africa consultant call for expressions of interest background since 2010, mdac has worked with local ngos on research, monitoring and advocacy related to the human rights of people with mental disabilities in kenya, uganda and zambia. outcomes have the first investigation into the right to legal capacity for people with mental disabilities on the african continent, which we carried out in kenya – click here to read more; an extensive human rights monitoring and documentation project in uganda focusing on the experiences of violence and ill-le with mental disabilities in psychiatric hospitals and their communities – click here to read our two major reports from the project; a mental health user and survivor-led research project in zambia assessing a number of human rights dimensions in the country, and resulting in detailed recommendations developed with civil society – to read the report and recommendations; the initiation of strategic litigation in uganda tackling practices amounting to torture at butabika hospital, the national psychiatric institution (read this trio of blog posts by our executive director); and on behalf of a female victim of police brutality (read more here); and conducting advocacy at the united nations in respect of kenya’s disability rights record, resulting in strong recommendations to the government to end the practice of informal substitute decision-making for people with mental disabilities – see here. the role lawyer to coordinate our work in africa, in particular through innovative legal approaches to tackling human rights violations against people with mental disabilities. initially for a period of six months with the possibility of an extension, the consultant will be responsible for: initiating a project to train ugandan and zambian lawyers to represent people with mental disabilities in the courts -treatment, including two 10-day missions to zambia/uganda/kenya to deliver training and take part in litigation strategy sessions; developing and implementing a strategic litigation plan in uganda; coordinating advocacy and litigation on the right to legal capacity (autonomy) for people with mental engaging with the african commission on human and peoples’ rights, with a focus on developing the new protocol to the african convention on human and peoples’ rights focused on the rights of persons with disabilities. person specification the consultant will be an organised, creative and independent person with the ability to develop relationships quickly, possess excellent legal and analytical skills, and hold considerable knowledge and understanding of disability rights in africa. in addition, the successful applicant will have the following: an undergraduate law degree with at least 3 years’ experience in litigation and/or advocacy; good knowledge of international human rights law; strong knowledge of african legal systems and contexts; familiarity with the rights of people with disabilities (including the un convention on the rights of persons with disabilities); excellent project management skills; experience organising training or similar events; ability to engage effectively with a diverse range of stakeholders including ngos, corporate lawyers and civil servants; excellent networking and communications skills; ability to translate complex legal concepts into advocacy and media-friendly language; fluency in english; and based in kenya, uganda, zambia, hungary or the uk. other desirable knowledge, skills, experience and qualifications include: knowledge of zambian, kenyan and/or ugandan legal systems; knowledge of african regional human rights systems; experience managing a multi-stakeholder litigation or advocacy project; and llm in international human rights law. application procedure interested candidates should send a cv and a letter of interest to mdac by friday 29th january 2016, 6pm cet. the letter of interest must set out the following: 1. your motivation for being engaged as a consultant with mdac; 2. how you are suited to this position, with reference to the person specification; 3. your estimated lump sum fee based on an estimated 75 days of work within the period 15 february 2016 and 15 august 2016; and 4. details of two referees who can comment on your suitability for this consultancy position. we will ask your permission before contacting the referees. completed applications should be emailed to jointheteam@mdac.org before the closing date, with the subject line “africa consultant”. we expect telephone interviews to take place during the week of 1 february 2016.
