95332418Q0140_-_Attachment_(iii)_(JN).pdf

ATTACHMENT (iii)

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Consultant Services for Access to Judicial Information Activity

Kosovo Threshold Program

Statement of Work

A. Introduction The Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) is a Federal Corporation created under Title VI of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2004. MCC’s mission is to reduce poverty around the world through the promotion of sustainable economic growth based on the principle that aid is most effective when it strengthens good governance, economic freedom and investments in people. MCC requires professional services to provide technical advice and assistance to the Government of Kosovo (GoK) for the Access to Judicial Information Activity of the Kosovo Threshold Program, which entails the opening of judicial information to the public and encouraging use of that data, through creating greater access of individuals to a case management information system and increased publishing of statistics and decisions by courts.

B. Background Government decision-making in Kosovo is often opaque, leading to distrust by the private sector and civil society and high perceptions of corruption. Kosovo’s judiciary is one the country’s least trusted institutions. This project supports the expansion of a case management information system (CMIS) to make judicial information publicly available. This system will build on prior work of the Government of Norway in collaboration with Kosovo institutions to build and establish a CMIS, which is currently only accessible to judges and prosecutors. Major interventions under the MCC-funded project include creating access for individuals to their own court cases, publishing and ensuring public access to judicial statistics (like case closure rates by various demographic indicators) and publishing and improving quality of judicial decisions.

C. Scope The objective of this call order is to provide the MCC Kosovo team and Millennium Foundation Kosovo (MFK) – the local MCA accountable entity – as well as the eventual activity implementers, with implementation advisory support to the Access to Judicial Information Activity including analysis, recommendations, guidance and implementation planning (including TOR/RFP and work-plan development), strategy and support. Services shall be performed in Washington, DC, Kosovo and any other MCC eligible country (if required).

D. Tasks The Consultant shall carry out his/her tasks and activities in collaboration with the MCC Kosovo Team, other MCC staff, MFK Governance Director, other MFK staff and eventual activity implementers. The Consultant shall work effectively with staff of MCC, MFK, implementers, other consultants and GoK stakeholders, such as the Kosovo Judicial Council, Kosovo Prosecutors Council, Ministry of Justice and others. The Consultant shall provide technical recommendations and implementation oversight advice in support of project work planned with respect to:

• Creating an online platform for the public to access their personal case information and statistical data generated by the case management information system, as well as enabling disaggregation and analysis of data by meaningful categories, such as gender, region, or ethnicity;

• Supporting improved quality of judicial decisions for publication;

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• Making judicial decisions publicly available through the online platform to encourage wider accessibility and analysis;

• Supporting improvement of communication and outreach by the judiciary and other rule of law institutions

In the initial phase of the assignment, the Consultant, with assistance and in cooperation with MCC and MFK staff, shall perform the following specific tasks:

• Review existing work toward establishment of the internal CMIS, including identification of remaining challenges;

• Identify potential models for a module that allows for public access to individual cases as well as descriptive statistics and decisions;

• Help assess potential privacy and security issues, as well as other policy concerns, and how they might be addressed in line with Kosovo law or where Kosovo law may need to be updated;

• Support the MFK team in identifying and coordinating with key stakeholders and potential implementing partners in the Kosovo Judicial landscape, the donor community, as well as organizations that support access to justice for women, minorities and other groups facing disadvantages;

• Support the MFK team to identify critical capacity building or training needs in the judicial sector to promote access to and use of the tools developed during the activity, including in the area of communications and outreach, as well as information technology solutions;

• Support the MFK team and MCC M&E teams in developing a monitoring and evaluation plan for the Access to Judicial Information Activity, including expanding and reviewing the theory of change with result outputs and outcomes, identifying key performance and outcome indicators with baselines and feasible targets to measure progress towards articulated activity results, and identifying sources for obtaining the data for key performance indicators;

• Help develop TOR for development of the public access module and support the procurement of implementers;

• Work closely with the MFK and MCC social and gender specialists to support the implementation and rollout of relevant activities under the Social and Gender Integration Plan;

• Coordinate with the MCC and MFK Kosovo Open Data Challenge Activity team to understand the judicial data needs that will be one of the inputs for the Challenge, and to incorporate those needs into the Access to Judicial Information Activity work-plan and timelines; and

• Support MFK in engaging with civil society and other stakeholders to encourage analysis and use of data on judicial decisions, including in regards to equal access to justice for disadvantaged groups.

Once the procurement has been completed and an implementer hired, the Consultant shall continue to provide support to MCC to ensure sufficient oversight of the activity and successful outcomes of the project. Subsequent tasks will be outlined in the next phase (implementation).

E. Conflict of Interest The Consultant will be precluded from bidding on work and services (design, assessment, construction and supervision) to be procured by the local MCA accountable entity or using funds advanced under a Compact or Threshold program in the relevant country.

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F. Deliverables F.1 The specific delivery schedule for all deliverables will be as mutually determined by the parties.

Deliverables include:

• Prior to commencing the assignment, the Consultant shall develop and submit to MCC/MFK a proposed work plan that includes specific activities, site visits, time frame and estimated duration of each activity.

• Periodic written and verbal reports on findings and recommendations resulting from meetings, discussions and field /site visits to Kosovo.

• Recommendations on the drafting of the activity TOR and program planning.

• Recommendations on key issues for policy reform or improved implementation.

• Recommendations on critical capacity building for the Kosovo judicial sector and users of judicial information.

• Presentations to MCC/MFK staff and Government of Kosovo counterparts of key findings and issues for further examination.

• For all travel, the Consultant must submit an MCC compliant Scope of Work a week before the trip and a detailed Trip Report within a week after returning from the trip.

• Additional communications, memos and briefs, as required.

F.2 Deliverables will be evaluated according to the following criteria:

• Thoroughness and timeliness in complying with all of the elements in the tasks specified.

• Quality and clarity of analyses and work produced.

• Timeliness and efficacy of communications with relevant counterparts at MCC, MFK, GoK agencies, and other relevant organizations.

All reports shall be submitted in English in electronic copy (in MS Word), with tables, data and calculations in MS Excel. Oral and PowerPoint presentations for GoK counterparts will be conducted in English with translation provided if needed.

G. Period of Performance All work under this contract will be completed between the effective date of the contract award through three (3) years thereafter. The estimated number of days/hours per year required to complete the tasks under this assignment are indicated in the following table. MCC anticipates this number of hours but does not guarantee it, as it may increase or decrease.

Estimated Duration (Working Days)

Estimated Hours (Working Hours)

1. Implementation Support Services (home and/or Washington, DC) 80 640

2. Field work –Implementation Support and Oversight - (Kosovo) 50 400

TOTAL (per year): 130 1,040

H. Performance Location The Consultant shall perform the tasks under this BPA Call Order at his/her primary place of business, with travel to Washington, DC, Kosovo, and other MCC-eligible countries as needed.

(End of Statement of Work)