to increasing access to justice for Afghanistan’s

most vulnerable. That the facility is expected to play a

key role in boosting citizens’ access to justice is also

evident in the MoJ’s long, medium, and short term

plans which were prepared for the London Conference

expected to take place in end November 2014. The

MoJ’s plans have identified LAGF as one of the

mechanisms for reaching out to provide access to

justice for citizens.

Q3 also saw the establishment of the sixth regional

sub-office of the AIBA in Helmand province. The

establishment of the office operationalized the region’s

LAGF, allowing cases to be channeled to the lawyers

registered with the facility. Within the reporting

period, the Helmand sub-office had assigned 45

criminal and family cases to defense lawyers. The

opening up of the AIBA will also allow students who

are graduating from the law faculties of the three private universities to take their bar

association examinations at Lashkar Gah and receive the necessary licensing. It is expected

that the ability to take the bar examinations at the provincial headquarters will also motivate

women law students to complete their legal education and receive a professional degree.

Case Study

It’s been a year and eight months

since Anita’s husband started

beating her. The 20-year-old

woman, who lives in Herat, has

bruises all over her back from the

blows, she says.

“My husband said, ‘Now you are

mine; I can do what I want,’” she

says. “I lived with my mother-in-

law and my father-in-law in one

house. At the end of the day my

mother in law would say, ‘Look,

this girl didn’t do anything all

day. She was just sleeping.’ After

that my husband would punish

me.”

Through the LAGF, Anita has

been provided with legal

representation she would not

have otherwise been able to

afford. She is one of the 49

women who the facility has

provided with legal assistance

this quarter.

“I appreciate the LAGF

committee because they are

providing me with support,” says

Anita. “I don’t want money from

my husband; I just want to get a

divorce.”

16 | P a g e

Also within the reporting period, as part of capacity building for defense lawyers, Criminal

Procedure Code (CPC) workshops were conducted through the AIBA with lawyers from

Herat, Nangarhar, Balkh and Helmand. The training provided lawyers with knowledge about

the new CPC, allowing them to function more effectively in their work.

During this period, JHRA also supported the first round of 12-day training sessions for 30

students of the law and sharia faculties of Herat University in preparation to establish the

EVAW Law clinic. Some basic training and information was provided to the students prior to

the in-depth knowledge development on EVAW. The topics included in the training were: the

code of conduct for lawyers, the CPC and advocacy. The purpose of this training is to prepare

students to serve in an EVAW legal clinic that will afford them the opportunity to gain

practical skills while at the same time assisting the public by providing advice on EVAW

related cases. JHRA plans to offer similar training in Helmand province. Preparations are

currently being made and its establishment is expected in Q4.

2.2. Consolidate communication and coordination between State and non-State

justice providers at provincial and district levels.

Indicator 2.2: District-level mechanisms held that include State and traditional justice

providers.

The annual target for this Activity Result is “Mechanisms for coordination between State and

non-State justice providers established in 10 districts”. During Q3, work has been done on

mapping existing coordination platforms and collecting data, however the security situation

has adversely affected the projects ability to conduct work in districts. More work needs to be

done to institutionalize coordination mechanisms; therefore this activity result was only

partly met.

During Q3, JHRA conducted data collection regarding level of coordination between State

and non-State justice providers for the five districts of Nangarhar province and the five

districts of Herat province to identify a baseline for the number of cases currently being

transferred from the informal to the formal justice system. Data was collected from the

courts, the prosecution’s office the Huquq, the police, the shuras and some residents of the

districts. Information collected included the number of cases that come to non-State actors,

how many cases were resolved and how many are referred to the formal justice system.

Collection of this data provides a baseline for the current level of coordination between the

two sectors.

Subsequently, a coordination meeting was held in Helmand province with the aim of building

bridges between State and non-State actors and informing non-State actors about the

jurisdictions of State actors. These meetings served the purpose of bringing these actors

closer together with the aim of increasing referrals from the informal to the formal sector.

Meetings were also planned for Herat and Nangarhar Q3, but did not take place due to

security concerns surrounding the election process. The gatherings have therefore been re-

scheduled.

17 | P a g e

2.3. Enhance the professional capacity of State Justice service providers (including

respect for due process).

Indicator 2.3: No. of National Legal Training Center (NLTC) chapters.

The annual targets for this Activity Result are 1) “One report on existing curricula for judges,

prosecutors and Huquq officials is mapped”; and 2) “One MoU on NLTC signed and one

NLTC in Herat established.” In Q3, the national consultant began revising and the draft

Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) and tailored NLTC curriculum and held consultations

on them. This Activity Result is therefore on track.

The lead consultant for the establishment of the Herat chapter of the NLTC prepared a draft

charter for the NLTC, a MoU and an outline of the curriculum to be used for training. State

justice providers were brought together to provide their input into the various drafts.It is

expected that the documentation for the Herat NLTC will be completed within the fourth

quarter.

With the aim of raising the capacity of State justice providers on EVAW, discussions were

held between the Law and Order Trust Fund of Afghanistan (LOTFA) and JHRA to arrange

future training sessions for Herat, Mazar and Kabul for prosecutors, FRUs and Central

Investigation Departments (CID) of police. Workshops will focus on increasing coordination

between police and prosecutors, investigation skills, the new CPC, investigations, and the

EVAW Law in order to build the skills of the State justice institution personnel to work on

EVAW cases. Joint training sessions with the UNODC were also undertaken in Herat for

prosecutors, police, Huquq officials and judges from Ghor, Badghis and Herat. The training

sessions together were designed to enhance the capacity of State justice officials to carry out

their responsibilities in a professional and efficient way as they address gender-based

violence (GBV). Further training sessions are planned for Q4 for Herat, Mazar and Helmand.

Workshops for prosecutors are planned in Mazar and Herat on drafting indictments and will

provide training on how to undertake settlements when negotiating with family members to

address GBV cases. Ghor, Badghis and Helmand prosecutors will also attend these sessions.

The planned seminars on settlements for Mazar and Herat are aimed at justice sector actors

including the DoWA, the Huquq, the FRUs, CSOs, prosecutors and defense lawyers. The

training sessions are intended to focus on drafting professional settlements that do not

sacrifice women’s well-being.

This quarter, preliminary discussions on a proposed EVAW court also moved ahead.

Currently, cases of violence against women are often a low priority for the courts and they

are not decided upon in a timely manner. The proposed specialized court would help speed up

the decision making process and address the sensitive concerns specific to cases of violence

against women. To that end, an international and a national consultant held advocacy

meetings with several stakeholders.. During these meetings support was garnered for the

concept of the court and input was gathered on how it should operate. A committee made up

of JHRA, the legal advisor of MoWA and the head of the legal department of MoWA was

established. During Q4, the committee will meet in order to review the court design. After

18 | P a g e

finalization, the concept for the court will be summited to the Supreme Court. The idea for

the establishment of the court has generated interest from both donors and national

stakeholders.



see Annex 2.

19 | P a g e


2014 Baseline 2014 Annual

Targets Q3 2014 Planned Q3 2014 Actual Comments

2.1 Legal Aid

Grant Facility

procedures are

in place, but no

cases have yet

been processed

through the

facility

2.1 400 cases and

instances of legal

advice provided

through the Legal

Aid Grant Facility

Support the LAB to undertake meetings in the

provision of policy direction on activation and

use of LAGF.

Indigent forms, check lists, LAGF M&E and finance guidelines

were provided to the LAGF. ToR for mid-term evaluation of

LAGF were approved.

The LAGF committee finalized and approved the M&E

guidelines and finance guidelines. Based on the committee’s

decision, the approved and finalized M&E guidelines were

shared and submitted to Herat, Balkh, Nangarhar and Helmand

provinces.

The LAGF committee in Kabul held four coordination meetings

for the purpose of approving some necessary forms for

representation of cases by defense lawyers.

Training and workshops for AIBA Lawyers in

Herat, Badghis, Ghor on due process.

As part of capacity building for defense lawyers, a CPC

workshop was conducted for 50 defense lawyers (16 F and 34

M) from Herat, Ghor and Badghis provinces from 23 to 27 Aug

in the Herat AIBA regional office.

A mission to Ghor and Badghis was conducted by the Herat

AIBA regional office from 25 to 27 Aug. Two teams, including

three defense lawyers, went on this three-day mission. The

purpose of the mission was to conduct a LAGF introductory

meeting. The mission delegation met with the judiciary and

provincial governor in Badghis and deputy provincial governor

in Ghor, as well as DoWA, CPD, PC, CSOs, elders, the chief of

police and AIHRC representatives. .

Training and workshops for AIBA Lawyers in

Ghor and Badghis on due process.

Five defense lawyers and legal aid providers from Ghor and

Badghis province attended the CPC workshop in AIBA Herat

office.

Supports AIBA in registration of cases taken up

by AIBA Herat Lawyers provide (Honoraria for

legal aid cases registered with Lawyers).

Herat sub-office assigned 96 criminal, family, and juvenile cases

to defense lawyers. A total of 28 cases were finalized.

Support AIBA in registration of cases taken up Within the reporting period, Balkh sub-office distributed 58

20 | P a g e



by AIBA Nangarhar, Balkh, Helmand Lawyers

(provide Honoraria for legal aid cases registered

with Lawyers).

criminal and family cases to AIBA defense lawyers for

representation. 14 cases out of 58 were finalized as of 30 Sept.

Nangarhar distributed 48 criminal and family cases to defense

lawyers for representation. Four cases were finalized in

Nangarhar province as of 30 Sept.

Helmand sub-office assigned 45 criminal and family cases to

defense lawyers for representation. 18 cases were finalized in

Helmand province as of 30 Sept.

Establishment of Helmand AIBA office. The AIBA human resources department recruited an office

manager, office assistant, two security guards and one cleaner

for the Helmand sub-office.

AIBA Helmand sub-office was opened on 5 Aug in Helmand

province and its official inauguration ceremony took place on 20

Aug.

The LAGF introductory meeting and establishment of the

Helmand AIBA regional office took place on 20 Aug.

Support AIBA lawyers and legal aid providers

in taking up and processing cases financed by

the Legal Aid Grant Facility, including cases

from Huquq and the labor commission, DoWA,

DoJ, EVAW units, Health Centres, Legal Help

centers, 119, Women's network, Shelters,

detention centers, prison and Ministry of

Labour. (Capacity Development trainings &

orientation meetings for Legal Aid Lawyers to

be undertaken).

The LAGF has assigned 247 criminal and family cases to

defense lawyers for representation, of which 64 criminal and

family cases were finalized.

A five-day CPC workshop was conducted for 13 defense

lawyers and legal aid providers (13 M) from 14-18 Sept in

Helmand province.

A five-day CPC workshop was conducted for 60 defense

lawyers and legal aid providers (33 F and 27 M) in Balkh office

from 21-25 Sept.

A five-day CPC workshop for 40 defense lawyers and legal aid

providers (13 F and 27 M) was conducted from 21-25 Sept in

Nangarhar office.

The LAGF project manager visited the Nangarhar office on 7

July to provide information about LAGF to 45 (20 F and 25 M)

defense lawyers.

21 | P a g e



A radio spot awareness message was recorded and broadcast on

local radio stations in Helmand, Balkh, Nangarhar and Herat.

Facilitate establishment or enhancement of

Legal Clinic at Herat University through Legal

Aid Grant Facility and Trainings.

AIBA Herat office conducted meetings with the law and sharia

faculties of Herat University to design the training programme

for the students.

The first round of 15-day training sessions for 30 (11 F, 19 M)

students of the law and sharia faculties of Herat University

started on 20 Sept.

Facilitate establishment or enhancement of

Legal Clinic at Helmand University through

Legal Aid Grant Facility and Trainings.

Helmand public university does not have a law and sharia

faculty. Therefore, the LAGF committee decided that a legal

clinic should be established inside the Helmand sub-office with

the involvement of three private universities, Sharia and law

faculties. Preparations for the establishment of the legal clinic

were undertaken.

Facilitate communication flow from AIBA-

MoJ-LAB on issues on policy and law-making

processes.

An international consultant is being hired to undertake a mid-

term review of the LAGF in Q4.

2.2 No

mechanism

s available

that link

State and

traditional

justice

systems are

in place.

2.2 Mechanisms for

coordination of

cases between

State and non-

State justice

providers at

district levels

established in 10

districts.

Identify provincial and district level

consultation platforms, such as Police-e-

Mardumi, District Development Assembly

(DDA), CPANS that could serve as platforms to

coordinate with State and non-State Justice

providers on community justice and security

matters.

Data collection occurred in five districts of Nangarhar province

(Surkhrod, Behsud, Kama, Kuz Kunar and Ghani Khail). Data

was collected from the court, prosecutor’s office, Huquq, police,

shuras and some residents in the district. Two coordination

meetings were conducted in Nangarhar province.

Facilitate mechanism to ensure coordination and

enhanced flow of cases from State to non-State

justice institutions and increased information

flow between the justice and security sectors in

Herat.

District-level data collection for the five districts of Herat

province (Injil, Gozara, Ghoryan, Zanda Jan and Karukh)

occurred. Collection for two districts (Zanda Jan and Karukh) is

finished; three districts are under process.

Undertake 5 coordination meetings and 5

trainings with State and non-State actors at

A coordination meeting was conducted on 24 Sept with 93

participants (65 M 5 F) from the districts of Nawa, Nahrisarage

22 | P a g e



district level in Helmand & Herat province to

identify local level disputes and provide

necessary referral services (trainings and

workshops).

and Nadali), and 28 from the provincial level (Lashkar Gah)

including the provincial deputy governor, chief judge, chief

prosecutor, representatives of the DoJ, legal aid, AIBA, civil

society members, representatives of the chief of police, DoWA,

CID, NDS prosecution representatives, provincial council

members, representatives of UNDP-Afghanistan Sub-national

Governance Project (ASGP) and UNDP/JHRA and some

community elders.

2.3 One NLTC

chapter exists in

Kabul

University.

2.3.1 One report on

existing curricula

for judges,

prosecutors and

Huquq officials

mapped.

2.3.2 One MoU on

NLTC signed and

one NLTC in

Herat established.

Support the establishment of NLTC chapter in

Herat Law Faculty. Under take assessment of

training modules and develop MoU.

The legal consultant has prepared a draft charter for

establishment of the NLTC chapter, an MoU and a curriculum

for training modules; state justice actors have provided feedback.

Undertake trainings for FRU and Prosecutors. Discussions were held between Law and Order Trust Fund of

Afghanistan (LOTFA) and JHRA and to make arrangements for

future training sessions for Herat and Balkh; the workshops are

to be held in Q4.

Undertake joint trainings for prosecutors and

police with European Police Mission in

Afghanistan (EUPOL) for Herat, Ghor, Badghis

See above.

Undertake joint training for prosecutors, police

and Huquq, judges by UNODC in Herat, Ghor,

Badghis

Joint training sessions were conducted in August in Herat;

workshops will be held in Helmand, Mazar and Helmand in Q4.

Facilitate Afghan-delivered training for State

and non-State justice providers on legal topics

(ex. Human Rights, Fair Trial Standards,

Police/Prosecutor/Judicial Corporation, Family

Law, Land Law, Criminal Law and Procedure)

in Helmand Province.

Preparations have been made for training to take place in Q4.

Implement capacity development plan for to

support the EVAW units & advocacy for Herat

special court.

A number of advocacy sessions were held to discuss a

specialized EVAW court including a meeting with the EVAW

Commission of MoWA.

A specialized EVAW presentation was held at the EU, a donor

23 | P a g e



agency supporting development initiatives including the

empowerment of women.

Around 50 meetings were held both as an advocacy tool for the

establishment of the EVAW court and to design the capacity

building workshop/seminars planned for October and November.

Indictment workshops on the writing of robust indictments are

planned for the EVAW units in October and November to

improve the work the units are doing.

Settlement seminars are planned for the months of October and

November to improve the process of establishing settlements so

that settlements are carried out professionally, taking into

consideration of victims’ needs and well-being.

24 | P a g e

OUTPUT 3: Public participation processes and knowledge base for

improving access to justice and human rights compliance successfully

established.

Output 3 focuses on strengthening the ability of Afghan citizens to understand, engage with

and influence the State justice system through the promotion of legal literacy, civic

education, and policy development, largely through and for civil society. This output supports

Components 1 and 3 of NPP 5, which focus on “improving the legislative process” and

“increasing meaningful access to justice” respectively, and will work primarily with the MoJ

PLAU, AIHRC, CSOs, media and think tanks. The key purpose of this component is to build

outreach to citizens using various channels such as workshops, literature and media to inform

them about their legal rights and build mechanisms for their protection.

3.1 Facilitate national discussions and policy dialogues on socio-economic rights and

community dispute resolution mechanisms.

Indicator 3.1.1: Number of policy documents on business and labour rights adopted by

Technical Coordination Committees for municipal coordination.

The annual target for this Activity Result is “Policy Paper adopted by Technical Coordination

Committee” (TCC). In Q3 three provincial TCC meetings were held to discuss the draft

discussion paper on the national policy for street vendors, and a national conference is

planned for early Q4 to finalize the draft. This Activity Result is therefore on target.

During Q3, JHRA provided technical support for the organization of three TCC meetings and

working groups on the draft national Legal Empowerment of the Poor (LEP) policy paper.

Participants provided technical and advisory support to line ministries, Kabul Municipality

and GDMA (General Directorate of Municipal Affairs), which resulted in further formulation

of the policy paper. The meetings also provided an opportunity for dialogue between street

vendors and local government and helped prepare for the forthcoming national LEP

conference in Kabul. The national workshop was delayed due to the security situation

surrounding the elections; however the meeting is expected to be conducted in Q4 in

partnership with the Afghan Sub-national Governance Program (ASGP) and GDMA mayors

from over 10 provinces.

While an exposure visit supported by JHRA was planned for key stakeholders (including

municipalities, the MoJ, the MoLSAMD and MPs), the trip was delayed due to the

postponement of the national LEP conference in Kabul. This visit, to a location as yet to be

decided, is now scheduled to take place in early December or could even be pushed back to

the early part of first quarter of 2015. The trip will expose key decision makers to

international best practices abroad on policy and legal frameworks for street vendors, and will

assist them in implementing the recommendations of the national LEP workshop.

25 | P a g e

Indicator 3.1.2: Availability of research-based advocacy report.

The annual target for this Activity Result is “One research-based advocacy report on

alternative dispute resolution mechanisms focusing on civil cases is finalized.” In Q3, the

draft of this report was submitted to JHRA and the MoJ, and is currently under review. It is

expected to be finalized in Q4. This Activity Result is therefore on target.

The international consultant retained earlier this year completed and submitted the report on

alternative dispute resolution mechanisms to JHRA and the MoJ. Research for the report

involved approximately 700 respondents, including judges, prosecutors, traditional justice

and civil society actors, religious leaders, and legal aid service providers. In June, JHRA

formulated a summary report on this field data based on consultations with key formal and

informal justice providers and stakeholders. This summary provides preliminary

recommendations to the formal justice system, particularly the MoJ, on the production of a

legal and policy framework to enhance synergies between the two justice systems.

JHRA’s work on traditional dispute resolution has also resulted in the inclusion of the draft

Jirga Law in the 1393 Legislative Calendar. Recommendations stemming from the report on

alternative dispute resolution are expected to be used to guide the Taqnin and the formal

justice system in the formulation of a legislation or policy on coordination mechanisms for

State and traditional justice institutions. The summary report will therefore be further refined

to provide the MoJ with a specific legal analysis of the 2010 draft Jirga Law, to be used in

this process. At present the draft report has been widely circulated amongst the UN agencies,

research organisations and donor community. The Dari version of the draft is under

preparation to be shared with the MoJ. In the meantime, the MoJ has taken certain pro-active

measures to undertake coordination with institutions that are undertaking similar work under

this thematic area. JHRA has also been in discussions on the research with the Hamida

Barmaki Organisation for Rule of Law.

3.2 Increase advocacy and monitoring capacity of CSOs, media, think-tanks and the

AIHRC

Indicator 3.2: AIHRC Strategic Plan 2014-2019 developed.

The annual target for this Activity Result is “AIHRC Strategic Plan 2014-2019 finalized”.

JHRA supported a national expert and provided technical input and support to the AIHRC to

enhance the development of its strategic plan. The final draft was accepted by AIHRC

commissioners, and the Strategic Plan and Action Plan and the Dari and Pashto translations

of the document are currently being edited. This Activity Result is therefore on target.

During the earlier part of the year, a JHRA-funded consultant provided technical and

advisory support to the AIHRC management for the development of its 2014-2018 Strategic

Plan. In Q3, the strategic plan was finalized. The plan outlines the main goals of the

institution and a timeline for its activities for the next five years. Currently, AIHRC is editing

the Dari and Pashto translations of the document. The JHRA consultant is also providing a

26 | P a g e

two-day orientation training for AIHRC regional staff on the strategic plan and how to

conduct investigations.

In order to facilitate AIHRC partnerships with other National Human Rights Institutes

(NHRIs) in the Asia-Pacific region and promote knowledge transfer on human rights

education, during Q3 JHRA staff undertook preparations for an exposure visit for three

members of the AIHRC to the Philippines. The exposure visit is planned for early November

and will take place over 10 days. AIHRC staff will visit Manila and Cotabato, located in the

Mindanao region of the Philippines, to discuss and share knowledge on reporting and

investigation of human rights issues as well as communication and information management

between regional, provincial and national offices.

With the goal of increasing the media’s capacity to report on human rights and justice issues

in mind, JHRA, in close cooperation with the AIHRC, the MoJ, the MoIC and NAI Media

Institute, a media support organization, organized a three-day training program for 44

community radio stations. Reporters and chief executive officers from community radio

stations across the country attended the training, which focused on enhancing the knowledge

and capacity of community radio stations to mainstream justice and human rights issues in

their programming.

3.3 Strengthen the public’s awareness of human rights and the role of the justice system

through the MoJ Legal Awareness Unit and media institutions.

Indicator 3.3: Number of products produced that inform the communication strategy for MoJ

PLAU.

The annual target for this Activity Result is “Communication Strategy developed and

implemented by PLAU.” The draft Communication Strategy and Action Plan was developed

in coordination with PLAU in and a final version was endorsed by the MoJ in Q3. The

document is expected to be published by the end of October. This Activity Result is therefore

on target.

The final draft of the Communication Strategy developed in coordination with the PLAU was

adopted by the MoJ this quarter. This communication strategy provides PLAU with

guidelines on how to engage with State and non-State actors involved in the production of

legal outreach materials, including line ministries, the media and CSOs, with a focus on

religious leaders and women’s groups, AIBA and the international donor community. The

implementation of this product will support the operationalization of the MoJ Legal

Awareness Strategy produced in 2011 and expand on the public legal awareness in general.

The contracting companies engaged to develop the communication strategy are now working

with PLAU to carry out the implementation phase. The aim of this phase is to train provincial

DoJ staff and regional PLAU staff in implementing the communication strategy, developing

required knowledge products and engaging with community radio stations in disseminating

necessary messages. Meanwhile, JHRA has provided financial and technical support for the

printing of several legal awareness knowledge products including three booklets and three

27 | P a g e

brochures on the rights of the accused and suspects, citizens’ rights, and traditions that are

against Islamic principles. Notebooks with legal messages on the Constitution, EVAW,

property rights and legal aid are in the process of being printed and are expected to be

delivered by the end of October.



see Annex 2.

28 | P a g e



3.1.1 Technical

Coordination

Committee

established in

Kabul. No

policy on street

vendor rights.

3.1.2 No national

policy or

legislation on

State/non-State

cooperation in

the justice

sector.

3.1.1 Policy paper

adopted by

Technical

Coordination

Committee.

3.1.2 One research

based advocacy

report on

alternative dispute

resolution

mechanisms

focusing on civil

cases finalised.

Assess boundaries within which

traditional dispute resolution mechanisms

can be utilized for civil matters.

An international consultant was hired who completed

the assessment. The final report and policy analysis

is currently under the review of JHRA and MOJ.

Support Huquq Department in translating

and disseminating the assessment report

To be done in Q4 after acceptance of final report.

Channel experiences and lessons learned

on dispute resolution mechanisms from

the Helmand Community-based dispute

resolution workshops and DCC/JSC

model into national level policy

discussions.

Provide technical and advisory support to

relevant stakeholders (Municipalities,

representatives of line ministries, street

vendors associations) in the

strengthening of the national legal

framework and formulation of policies to

improve socio-economic conditions of

street vendors.

Three TCC meetings and working groups were

conducted on the draft national LEP policy paper in

Jalalabad, Mazar and Kabul where technical and

advisory support was provided to relevant

stakeholders.

Ensure regular assistance for the

organizations of regular Technical

Committees meetings for street vendors,

anchored to the Municipalities of Kabul

and Herat.

During the reporting period, three TCC meetings

were organized in Mazar, Jalalabad and Kabul.

Support organization of a workshop in

Kabul with relevant Mayors representing

at least 5 provinces with ASGP support.

The TCC meetings held in Kabul and provinces

helped prepare for the forthcoming national LEP

workshop in Kabul. The workshop is expected to be

conducted in late November.

Support organization of exposure visit of

key national stakeholders (Municipality,

An exposure visit is scheduled to take place in early

December. The visit was delayed as it was supposed

29 | P a g e


MoJ, MoLSAMD, MPs) abroad to share

best practices on policies and legal

framework for informal economy actors

(street vendors)

to take place after the national LEP conference in

Kabul.

Strengthen partnerships and consultation

mechanisms between community police

and street vendors groups/associations

The TCCs have been helped in further developing

consultations mechanisms between community

senior police authorities and street vendors.

Undertake survey for generating further

statistical data on street vendors in Kabul.

Survey conducted in September in partnership with

the Faculty of Sharia of Kabul Municipality.

3.2 Capacity

Assessment

conducted in

2011, Action

Plan finalized in

2013. No

strategy in place.

3.2 AIHRC Strategic

Plan 2014-2019

finalised.

Facilitate AIHRC partnerships with other

NHRIs in the Asia-Pacific region, such as

Philippines, on knowledge transfer on

human rights education.

A concept note and other required coordination with

the Commission on Human Rights for the

Philippines has been undertaken; the actual exposure

visit is planned for early November.

Provide technical and advisory support

for the formulation of the AIHRC

Strategic Plan.

The four-year Strategic and Action Plan for AIHRC

has been completed along with translations into Dari

and Pashto. Currently AIHRC is doing some editing

of the translations. Upon completion the editing will

be submitted to JHRA printing.

Assist HRSU for production of HR

training materials.

The materials have been completed and a printing

company has been contracted to be printed. The

delivery is expected to take place by end of October.

Conduct a capacity needs assessment of

targeted community radio stations in

Kabul and Herat.

Based on the recommendations of Media Service

Providers Assessment, training was planned for

Community Radio Stations.

Formulate and implement targeted

training programmes to selected CSOs,

including community radio stations, as

well as line Ministries, including the

Ministry of Education, on human rights

awareness and social accountability

issues.

Between 21 and 23 Sept, UNDP/JHRA in close

cooperation with AIHRC, MoJ, Ministry of

Information and Culture (MoIC) and NAI, a media

support organization, delivered a three-day training

programme on human rights and justice issues. This

training targeted 44 Community Radio Stations.

Staff from the PLAU also attended the training. The

30 | P a g e


total number of participants was 55 (51 male, 4

female).

Engage CSOs and AIHRC in assessing

human rights compliance with traditional

justice resolution mechanisms.

Planning is currently underway for a training

workshop for CSOs to be conducted in November.

Support AIHRC in developing training

tools and strengthening staff knowledge

on business rights related issue.

The idea of developing business rights training tools

is currently under review of AIHRC senior

management.

3.3 National Public

Legal

Awareness

Institutional

Strategy

launched in

2011. No

communications

strategy in place.

3.3 Communications

strategy for MOJ

developed and

implemented by

MoJ PLAU.

Translate and disseminate

Communication Strategy report.

The endorsed MoJ Communication Strategy is

expected to be published by end of October.

Initiate media campaign for public legal

awareness activities. Legal issues for

mobile media development identified;

develop mechanisms for dissemination;

production of media materials on legal

issues.

Contracting companies are currently training

provincial DoJ staff and regional PLAU staff in

implementing the communication strategy,

developing required knowledge products and

engaging with community radio stations in

disseminating necessary messages.

PLAU media monitoring and capacity

development interventions

Media monitoring was done by contracting

companies and the results were used to develop the

communication strategy.

Facilitate partnerships between PLAU

and media companies to raise public

legal awareness.

Contracting companies are currently training PLAU

staff, teaching them how to engage with media and

produce knowledge products

Provide technical and advisory support to

PLAU management in the formulation of

the 2014 Action Plan.

This task was completed in early 2014.

Technical and advisory support for

institutionalization and regular meetings

of Public Legal Awareness Coordination

Committee linking line Ministries,

AIHRC and targeted CSOs.

The PLAU draft regulation, which allows PLAU to

coordinate with line ministries, has been pending

with MoJ Civil Law unit of the Taqnin since early

2013. Recently, MoJ plans to revisit and expedite

this matter, as it is key for the growth and

development of PLAU.

31 | P a g e


Support printing of relevant PLAU

outreach materials.

Three booklets and three brochures are in the process

of being printed. Notebooks have also been produced

and are expected to be delivered by the end of

October.

Technical and advisory support to PLAU

in developing and disseminating relevant

outreach products on economic, social

and cultural rights with focus on legal

empowerment of citizens.

Postponed to 2015 due to the request of PLAU.

Design and implement a management

training program for key PLAU staff on

planning monitoring and evaluation

possible with relevant training centers in

the Asia Pacific region

Postponed by PLAU until 2015.

32 | P a g e

OUTPUT 4: Project Support Unit: Internal oversight, monitoring and

evaluation capacity in place

M&E is an embedded concept and an essential requirement of every project or program

design. More particularly, in a situation where resources are increasingly limited, M&E is of

paramount importance. JHRA emphasizes the importance of M&E in the second phase of the

project to compile lessons learned, establish best practices, increase internal and external

accountability of resources used and results obtained, and take informed decisions on the

future of the project. The evaluations, based on the data gathered from monitoring, inform

strategic decisions which, in turn, improve the relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, impact

and sustainability of the JHRA project.

4.1. Ensure project support is conducted in a timely and compliant manner.

Indicator 4.1.a: Approved project budget in Atlas.

The annual target for this activity is “project plans (Annual Work Plan, Human Resources,

Procurement, M&E) and budgets are prepared, reviewed and revised on a timely basis.” In

Q3, JHRA has begun the preparations for the revision of the Annual Work Plan (AWP) to

ensure that the project delivery is fully aligned to the availability of resources.

Indicator 4.1.b: Evaluation reports.

The annual target for this activity is “mid-term evaluation conducted.” In Q3, one

international evaluator and one national evaluator started their work at home by reviewing

documents including project document, progress reports, research studies, strategy papers and

minutes of project steering committee meetings and donor meetings. From 25 August, their

meetings with various strategic partners, government counterparts and donors were initiated.

Most of the meetings were one on one; however a few were in the form of committees, as in

the case of the MoJ and meetings with the LAGF committee. It is expected that the

preliminary findings of the mid-term evaluation will be shared in mid-September and the

draft report is expected in November 2014. The recommendations of the mid-term evaluation

will help to redesign the project for its remaining period till December 2013.

During this quarter the UNDP senior management took a decision to undertake a

management structure evaluation which would provide an overall assessment of the project’s

management structure and the relationship between the project management, including pillar

managers, and its government counterparts. The evaluation will provide recommendations on

how to more clearly define the roles within the project management structure and how to

improve the relationship between the project and its government counterparts so that the

project can engage government more substantially and effectively.

The scope of this JHRA Management Structure Evaluation covers the interventions carried

out during the time-frame from the inception of the JHRA Phase II Project, 1 January 2013,

to the present. A target group for the evaluation includes national authorities, UN personnel,

strategic partners, and individuals within these groups.

33 | P a g e

The evaluation objectives are:

1. Review the ToR of the National Project Manager, the Chief Technical Advisor, and

the Project Pillar Managers to define the roles, reporting lines, and responsibilities of

each position and to assess the need for harmonizing the ToRs with the JHRA Project

Document.

2. Assess the current relationship between the project and its government counterparts,

in particular the MoJ.

3. Provide recommendations on:

How the next 16 months of implementation can be more effective and impactful

for the project, UNDP, its government counterparts, and beneficiaries through an

improved project management structure;

How the roles within the project management structure can be more clearly

defined; and

How to improve the relationship between the project and its government

counterparts so that the project can engage government more substantially and

effectively.

It was also decided that the evaluator would coordinate closely with the mid-term evaluators

while developing the recommendations to ensure a harmonized approach to the two reports.

During Q3, five monitoring missions were undertaken by the project staff and project

management to review progress of the project. Further, on a regular basis office meetings,

coordination meetings with programme unit and other operations units of UNDP have been

undertaken.

Indicator 4.1.c: # of project steering committee meetings convened during the year.

The annual target for this activity is “two Project Board meetings held.” No Project Board

meetings were held in Q3. This activity remains on track, as the first Project Board meeting

was held in Q1.

4.2. Develop comprehensive monitoring, evaluation and reporting systems.

Indicator 4.2a: The % of AWP, HR, Procurement and M&E plan implementation

The International M&E Expert in Q3 assisted the justice institutions working on RoLIS to

develop quantitative indicators for M&E and reporting. The M&E expert and the RoLIS

consultant also initiated the joint planning process to present the RoLIS as a comprehensive

set of indicators to a joint UN results group in early September to ensure that all UN agencies

engagement process is ensured during the preparation of the national baseline.

In Q3, the project began to review the revision of the 2014 AWP to ensure that all project

activities are fully aligned to the project document and the emerging priorities.

34 | P a g e

Indicator 4.2b: Quality and timeliness of project progress reports.

JHRA’s reporting and communications officer joined the project in August. JHRA has

continued to produce regular quarterly reports to update donors and government on project

activities and achievements.

EXPENSES FOR THE QUARTER


see Annex 2.

35 | P a g e



4.1.a 2014 project

budget not yet

approved in Atlas.

4.1.b No project

evaluations

conducted.

4.1.c 2013 Project

Steering

Committee meeting

held.

4.1.a Project Plans (AWP,

HR, Procurement,

M&E) and budgets are

prepared, reviewed and

revised on a timely

basis.

4.1.b Mid-term evaluation

conducted.

4.1.c Two Project Board

meetings held

Undertake annual review of project progress. JHRA initiated the mid-term evaluation with one

international and one national evaluator.

AWP 2014 revision process was initiated during this

quarter.

Undertake 2 reviews and analyse project

progress through regular internal

assessments, UNDP monthly team meetings,

and cluster meetings.

International and national mid-term evaluators commenced

work in August through document review and meetings

and discussions.

A management review of the project was decided by

UNDP senior management to streamline the management

of the project so that it can effectively coordinate with the

national counterparts. This is review is expected in

September.

Provide management support to the project

components. Preparation of revised AWP was initiated in Q3 to align all

project components for robust project delivery.

4.2.a 2014 AWP, HR,

Procurement and

M&E plans not yet

implemented.

4.2.b Project progress

reports delivered in

a timely and

quality fashion.

4.2.a Compliance with

UNDP rules and

regulations in carrying

out project activities

4.2.b Effective and Efficient

management and

reporting of resources

(receivables, budgets,

expense, personnel and

assets)

Project operation support. AWP package reviewed for remainder of 2014.

Regular one-stop-shop meetings undertaken with all

operations units of UNDP.

Monthly coordination meetings held with all project

components.

Weekly project disbursement & tracking undertaken.

36 | P a g e

III. GENDER-SPECIFIC RESULTS

JHRA works hard to ensure that gender priorities are not only included in all project

programming, but that they are implemented in a way that takes into account the fundamental

differences in the way women and men function within society, receive information, and are

able to transfer skills through their unique networks. Therefore, many gender considerations

have been integrated into the activities reported in other programmatic areas of this report. In

addition to integrated gender mainstreaming, often separate programming is required to

address the particular needs of women that stretch beyond JHRA’s standard activities. The

project works hard with other units within UNDP and its government counterparts to address

any new or exceptional needs for women as they arise.

In Q3, the recruitment process for a leadership trainer for MoJ women was initiated based on

the request received from them ministry to provide leadership and negotiation skills training

to the women. This training is expected to complement the computer and English classes that

the women staffs are undergoing to build the overall professional capacity of the women

employees of the MoJ.

Further during this period the MoJ requested the UNDP to provide support to the Family Law

drafting process through specific request to undertake an experiential learning mission to an

Islamic country which has recently enacted a contemporary Family Law. Based on this JHRA

has developed a data base of legal researchers in this area with the Asia Pacific Regional

Centre in Bangkok and also undertaken detailed discussions with some experts in Morocco

for support towards this study.

Further, in the RoLIS, since this is the establishment of a national baseline, care has been

taken to ensure that there are indicators and questions included in the FGD sessions that

address the concerns of violence against women and how the justice sector institutions are

combating this as a priority issue.

With the establishment and activation of the LAGF, JHRA has worked with AIBA and the

MoJ Legal Aid Department to ensure that cases involving women, particularly cases of

gender-based violence are prioritized among the cases selected for subsidy through the

facility. A total of 31 women lawyers have been trained under the LAGF, and 49 female

clients have had their cases taken up by the LAGF lawyers. Twenty-five of these cases were

related to civil matters while the rest were criminal cases.

During this quarter, EVAW court-related activities were initiated with one international and

national expert who prepared detailed curriculum for prosecutors on how prosecutors can

undertake settlements and prepare robust indictments for the women victims of violence.

Also, detailed discussions were undertaken with individual judges of the High Council of

Judges of the Supreme Court, the MoWA, Ministry of Hajj and Religious Affairs, UN

Agencies, civil society groups and the Deputy Governors of Herat and Balkh on the concept

design of the EVAW Court. Further detailed discussions were also undertaken with the

37 | P a g e

Women’s Commission of the Meshrano Jirga on the views and feedback on the requirements

while developing the EVAW Court briefing paper.

IV. PARTNERSHIPS

MoJ

Activities, including workshops and training sessions, continued with the MoJ based on the

letter of agreement, in which technical and financial support is extended by UNDP to MoJ

departments, such as the Taqnin, PPD, HRSU, and PLAU, for 2014.

AIBA

JHRA strengthened its partnership with AIBA in this quarter as the first cases were taken up

by AIBA lawyers through the LAGF. JHRA also supported the AIBA in opening of its

regional sub-office in Helmand, which will operationalize the LAGF in that province. The

opening of the office will also enable law students in Helmand to take their exams at the

provincial level.

Municipal Governments

JHRA continued its work with the municipal governments of Kabul, Herat and Mazar-e-

Sharif in Q3. TCC meetings were conducted on the legal empowerment of street vendors

which incorporated municipal officials in each of these cities. A national conference to

develop a country-wide policy on street vendors incorporating mayors from 10 provinces is

expected to be held in Q4.

AIHRC

JHRA provided financial and technical support for the development of AIHRC’s strategic

plan developed earlier this year. In Q3, the report was finalized. A JHRA consultant is also

providing an orientation for AIHRC regional staff on the strategic plan and how to conduct

investigations. In Q3, JHRA also undertook preparations for an exposure visit for AIHRC

staff to the Philippines. The visit will be conducted in Q4.

UN

In Q3, JHRA worked with several other agencies and projects of the UN leveraging synergies

between them in order to further its work. JHRA worked with the ASGP on the street

vendors’ initiative in order to coordinate meetings of the TCCs in Herat, Mazar and Kabul.

With the aim of raising the capacity of state justice providers, discussions were held between

LOTFA and JHRA to make arrangements for future training sessions for Herat, Mazar and

Kabul for prosecutors and the FRUs of police. JHRA has continued its coordination with

UNODC to provide trainings for prosecutors, defense lawyers, police officers and legal

advisors on Code of Conduct and Professional Standards for prosecutors of the AGO,

Investigation Principles, and Afghanistan National Police Code of Conduct. This

38 | P a g e

coordination capitalizes on UNODC’s existing expertise and training facility in these areas,

and extends their influence to JHRA’s direct stakeholders, increasing the uniformity of

information being provided to justice officials across the rule of law sector. With UNAMA’s

Rule of Law Unit, JHRA continued to implement the Rule of Law Indicators Study. JHRA is

also coordinating with UN Women to ensure that their NGO partners are fully aware of the

services available through the LAGF to increase the number of cases submitted involving

women detainees and those seeking refuge in shelters. HRSU is also coordinating with UN

Women to implement the specific recommendations of CEDAW.

V. ISSUES

Uncertain financial sustainability

Due to the continuing process involving the run-off presidential elections and acceptance

process, JHRA is still looking to secure certainty of funding for 2015. In Q3, the project met

with all existing and select potential donors to discuss possibilities of increasing and/or

extending funding to secure project continuity in 2015. Some partners have indicated

potential for additional funds for 2015, and these will be followed up in bilateral discussions

and draft AWP 2015 in Q4.

Security and the Elections

Due to the presidential elections, security remains an important concern for project

implementation. The extended presidential election audit process could affect the optimum

productivity of the project in terms of completion of activities. Also there has been a vacuum

in the decision making process in some of the key justice institutions leading to overall

general delays. It is expected that once the new administration is appointed, pending activities

can be sped up and new directions for 2015 may also emerge.

39 | P a g e

VI. RISKS

Security

Security remains an issue affecting the extent to which JHRA can deliver programming,

particularly in more remote areas of the country. While ongoing monitoring of the security

situation is required, JHRA has mitigated many movement restrictions by using multiple

contracting and engagement strategies to deliver programming. Through its National

Regional Coordinators, JHRA has increased the coordination and oversight the project is able

to maintain with counterparts in the regions, and NTA or external contracts provide for fewer

restrictions on movement due to UNDP security advisories. With the election audit process,

there has been heightened security threats which have led to some delays in delivery in Q3.

Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (GIRoA) support for all

components of the project

The extent to which GIRoA supports the development efforts of UNDP varies depending on

the focus area where stakeholders are involved. JHRA’s first mitigation strategy is to further

involve governmental counterparts in the PSC to promote ownership and ensure the project

meets the priorities of the Afghan Government. The project’s second mitigation strategy

consists of establishing working groups for all major activities, including the RoLIS, HRSU,

LAGF and PLA Coordination Board, to ensure greater programmatic outputs. With the

changes that continued into the third quarter at the MoJ in particular, and those anticipated

following the announcement of the presidential election results at the end of the quarter,

JHRA will need to work particularly closely with government counterparts to ensure

continuity of project activities, which are based on emerging government priorities.

VII. LESSONS LEARNED

Monitoring and coordination

Monitoring and coordination of activities is of the utmost importance, especially when

provincial level engagements are being undertaken. Coordination with justice sector

institutions and project partners needs constantly discussion and coordination to ensure steam

lining of processes and to reduce duplication of actions. A Field mission, discussion with

stakeholders, and regular desk review of projects based on established benchmarks is an

essential part of project implementation and management. A total of five field missions were

undertaken by the staff. Further, M&E also supports the project in undertaking decision

making for individual activity results and as output areas.

Coordinating with similar projects

JHRA has strengthened its coordination with other projects, agencies and institutions in order

to maximize the impact of its activities. Working across projects extends the reach of JHRA

programming throughout the Afghanistan government system, and encourages deeper

40 | P a g e

entrenchment of priorities in those of the State. JHRA has worked closely with the UNDP

ASGP on its work with municipal governments for the legal empowerment of street vendor.

This tie-in allows for continued work in the regions with municipal officials, as well as the

involvement of the Governor’s Offices and Provincial Councils in target provinces. This will

encourage expansion of this initiative throughout the provinces and regions, and broaden

support and input for a national policy increasing the legal protection for those working in the

informal sector.

JHRA is also increasing its coordination with the LOTFA both in the development of the

strategic plan for LOTFA VII and in concrete activities such as police/prosecutor training,

EVAW/FRU coordination and training, and the development of State/non-State platforms at

the community and district levels. During the second quarter, detailed plans for discussions

on preparation of standard operating procedures and training on investigations, EVAW Law

and preparation of crime scene reports were undertaken for implementation in the next

quarter.

JHRA continues to implement the RoLIS through coordination with the UNAMA Rule of

Law unit. All meetings, coordination of consultant’s action plans, and key deliverables are

worked out jointly. During this quarter the joint agencies also initiated coordination with

other UN agencies to present the list of indicators to a UN Results Group for feedback and

technical advice.

JHRA will continue to tighten its work with other projects whenever and whenever necessary

to strengthen the delivery of its programming for the men and women of Afghanistan.

Facilitating consultations and creating dialogue

Ensuring that programming remains relevant and is delivered and/or supported in a way that

best contributes to the work undertaken by the government, JHRA holds regular consultations

with government, donor, international agencies and civil society partners to discuss realized

and anticipated progress. This allows the project to re-gauge its planned support, and tailor

engagements to the actual needs as they progress and respond to the political situation in

Afghanistan. The RoLIS working group, LAGF Committee, the Technical Committee for

UNCAT are some of the groups that have been meeting on a regular basis to undertake

substantive discussions and ensure consensus building.

Regular staff, UNDP operations unit meetings

To overcome implementation challenges, regular operations meetings are conducted within

JHRA and in coordination with the UNDP Country Office teams. Weekly meetings with the

UNDP Human Resources, Procurement and Finance Units, and all operations teams at one-

stop-shop solutions meetings, have helped JHRA increase its effectiveness.

41 | P a g e

VIII. FUTURE PLANS

JHRA continues to build upon its current activities to achieve the outcomes expected from

the project. In Q4, JHRA-supported activities include:

Finalize recruitment of consultant on Family Law

Finalize recruitment of consultant on Penal Code

Finalize recruitment of leadership trainer for MoJ women

RoLIS indicators finalized

Conduct field visits to six provinces of RoLIS

Contracting company to undertake field missions for FGDs and survey

Print FAQ on RoLIS

Finalize study tour of RoLIS

Print and launch three publications of HRSU

Finalize and publish monitoring tool on UPR, CRC, ESCR, CEDAW

Hold human rights workshop for National Assembly for development of manual on

human rights and legislation for parliamentarians

Develop action plan for DHRIWA

Plan and prepare publication by DIHR for International Institute for Diplomacy

Helmand training on CPC for judges

Finalize LAGF FAQ

Mid-term evaluation of LAGF

Hold workshops in Herat and Mazar on settlements, SOPs for police and prosecutors

and training on preparation of Indictments

Engage with EVAW Commission and MoWA on EVAW court design

Preparations for symposium with students on law clinic in Herat

Finalize assessment study on EVAW report 2013 for printing

Ensure one coordination meeting with State and non-State actors in Herat

Arrange LOTFA workshop for police and prosecutors

42 | P a g e

Planning for experiential learning tour to Bangladesh on legal aid and community

based dispute resolution systems.

Hold meetings on in order to prepare of the opening of NLTC in Herat

Organize workshop on principles of development and effectiveness for human rights

and justice NGOs and CSOs

Prepare shortlist for small grants program

Launch of MoJ communication strategy

Advertise TOR for Helmand messaging on radio

Prepare Facebook messages and training for PLAU

Conduct field missions to Herat, Mazar, and Kunduz for TCC

Print brochure for street vendors’ associations

Print notebooks with PLAU

Print strategic plan for AIHRC

Finalize AIHRC study tour to Philippines and Mindanao

Advertise TOR on mapping of religious leaders in Herat for the purpose of reaching

out to them through PLAU

Advertise TOR for expert on land rights to develop policy and contribute to

legislation

Kabul LEP survey analysis report to be prepared

Translation of Ali Wardak’s on engagement of state and non-state actors report

Mission to Mazar for JHRA donors

AWP preparation for 2015

JHRA re-design process to be initiated

43 | P a g e

IX. ANNEXES

A. ANNEX 1: FINANCIAL TABLE

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B. ANNEX 2: EXPENSES BY OUTPUT

45 | P a g e

C. ANNEX 3: EXPENSES BY DONOR

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47 | P a g e

D. ANNEX 4: RISK LOG

# DESCRIPTION

DATE

IDENTI

FIED

TYPE IMPACT & PROBABILITY COUNTERMEASURES/MNG

T. RESPONSE OWNER

SUBMITTED

BY STATUS

1 Lack of security

ongoing

Environ-

mental

Political

Potential risk of injury or death to

project staff and contractors

Potential impact on activities –

delayed or rescheduled activities

Lack of security in provinces and

districts in which UNDP-JHRA will

carry out programming continues to

impede project implementation.

Subsequently, in addition to

implementation, the security

situation has also particular impact

on the project’s ability to monitor

activities through field assessments.

I: 2

P: 5

Comply with UNDSS

security arrangements

Contract security

services for physical

security.

Obtain security

clearances for internal

travel

Conduct conflict

assessment as part of

selection of districts

Contract external

organizations where

required

National

Project

Manager,

CTA

Staff

JHRA worked closely with UNDSS to

monitor the security situation in Kabul

and the provinces for all missions.

JHRA used ANP armed escorts for

road missions and additional security

for large events.

Security did affect programming as

Mission planning consumes large

amounts of time and coordination

between various agencies.

Workshops at the district level have

been postponed due to security

advisory. Data collection on State and

non-State cooperation in the justice

sector could not take place in Herat.

2 Extent of GIRoA

support for all

components of the

Project

ongoing Political Project will require political support

and coordination with several

GIRoA institutions

I: 4

P: 4

GIRoA counterparts

involved in the Project

Steering Committee (PSC)

to promote ownership and

ensure the project meets

GIRoA priorities

CTA,

Project

Manager

and

RoL Unit

Program

Officer

Staff Project Steering Committee (PSC)

convened in November 2013.

48 | P a g e

# DESCRIPTION

DATE

IDENTI

FIED

TYPE IMPACT & PROBABILITY COUNTERMEASURES/MNG

T. RESPONSE OWNER

SUBMITTED

BY STATUS

3 Recruitments/

Risk of delays in

recruitment of key

project staff

ongoing Ops Delays in appointment of key staff

will delay the implementation of

technical activities,and limit project

oversight of other activities

I: 3

P: 3

Project recruitment plan

listing planned

recruitments and target

dates will be followed up

closely.

CTA,

Project

Manager/

Human

Resources

Assistant

CTA/

Human

Resources

Assistant

The Project is currently almost fully

staffed. Much of this was the result of

lengthy internal processes.

4 Sensitivity

surrounding

Gender

Mainstreaming

Q2 Political Limited gender programming

I : 3

P : 4

Project implementation is

based on national priorities

such as the NAPWA.

CTA,

National

Project

Manager,

component

managers,

key staff

staff Workshop for female staff at the MoJ

was followed up on with the

recruitment of trainers in fields where

capacity development is required

(English language, computer literacy).

Gender mainstreaming is ensured in all

activities under each component.

49 | P a g e

E. ANNEX 5: ISSUE LOG

# DESCRIPTION DATE

IDENTIFIED IMPACT/PRIORITY

COUNTERMEASURE/MNGT

RESPONSE OWNER STATUS

1 Financial Sustainability 2013 Impact = 5

Priority = 5 Increase ownership and thus efficiency

CTA &

Program Officer Unresolved

2 Coordination between LAGF

stakeholders Q 2 and Q3

Impact = 3

Priority = 4

Facilitate discussions between

stakeholders.

CTA & Access

to Justice

Coordinator

Resolved

3 Security Incidents due to the

Elections September 2013

Impact = 4

Priority = 3 Cooperation with UNDSS All JHRA staff Not resolved

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