Background

Bhutan has established a comprehensive legal and institutional framework to advance the rule of law and access to justice. Since the 1950s, the development of the legal and judicial sector has progressed at a remarkable pace which was further accelerated with the professionalization of the judiciary from the 1990s and the creation of Office of Legal Affairs in 1999 which was later replaced as the Office of Attorney General (OAG) in 2006. The 2008 Constitution guarantees separation of powers and judicial independence, a democratically elected parliament, a well-qualified and effective judiciary and Attorney-General’s office and a system of mediation at local level.

Significant investments to advance the justice sector and strengthen the rule of law in Bhutan are underway, with a Justice sector strategic plan (developed in 2018) providing a strategic framework for action and prioritized thematic action areas defined under its five strategic goals. These goals include:

1. Justice Sector Leadership, Governance, and Collaboration are Effective;
2. Justice Service Providers are Competent and Motivated;
3. Justice Services are Responsive, Efficient, and Accountable;
4. Justice Sector Services are Accessible and Inclusive; and
5. Infrastructure is Adequate to Deliver Justice Services More Efficiently.

An effective and citizen-centric justice sector is identified as a key result towards meeting the government’s 13th FYP goal to ensure that state institutions ensure inclusive, effective and accessible justice, transparent rule of law, and public oversight.  To respond to the rapidly evolving governance developments and findings from the Common Country Analysis and Independent Country Program Evaluation to continue supporting sectoral approach to justice sector reform for a more consolidated and coordinated justice services that will benefit the women, children and other vulnerable groups.

As such, enhancing access to justice in particular for women, Person with Disabilities and other vulnerable groups is an integral part of the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework 2024-2028 and UNDP’s new Country Programme Document (2024-2028).  To ensure UNDP’s support to justice sector reform adheres to the principle of “leaving no one behind” and promote gender equality in accessing justice services, the programmes are based on gender analysis and disaggregated data on access to justice. Additionally, gender equality and LNOB are key considerations made across all UNDP programmes and projects.

Building on the successful phase 1 of regional youth project 2017-2022, in 2022, the Youth Empowerment Project in Asia and the Pacific (YEP-AP) was approved as a regional programme in the Asia-Pacific region. YEP-AP focuses on youth political, social, and economic empowerment by building the capacities of young people and key stakeholders and creating safe, inclusive, and enabling environments for youth participation and civic engagement, especially for women and those from marginalized groups.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the overall guidance of the Governance Portfolio Manager, the Intern will mainly provide assistance and support to the ongoing work in delivering tasks such as, but not limited to, programmatic, operational, and administrative work.

The intern will assist in the following duties and responsibilities:

1. Assist in technical advisory services  

• Support in making briefs for technical advice/guidance on implementation of the existing access to justice, and gender, youth and inclusion programme;
• Undertake research for quality enhancement, drawing regional and global experiences to enhance the quality of process and results focusing on access to justice, and gender, youth and inclusion;
• Support development of gender and youth portfolio
• Support the preparation of project progress reports and related presentations, briefings, knowledge products and relevant documents as required;
• Assist in identifying areas of engagements and investments for future programming, including   resource mobilization for access to justice for vulnerable groups, youth engagement and empowerment, gender based violence prevention

2. Assist in Stakeholder management, partnership coordination, and external relations

• Support in building relationships with academia, private sector, civil society, and other relevant stakeholders in relation to access to justice for vulnerable groups and gender, youth and inclusion;
• Conduct analysis and research of information on partners and donors for the preparation of substantive briefs on possible areas of cooperation, identification of cooperation opportunities;
• Provide coordination support to the governance team in programs related to Justice and gender, youth, and inclusion.

3. Knowledge management and innovation

• Contribute to knowledge building and sharing related to the current and emerging trends in the fields of Access to Justice, gender, youth and inclusion
• Prepare briefing notes of new developments and innovative approaches/solutions in the areas of gender, gender-based violence, youth engagement and empowerment and access to justice and actively contribute to the office learning process and corporate knowledge tools
• Support in drafting knowledge and advocacy products e.g. background documents, briefs, speeches, presentations and other communication materials related to multi-year framework programme;
• Support the production of communication materials to highlight the achievements and activities of the team;
• Provide coordination support to the governance Team to ensure efficient internal communications;
• Provide logistical support to governance team and other units events;
• Support in conducting researches and collecting data as requested;
• Provide other adhoc support as required.

Competencies

• Curiosity, Creative thinking, and ability to make new and useful ideas;
• Good analytical skills in gathering and consolidating data and research for practical implementation;
• Communicates effectively when working in teams and independently;
• Strong organizational skills, the ability to multi-task, and strong attention to details;
• Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
• Ability to support a team and team building skills;
• Excellent oral and written communication skills;
• Responds positively to feedback and differing points of view; and
• Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude showing willingness to learn.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

• Candidates must at the time of application be enrolled in the final academic year of a Bachelor of Laws programme.

• Applicants must have knowledge in relevant field such as: Legal Writing & Research, Oral Advocacy & Logic, Economics, Philosophy, Human Dignity, and Political Science

Language:

• Excellent written and spoken English
• Good level of knowledge in Dzongkh