Outcoem evaluation Access to Justice final report (2)

Evaluation of CPAP Outcome Access to Justice and Respect for Basic Human Rights Improved FINAL REPORT Stephane Jeannet Tuinese Edward Amuzu David Ofori-Ayeh May 2009 External Outcome Evaluation – Access to Justice and Human Rights List of acronyms used AG ADR AWP CHRAJ CEPIL CMC CPAP GPRS GPS IP JS LAS MJAGD UNDAF UNDP UNICEF Attorney General Alternative Dispute Resolution Annual work plans Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice Centre for Public Interest Law Community Mediation Centres Country Programme Action Plan Growth and Poverty Reduction Strategy Ghana Prisons Service Implementing Partners Judicial Service Legal Aid Scheme Ministry of Justice and Attorney General’s Department United Nations Development Assistance Framework United Nations Development Programme United Nations Children’s Fund Contents EXECUTIVE SUMMARY INTRODUCTION 1.1 Outcome to be evaluated and objectives of the evaluation 1.2 Strategic framework THE DEVELOPMENT CONTEXT EVALUATION METHODOLOGY 10 3.1 Desk study 10 3.2 Interviews 10 3.3 Debriefing workshop 11 FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS .11 4.1 Relevance and design of the programme .11 4.1.1 Relevance .11 4.1.2 Design 14 4.2 Status of the outcome 15 4.1 Case study A: the Judicial Services 15 4.2 Case study B: the Legal Aid Scheme .18 4.3 Challenges affecting the outcome 19 4.4 UNDP contributions to the outcome through outputs 20 4.5 UNDP partnership strategy 20 4.5.1 Partnerships with IPs and other potential stakeholders 21 4.5.2 Partnerships with UN agencies and programmes 21 4.6 Rating of progress on outcomes and outputs 22 LESSONS LEARNED 23 RECOMMENDATIONS .24 Annexes 25 I Bibliography 25 II List of interviewees 28 III Examples of IP’s activities in AWP 29 IV Terms of Reference 30 V About the consultants 38 Page of 41 Final Report of 27 April 2009 External Outcome Evaluation – Access to Justice and Human Rights EXECUTIVE SUMMARY In a country where the judicial system faces many challenges, and where approximately half of the adult population is illiterate, alternative dispute resolution (hereinafter ADR) is probably an adequate way to solve civil matters outside of court Nevertheless, the evaluators observed a weak justification for the choice of ADR as the main focus of the programme This is particularly obvious given the absence of an overall strategy paper outlining the intervention logic In fact, there is a missing link between the United Nations Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF) and the Country Programme Action Plan (CPAP), as well as between the CPAP and the Annual Work Plans (AWP) Another weakness of the programme is that it is not based on a formal baseline study, neither on the side of UNDP nor of the IPs This is problematic not only because it means that the exact needs of the targeted populations have not been identified and quantified, but also because it will make it virtually impossible to measure the results of the programme In the opinion of the evaluators as well as of the vast majority of the experts and stakeholders interviewed, ADR does not address the most burning problem facing Ghana in terms of access to justice and human rights, particularly within the criminal justice delivery system In fact, egregious violations take place in prisons, where over 2200 inmates are held on remand (some with expired warrants) for periods of up to fifteen years Mainstreaming ADR into the Courts, Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) and Legal Aid Scheme (LAS) as the main indicator for success is inappropriate This is the case though ADR may be a fast track route and a more cost effective means to the resolution of many civil disputes vis-à-vis traditional court system dispute resolution in Ghana Mainstreaming ADR as an indicator will be inappropriate for aspects of the programme implemented under the “Justice for All” component In terms of advocacy concerning human rights and access to justice, the programme does not include any strategy to influence drivers of change, i.e policy and decision makers From a governance perspective, this lack of strategy weakens the chances of the programme reaching the desired outcome Indeed, unless decisions are taken on policy at the highest level, the programme is likely to continue, as one interlocutor put it, “to scratch the surface” of the problem, or as another stakeholder put it, to be purely “cosmetic” In terms of exposure to best practices in other countries, south-south cooperation, holistic and participatory approach, UNDP’s inputs have been marginal Outputs, notably relating to capacity development (in terms of training and IT equipment procurement), have contributed to enabling IPs to increase their chances of influencing the outcome Another type of intervention likely to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of IPs is the support provided by UNDP (through external consultants) for some of the IPs in developing strategic action plans Such efforts constitute a good basis for future progress Human rights and access to justice both involve a complex web of actors and complex interrelated issues Therefore, UNDP has rightly tried gradually to cluster the IPs’ projects So far, however, an overarching strategic concept encompassing all IPs and their respective projects is still lacking Likewise, UNDP has unsuccessfully attempted to create a common platform for IPs, but the different partners seemed to have privileged their own independence, to the detriment of coordination and synergies So far, little attention has been paid to one of the key players in human rights and access to justice, namely the police, which is the entry point in many respects, in particular regarding the issue of prisoners on remand Likewise, the involvement of, and support to civil society has been marginal, even if it was foreseen in the UNDAF, the CPAP and some of the AWP Page of 41 Final Report of 27 April 2009 External Outcome Evaluation – Access to Justice and Human Rights Furthermore, some of the main actors in the problem of access to justice, namely lawyers and the Bar not appear to be deeply involved It appears that UN Agencies and Programmes discovered each other’s activities only in the framework of last year’s UNDAF review For example, UNICEF also works with the Prison Service (on juvenile justice), but this is not coordinated with UNDP, even though UNDP is the Sector Lead for governance, which includes access to justice The same probably also applies to UNHCR and UNFPA In spite of the difficulties outlined above, the programme has made some gains including establishing the structures on which the “Justice for All” programme of the Attorney General’s Department could take off successfully This is one of the outputs of the Stakeholders Forum held between 23rd and 24th October, 2008 at Dodowa Again, it is noteworthy that the Judicial Service had had to pre finance implementation of some programmes from its own resources as funds from UNDP delayed This is commendable as it is reflective of local ownership of the programme executed by the Judicial Service In terms of status of the outcome, the evaluators chose two case studies to illustrate achievements and challenges, i.e the Judicial Services and the Legal Aid Scheme The lessons-learned identified in the present outcome evaluation are the following: The precondition for a meaningful outcome evaluation is the existence of thoroughly documented strategies, plans, processes and activities; The logical link between the different levels of strategy/planning (i.e GPRS, UNDAF, CPAP and AWP) needs to be clearly spelled out; A baseline study should precede the launching of activities; The choice of IPs should be based on a clearly spelled out strategy taking into consideration: a) partners’ ability to drive change and influence policy; and b) the relevance of their mandate given the desired outcome; Clustering of IPs and outputs is necessary but should be based on a participatory consultation process leading to national ownership; In line with the “One UN” strategy, UN Agencies and Programmes should, under the guidance of the Lead Agency (in the present case UNDP) coordinate strategies, plans and activities concerning a given issue; The development of AWP should be based on a clearly spelled-out analysis as to whether the previous year’s activities have led the programme closer to the outcome, and whether the partners are willing and able to plan outputs likely to work towards the outcome; Tardiness in approving AWPs and in disbursing funds adversely affects the continued relevance and efficiency of outputs; Any programme aiming to improve the situation of human rights and access to justice cannot limit itself to working only with governmental partners; other stakeholders need to be associated; 10 High turnover of project staff is detrimental to efficiency and institutional memory The recommendations of the evaluators are as follows: The issue of prisoners on remand should be at the centre of the programme’s desired outcome; Attention should be paid to one of the key players in human rights and access to justice, namely the police, which is the entry point in many respects, in particular regarding the issue of prisoners on remand; Each IP should have baseline information before commencement of implementation; Page of 41 Final Report of 27 April 2009 External Outcome Evaluation – Access to Justice and Human Rights AWPs should be submitted early enough for review and approval in December in order to commence implementation in January; Technical assistance and coaching should be provided to IPs in the design and implementation of monitoring and evaluation systems; Assistance provided by UNDP for some of the IPs in developing strategic action plans constitutes a good basis for future progress, but need to be followed up with appropriate support and coaching in order to ensure their actual implementation and sustainability; The logical link between the different levels of strategy/planning including GPRS II, UNDAF, CPAP and AWP) needs to be clearly spelled out; The choice of IPs should be based on a clearly spelled out strategy taking into consideration: a) partners’ ability to drive change and influence policy; and b) the relevance of their mandate given the desired outcome; Clustering of IPs and outputs should be based on a participatory consultation process leading to national ownership, and not merely on merging IPs’ AWP documents; possibilities to gather IPs and facilitate exchange of information, consultation and synergies could include: a retreat or a study trip and the creation of a common platform of exchange, first at the technical level, then at the level of decision-makers; 10 UN Agencies and Programmes should, under the guidance of the Sector Lead (in the present case UNDP) coordinate strategies, plans and activities concerning a given issue of interest; 11 The development of AWP should be based on a clearly spelled-out analysis as to whether the previous year’s activities have led the programme closer to the outcome, and whether the partners are willing and able to plan outputs likely to work towards the outcome; 12 Stakeholders, including civil society organizations, should be capacitated to participate in the programme to improve the situation of human rights and access to justice; thus, all drivers of change should be identified and involved; 13 Proper data collection and institutional memory within UNDP should be ensured; this will require more stable staffing and expertise in the subject matter, and appropriate hand-over processes Page of 41 Final Report of 27 April 2009 External Outcome Evaluation – Access to Justice and Human Rights INTRODUCTION 1.1 Outcome to be evaluated and objectives of the evaluation According to the evaluation plan of the UNDP Country Office in Ghana (referred to as UNDP Ghana, hereafter), an outcome evaluation will be conducted in the third quarter of 2008 for the following outcome, which is stated in the CPAP of UNDP Ghana as: “Access to Justice and respect for basic and human rights improved” The outcome evaluation shall assess the following: (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) Outcome analysis – Evaluate the progress that has been made towards the achievement of the outcome (including contributing factors and constraints); Output analysis - Determine contributing factors and impediments and extent of the UNDP contribution to the achievement of the outcomes through related project outputs (including an analysis of both project activities and soft-assistance activities1); Output-outcome link - Assess the contribution UNDP has made/is making to the progress towards the achievement of the outcome; and Assess partnership strategy in relation to outcome The results of the outcome evaluation will be used to guide future programming In this regard the evaluation will:     Identify strengths and weaknesses in the current Programme/Projects in respect of the stated outcome Extract lessons and best practices for futures interventions Propose better ways of coordinating donor interventions in the sector Identify priority areas of focus for future programming 1.2 Strategic framework The UNDAF supports national priorities as set out in the Growth and Poverty Reduction Strategy (GPRS II), 2006-2009 as the UNDAF outcomes are formally accepted as the strategic contributions of the UN to national priorities The UNDAF (2006-2010) is substantively linked with the Country Programme Document of UNDP as well as the programmes of other UN agencies in Ghana, ensuring that all UNDP’s programmes are consistent with UNDAF outcomes The UNDAF sections relevant to access to justice and human rights are reproduced here below: For UNDP, soft assistance activities include advocacy, policy advice/dialogue, and facilitation/brokerage of information and partnerships Page of 41 Final Report of 27 April 2009 […] External Outcome Evaluation – Access to Justice and Human Rights […] Page of 41 Final Report of 27 April 2009 The Country Programme Action Plan (CPAP) 2006-2010 was developed so as to operationalise the Country Programmes and to establish the commitments, particularly of resources, of the UN agencies and the government The Government of Ghana and UNDP Ghana are in mutual agreement on content of the CPAP and their responsibilities in the implementation of the Country Programme The CPAP entitled protection of rights and access to justice reads as follows: “In line with the UNDAF, the human rights component of the new Programme entails strengthening the rule of law and access to justice through the human rights based approach UNDP will support strengthening the judiciary, the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice, the Legal Aid Scheme and civil society organizations to enhance access to justice, mainstream the application and use of Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) and for human rights education Within the ongoing reforms in the judiciary, UNDP will support the development of strategic capacity for a transparent, efficient and inexpensive system to enhance access to justice and reduce the cost to litigants In particular, UNDP will provide policy advice to the Judicial Service in the semi-automation of the Magistrate Courts To further improve access to justice, UNDP will assist the Legal Aid Scheme to develop its capacity for programme development and to strengthen the capacity of its staff in the application of ADR mechanisms as part of the formal resolution processes for cases lodged with the Scheme UNDP will provide support to the Scheme to increase its awareness raising campaigns on how to access its services, including the expansion of the number of legal aid clinics Further support will include increased advocacy to encourage pro bono work by legal and other professionals.” The GPRS II, the UNDAF and the CPAP therefore provided the strategic frameworks within which this outcome evaluation was carried out THE DEVELOPMENT CONTEXT Good governance is increasingly recognized as an important goal for ensuring stability for wealth creation, to reduce poverty, to help attain sustainable human development and achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) Ghana’s current Growth and Poverty Reduction Strategy (GPRS II), 2006 - 2009 enunciates this connection by indicating good governance as one of the three priorities of the Government of Ghana On protecting rights under the rule of law, the policy of Ghana as captured in GPRS II is to “increase the capacity of the legal sector, enhance speedy and affordable justice” These are in line with objectives 3, 7, and of the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) that seek to promote civil, economic, social and political rights of the people including vulnerable groups Thus, access to justice and promotion of human rights has been captured as policy priorities for the government in the GPRS II The African Peer Review mechanism (APRM) Report as well as its plan of action also notes the challenges for accessing justice and guaranteeing people’s rights and calls for the mobilisation of resources to enhance the capacity of the institutions providing access to justice and human rights protection Under GPRS II, it is recognised that “the major difficulties associated with the administration of justice in Ghana can be categorised into two, namely judicial and attitudinal Those that can be traced to the judiciary include delays and costs in administration of justice resulting in lack of confidence in the judiciary, and inaccessibility of justice and legal institutions Key GPRS II, appendix II C, page 135 External Outcome Evaluation – Access to Justice and Human Rights attitudinal issues relate to poor compliance with rules, regulations and procedures and weak enforcement of existing rules, regulations and procedures.”3 Access to justice is obviously most critical in any discussion on good governance and human rights This is more so with regards to vulnerable and excluded groups Where there is quick, easy and effective access to justice, excluded groups may easily seek redress for discriminatory and exclusionary practices by any individual or institution including government Access to Justice generally means access to state-sponsored or state sanctioned legal services These legal services include access to information about legal rights and responsibilities; legal advice; legal counseling; legal representation; and other legal advocacy services At the individual level, access to justice may be defined as a person’s ability to seek and obtain fair and effective responses for the resolution of conflicts, the control of abuse of power and the protection of rights through transparent, accountable and affordable mechanisms and processes that are responsive to broad social needs and sensitive to culture and the needs of disadvantaged groups EVALUATION METHODOLOGY On the flexibility of outcome evaluations “There is no official blueprint for how to conduct an outcome evaluation Each must be tailored to the nature of the individual outcome under review as well as the realities of time and data limitations The role of an evaluator is to pass judgment based on his or her best professional opinion; it is not to collect large volumes of primary data or conduct methodologically perfect academic research Inherent to the outcome evaluation approach is a rough but universal logic of analysis and reporting Usually, an outcome evaluation begins with a review of change in the outcome itself, proceeds to an analysis of pertinent influencing factors, and then addresses the contribution of UNDP and its partners It culminates in suggestions about how to improve the approach to results.” Source: Guidelines for Outcome Evaluators, Monitoring and Evaluation Companion Series #1, UNDP Evaluation Office, 2002, p 3.1 Desk study The evaluation process began with a desk study of relevant documents provided by UNDP and implementing partners (IPs) – see list of documents in annex I It must be noted that the evaluation team was provided with programme-relevant documents only after the evaluation in Ghana had started UNDP project staff experienced difficulties in locating the required documents This was due to insufficient hand-over of projects documents to the newly appointed staff and to poor filing systems In particular, no centralised electronic repository of documents existed 3.2 Interviews The evaluation team first met with UNDP senior management and project staff, before meeting with implementing partners A number of external experts and stakeholders were also interviewed so as to triangulate the information received from UNDP and IPs The collection of information and data was carried out through semi-structured interviews The evaluation team also visited the Eastern and Volta Regions, where it met with LAS, CMC and CHRAJ staff In addition, the evaluators also visited the Nsawam medium security prison, GPRS II, pages 62-63 Page 10 of 41 Final report of May 2009 External Outcome Evaluation – Access to Justice and Human Rights Annexes I Bibliography UNITED NATIONS o o o o o UNDP Handbook on Monitoring and Evaluating for Results UNDP Guidelines for Outcome Evaluators UNDP Results-Based Management: Technical Note United Nations Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF) for Ghana (2006-2010) Country Programme Action Plan (CPAP) (2006-2010) LEGAL AID SCHEME YEAR 2007 2008 1ST DECEMBER 2006 14TH JULY 2008 7TH AUGUST 2007 19TH -23RD NOVEMBER 2007 2007 20TH NOVEMBER 2008 2008 (AWP 2007) 2007 TITLE REPORT ON THE EDUCATON PROGRAMMES ON THE OPERATION OF THE COMMUNITY MEDIATION CENTRES IN THE LEGAL AID SCHEME ANNUAL WORK PLAN – LAS – JS- AG DEPARTMENT MEETING WITH LAS STATEMENT BY MR ERIC A OPOKU, OIC, UNDP GOVERNANCE UNIT AT THE INTERNAL WORKSHOP FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF LEGAL AID SCHEME (LAS) STATEGIC PLAN AT MONARCH HOTEL REPORT ON ONE DAY WORKSHOP ORGANISED BY THE LEGAL AID SCHEME WITH THE SUPPORT OF UNDP FOR ASSISTANT DIRECTORS OF THE LEGAL AID SCHEME AT T HE HEAD OFFICE OF THE LEGAL AID SCHEME REPORT ON THE TRAINING WORKSHOP IN ALTERNATIVE DISPUTE RESOLUTION (ADR) FOR COMMUNITY MEDIATORS ORGANISED BY THE LEGAL AID SCHEME SPONSORED BY UNDP REPORT ON THE MONITORING AND EVALUATION CARRIED OUT IN THE BRONG AHAFO, NORTHERN, UPPER WEST AND EAST REGIONS, ON THE PROGRESS OF THE COMMUNITY MEDIATION CENTERS REPORT ON THE PROVISION OF LOGISTICS AND EQUIPMENT BY UNDP TO LEGAL AID SCHEME THE NEW STRATEGIC FOCUS FOR LEGAL AID SCHEME GHANA TODAY – INFORMATION GATEWAY TO GHANA LAS QUARTERLY (HALF YEAR) REPORT REPORT ON THE MONITORING AND EVALUATION CARRIED OUT IN THE ASHANTI, WESTERN AND CENTRAL REGIONS, ON THE PROGRESS OF THE COMMUNITY MEDIATION CENTERS HALF YEAR REPORT ON ACTIVITIES OF LEGAL AID SCHEME/UNDP COLLABORATION THE INTRODUCTION OF THE COMMUNITY MEDIATION CENTERS IN THE LEGAL AID SCHEME, GHANA INCEPTION REPORT, LAS LAS, HALF – YEAR REPORT Page 27 of 41 Final report of May 2009 External Outcome Evaluation – Access to Justice and Human Rights 2008 2008 JAN – JUNE 2007 INCEPTION REPORT LAS 1ST QUARTER REPORT ON STATISTICS OF CASES RECEIVED BY THE COMMUNITY MEDIATION CENTERS IN THE LEGAL AID SCHEME HALF YEAR REPORT ON THE OPERATION OF THE COMMUNITY MEDIATION CENTERS IN THE LAS JUDICIAL SERVICE YEAR TITLE 2008 14TH -16TH AUGUST 2007 FINAL REPORT: UNDP GOOD GOVERNANCE PROGRAMME REPORT FROM THE EVALUATION TRIP ON FIVE SEMI-AUTOMATED DISTRICT COURTS IN THE CENTRAL, GREATER ACCRA AND ASHANTI REGIONS 2007 INCEPTION REPORT TO UNDP GHANA PRISONS SERVICE YEAR 2007 23RD SEPTEMBER 2008 16TH SEPTEMBER 2008 12TH DECEMBER 2008 NOVEMBER 2008 15TH SEPTEMBER 2008 26TH & 28TH MARCH, 2008 19TH DECEMBER 2008 22ND TITLE ANNUAL WORK PLAN – IMPLEMENTING PARTNER: GHANA PRISONS SERVICE ANNUAL WORK PLAN – IMPROVING HUMAN RIGHTS COMMITMENT OF UNDP FUNDS TO IMPLEMENT THE 2008 ANNUAL WORK PLAN MEETING WITH THE DEPUTY ATTONEY GENERAL REQUEST FOR DIRECT PAYMENT – RESOURCE PERSON NATIONAL CONSULTANTS TRAINING OF TRAINERS FOR THE GHANA PRISONS SERVICE – NEED ASSESSMENT REPORT PROJECT PROPOSAL GHANA PRISONS SERVICE ANNUAL REPORTS AVAILABLE DATA ON THE INMATE POPULATION PROFILE MEETING WITH THE ATTONEY GENERAL CATEGORIES OF PRISONERS HELD POLICY ON THE INITIAL AND CONTINUOUS TRAINING OF PERSONNEL OF THE GHANA PRISONS SERVICE REPORT ON EVALUATION RESULTS – HUMAN RIGHTS TRAINING FOR SERGEANTS IN THE GHANA PISONS SERVIC END OF YEAR REPORT – GHANA PRISONS SERVICE AND UNIED NATIONS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME GHANA PRISONS SERVICE – DEBRIEFING NOTES REPORT ON HUMAN RIGHTS TRAINING PROGRAMME FOR Page 28 of 41 Final report of May 2009 External Outcome Evaluation – Access to Justice and Human Rights NOVEMBER 2008 MEMBERS OF THE DIRECTORATE AND REGIONAL COMMANDERS MONITORING AND EVALUATION PLAN (M & E MECHANISM) SPEECH BY DEPUTY RESIDENT REPRESENTATIVE UNDP – GHANA POLICE SERVICE MISSION REPORT CHRAJ YEAR TITLE 17TH MAY 2007 AWP 2008 2008 30TH APRIL 2008 27TH MAY 2008 3RD SEPTEMBER 2008 25TH NOVEMBER 2008 10TH DECEMBER 2008 27TH MAY 2008 DECEMBER 2006 – DECEMBER 2008 INCEPTION REPORT – CHRAJ INCEPTION REPORT DEVELOPMENT PARTNER SUPPORTED WORK PLAN INCEPTION REPORT INCEPTION REPORT MEETING WITH THE GHANA POLICE SERVICE AND CHRAJ ON TOT FOR LECTURERS OF THE POLICE TRAINING COLLEGE CAPACITY BUILDING FOR POLICE STATION OFFICERS HIGHLIGHTS OF THE 2008 REPORT ON THE STATE OF HUMAN RIGHTS IN GHANA REPORT ON 2007 ACTIVITIES FOR CHRAJ WORK PLAN – DANISH SUPPORT TO THE GHANA COMMISION ON HUMAN RIGHTS AND ADMINISTRATIVE JUSTICE (CHRAJ) ATTORNEY GENERAL YEAR 2007 2007 TITLE REPORT ON THE JUSTICE FOR ALL PROGRAMME INCEPTION REPORT CONCEPT PAPER ON THE PROPOSED MEETING OF STAKEHOLDERS IN THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE DELIVERY SYSTEM – JUSTICE FOR ALL PROGRAM THE MINISTRY OF JUSTICE AND ATTORNEY GENERALS DEPARTMENT – IT STRATEGY REPORT ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE SENTENCING POLICY PROJECT UNDER THE JUSTICE FOR ALL PROGRAMME GUIDELINES FOR PROSECUTORS ANNUAL WORK PLAN – MINISTRY OF JUSTICE AND OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL END OF YEAR REPORT INCEPTION REPOT Page 29 of 41 Final report of May 2009 External Outcome Evaluation – Access to Justice and Human Rights II List of interviewees SHIGERI KOMATSUBARA DEPUTY RESIDENT REPRESENTATIVE CLEVER NYATHI… SENIOR GOVERNANCE ADVISOR, UNDP YASUKO KUSAKARI… PROGRAMME COORDINATOR, UNDP HILDA MENSAH PROJECT OFFICER, GOVERNANCE PROGRAMME, UNDP LOUIS KUUKPEN PROJECT OFFICER, GOVERNANCE PROGRAMME, UNDP MELINDA MADUENO PROGRAMME OFFICER, UNDP EVANS GYAMPOH PROGRAMME OFFICER, UNDP (CSO) SANDRA COFFIE (MRS.)… DIR JUDICIAL REFORMS AND PROJECTS RUBBY ARYEETEY… PROJECT COORDINATOR SENYO ADJABENG… NATIONAL COORDINATOR, ADR AMPONG FOSU JOSEPH… DIRECTOR HR, JUDICIAL SERVICE SAMUEL NYANTAKYI… CHIEF DIR., ATTORNEY GENERALS DEP’T AMMA GAISIE… SOLICITOR GENERAL, ATTORNEY GEN DEP’T ELLEN KWAWKUME… CHIEF STATE ATTORNEY, AG’S DEP’T JAMES GABIANU… DIR ADMIN, ATTORNEY GENERALS DEP’T FRANCIS OTU… ICT CONSULTANT, ATTORNEY GENERALS DEP’T KEN A ATTAFUAH (PROF.) NATIONAL IDENTIFICATION AUTHORITY DOMINIC M AYINE (DR.) DIRECTOR, CEPIL KWESI APPIAH… DIRECTOR, THE CIVIC FOUNDATION ERIC APPIAH OKRAH… CHILD PROTECTION SPECIALIST, UNICEF DUKE HAMMOND… DIR ADMIN, CHRAJ RICHARD A QUAYSON… DEPUTY COMMISSIONER, CHRAJ HANNAH OWUSU-KORANTENG… DIRECTOR, TRAINING & RESEARCH, WACAM ANTHONY KOBINA YEBOAH DIRECTOR, GHANA PRISONS SERVICE EDWARD ASHUN FOCAL POINT, GHANA PRISONS SERVICE PETER SERINYE METRO TV ALI NAKYEA ABDALLAH… CHIEF CONSULTANT, NAKYEA CONSULT EMMANUEL A AMPONSAH… NSP MEDIATOR CMC KOFORIDUA SUSAN BINEY… NSP MEDIATOR CMC KOFORIDUA EKOW DANIELS… NSP MEDIATOR CMC HO SALOMEY… NSP MEDIATOR CMC HO HUBERT AKRON… INVESTIGATOR CHRAJ, KOFORIDUA GEORGE AMOO… NATIONAL COODINATOR, CMC, LAS S.N MENDS DIRECTOR ADMIN, LAS A Y SEINE… DIRECTOR LEGAL AID SCHEME GODWIN KPOPLI… DIRECTOR LEGAL AID SCHEME (HO) REV JAMES TEYE TETTEH… GHANA PRISONS SERVICE (NSAWAM) Page 30 of 41 Final report of May 2009 External Outcome Evaluation – Access to Justice and Human Rights III Examples of IP’s activities in AWP LEGAL AID SCHEME: • • • • • Establishment of Community Mediation Centres (CMC) throughout the country in the Regional offices of the LAS Training of Legal Aid staff as mediators to facilitate the mediation process Recruitment of NSP as mediators Procurement of office equipment such as desk, chairs, computers, printers and office stationary Public education to sensitise people on the existence and operation of the CMCs through the dissemination of fliers, radio programmes in local languages, etc PRISON SERVICE: • • • • • • • Access to Justice through training for Prison officers on Human rights Capacity building for Prison wardens Human rights Education for officers ICT training for the inmates and the prison wardens Introduction of Junior and Senior high school programmes for interested inmates Development of a training manual for the training of Prison wardens on the handling of inmates Facilitating court sittings in the prisons JUDICIAL SERVICE • • • Development of a training manual for the training of judges and judicial service staff More that 600 copies of the manual distributed to Judges, Magistrate and some Judicial Service staff Temporary court sittings in the prisons as part of the justice for all programme Organisation and holding of the CJs forum ATTORNEY GENERAL’S DEPARTMENT • • • Capacity Building for the staff in the AGs Department: Conference held in Dodowa Presentation of cases before the courts in the Prisons Development of ICT programme for the Department CHRAJ • • • • Police training Collaboration with human rights NGOs The State of Human Rights in Mining Communities Training of staff in ADR Page 31 of 41 Final report of May 2009 External Outcome Evaluation – Access to Justice and Human Rights IV Terms of Reference Terms of Reference for Outcome Evaluation UNDP Ghana CPAP Outcome 7: Access to justice and respect for basic and human rights improved A INTRODUCTION Background The growing demand for development effectiveness is largely based on the realization that producing good “deliverables” is simply not enough The relevance of efficient or wellmanaged development projects and outputs is their ability to yield discernible improvements in development conditions and ultimately in people’s lives Being a key international development agency, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has been focusing on achieving clearly defined results This has been pursued in recent times through results-based management (RBM) approach As part of its efforts in enhancing RBM, UNDP has shifted from traditional activity-based project monitoring and evaluation (M&E) to results-oriented M&E, especially outcome M&E that covers a set of related programmes, projects, and strategies intended to achieve a defined outcome An outcome evaluation assesses how and why an outcome is or is not being achieved in a given country context, within a time frame and the role UNDP and other partners have played in this regard Outcome evaluations also help to clarify underlying factors affecting the situation, highlight unintended consequences (positive and negative), generate lessons learned and recommend actions to improve performance in future programming Brief National Context Related to the Outcome Good governance is increasingly recognized as an important goal for ensuring stability for wealth creation to reduce poverty, attaining sustainable human development and achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) The current Growth and Poverty Reduction Strategy (GPRS II) enunciates this connection by indicating good governance as one of the three priorities of the Government of Ghana On promotion and protection of rights, subsections III, IV and VIII of the GPRS II emphasise protecting rights and rule of law, improving access to rights and entitlements, and women empowerment respectively These are in line with objectives 3, 7, and of the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) that seek to promote civil, economic, social and political rights of the people including vulnerable groups Thus, access to justice and promotion of human rights has been captured as policy priorities for the government in the GPRS II The African Peer Review mechanism (APRM) Report as well as its plan of action also notes the challenges for accessing justice and guaranteeing Page 32 of 41 Final report of May 2009 External Outcome Evaluation – Access to Justice and Human Rights people’s rights and calls for the mobilisation of resources to enhance the capacity of the institutions providing access to justice and human rights protection The successful and peaceful national election of 2004 is an indication of this national commitment to political pluralism and democracy fundamentally underpin by the protection of human rights Nevertheless there are still several issues on human rights protection like the growing number of complaints on human rights violation by professionals such as those in the health sector, the domestic violence against women and girls, the lack of improvement in girl-child education given the increase in outdated cultural practices like trokosi and female genital mutilation, the rights of persons in detention given deplorable conditions in police cells and prisons, religious intolerance and the difficulty in accessing justice The inadequate allocation and disbursement of funds by the Government to the constitutional bodies with the mandate to promote and protect human rights is a consistent problem UNDP’s strong commitment to the Millennium Declaration and fulfilment of the MDGs are consistent with the priorities of the Government of Ghana, including promotion of human rights and access to justice Indeed, promotion of human rights must be emphasized if the MDGs are to be achieved in a sustainable manner through the empowerment of the citizenry especially the poor and vulnerable to demand accountability from leadership at all levels In line with the national priorities, the UNDP programming for 2006-2010 has a component indicative of promoting human rights, the rule of law and access to justice through a human rights based approach Programme Overview As part of the Secretary-General’s 1997 Reform Programme to make the UN a more effective and efficient institution, the Common Country Assessment (CCA) and the United Nations Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF) have become the primary tools to facilitate a common programming framework for all UN agencies at the country level The Ghana 2004 CCA was a collective assessment that identified the causes of key development challenges To tackle these challenges and meet the MDGs, the Ghana 2006 UNDAF has been formulated as the management tool for coordinating UN System development assistance from 2006 to 2010 The UNDAF supports national priorities as set out in the Growth and Poverty Reduction Strategy (GPRS) as the UNDAF outcomes are formally accepted as the strategic contributions of the UN to national priorities The UNDAF (2006-2010) is substantively linked with the Country Programme Document of UNDP as well as the programmes of other UN agencies in Ghana, ensuring that all UNDP’s programmes are consistent with UNDAF outcomes The Country Programme Action Plan (CPAP) 2006-2010 is developed so as to operationalise the Country Programmes and to establish the commitments, particularly of resources, of the UN agencies and the government The Government of Ghana and UNDP Ghana are in mutual agreement on content of the CPAP and their responsibilities in the implementation of the Country Programme Thus, as contained in the approved Country Programme Document, three main thematic areas derived from the UNDAF have been identified for UNDP programme interventions, namely: Consolidation of democracy; Wealth creation and empowerment of the poor; Vulnerability reduction and environmental sustainability The two cross cutting themes of gender and HIV/AIDS are also specifically reflected in all thematic interventions In accordance with its mandate, UNDP concentrates on strategic policy advice, national Page 33 of 41 Final report of May 2009 External Outcome Evaluation – Access to Justice and Human Rights capacity development and institutional support, development services and projects with demonstrable effects that are relevant to policy formulation and implementation More specifically, building on Ghana’s successes in consolidating the democracy, UNDP supports the government’s commitment to good governance processes to meet increasing citizen demands for transparency, accountability, combating corruption, and increased public participation in governance This support is placed in the context of the GPRS II and the implementation of the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) Panel of Experts recommendations In line with the UNDAF, the human rights component of the UNDP Programme entails strengthening the rule of law and access to justice through the human rights based approach Therefore, the CPAP envisages that UNDP will “support strengthening the Judiciary, the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice, the Legal Aid Scheme and civil society organizations (CSOs) to enhance access to justice, mainstream the application and use of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) and for human rights education” However, under this outcome, in addition to the three institutions mentioned in the CPAP, UNDP has been supporting two other institutions: the Ministry of Justice and the Ghana Prisons Service Thus, UNDP is currently working with the following partners in achieving development results in the area of access to justice and human rights protection:      Judicial Service (JS) Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) Ministry of Justice and Attorney General’s Department (MJAGD) Legal Aid Scheme (LAS) Ghana Prisons Service (GPS) The support to these institutions, mainly through capacity development activities, focus on the following: wider application of ADR in the justice delivery process; expansion of points of access to justice through ADR centres; an improved environment for compliance with international human rights principles; raised awareness of human rights and increased compliance with national and international instruments on the rights of inmates Outcome to be evaluated According to the evaluation plan of the UNDP Country Office in Ghana (referred to as UNDP Ghana, hereafter), an outcome evaluation will be conducted in the third quarter of 2008 for the following outcome, which is stated in the CPAP of UNDP Ghana: “Access to Justice and respect for basic and human rights improved” A detailed results framework for the outcome is summarized below: Intended Outcome: Access to Justice and respect for basic and human rights improved Indicator: ADR mainstreamed into the courts, CHRAJ and Legal Aid Scheme Target: More efficient legal systems to improve access to justice Baseline: Inadequate and costly legal aid mechanisms Page 34 of 41 Final report of May 2009 External Outcome Evaluation – Access to Justice and Human Rights B OBJECTIVES OF THE EVALUATION The outcome evaluation shall assess the following: (v) Outcome analysis – Evaluate the progress that has been made towards the achievement of the outcome (including contributing factors and constraints); (vi) Output analysis - Determine contributing factors and impediments and extent of the UNDP contribution to the achievement of the outcomes through related project outputs (including an analysis of both project activities and soft-assistance activities7); (vii) Output-outcome link - Assess the contribution UNDP has made/is making to the progress towards the achievement of the outcome; and (viii) Assess partnership strategy in relation to outcome The results of the outcome evaluation will be used to guide future programming In this regard the evaluation will:  Identify strengths and weaknesses in the current Programme/Projects in respect of the stated outcome  Extract lessons and best practices for futures interventions  Propose better ways of coordinating donor interventions in the sector  Identify priority areas of focus for future programming C SCOPE OF THE EVALUATION The scope of the evaluation will cover the following: Geographic Focus The evaluation should cover the regional dimensions of the country Outcome Analysis  Examine relevance of the intended outcome in the context of the development and governance issues in Ghana  Determine if there has been progress made towards the achievement of the Outcome, and also identify the challenges to attainment of the Outcome  Examine contribution, effectiveness and relevance of on-going UNDP projects as listed above (only indicative) in achieving the intended outcome  Identify factors that contributed to or adversely affected the achievement of the Outcome  Examine UNDP contribution towards intended outcomes through advocacy, partnership and donor co-ordination  Analyze the underlying factors beyond UNDP’s control that influence the outcome  Distinguish the substantive design issues from the key implementation and/or management issues, including the timeliness of outputs, the degree of stakeholders and partners’ involvement and how the process is well managed or carried out  Ascertain the prospects of sustainability of UNDP interventions related to the outcome, i.e can it be assured that the outcome would be maintained even after the withdrawal of UNDP? Output Analysis  Determine whether or not the UNDP outputs are still relevant to the Outcome  Examine whether or not sufficient progress has been made in relation to the UNDP outputs For UNDP, soft assistance activities include advocacy, policy advice/dialogue, and facilitation/brokerage of information and partnerships Page 35 of 41 Final report of May 2009 External Outcome Evaluation – Access to Justice and Human Rights       Identify the factors (positive and negative) that affect the accomplishment of the Outputs Assess whether and how the human rights and access to justice issues have been addressed and promoted in UNDP’s activities; i.e whether UNDP activities have improved stakeholders involvement in this area and other related concerns in Ghana; Assess UNDP’s ability to advocate best practices and desired goals; UNDP’s participation in national debate and ability to influence national policies on human rights Identify further areas of UNDP intervention Analyze outputs achieved in relation to the involvement of targeted beneficiaries, particularly women and other vulnerable groups Whether UNDP supported programme has increased their capacity to fully access to justice and their rights Assess gender equality and mainstreaming in UNDP interventions Output-Outcome Link  Determine whether UNDP’s outputs or other interventions can be credibly linked to the achievement of the outcome (including the key outputs, projects and soft and hard assistance that contributed to the outcome);  Identify key contributions that UNDP has made/is making to the outcome (e.g in developing the capacity of the key rule of law and human rights institutions)  Assess what the role of UNDP soft-assistance activities has been in helping achieve the Outcome  Assess UNDP’s ability to develop national capacity in a sustainable manner (through exposure to best practices in other countries, south-south cooperation, holistic and participatory approach); UNDP’s ability to respond to changing circumstances and requirements in capacity development  Analyze the prospect of the sustainability of UNDP interventions related to the Outcome (what would be a good exit strategy for UNDP?) Partnerships Analysis  Examine the partnership among UN Agencies and other donor organizations in the relevant field: What partnerships have been formed? What has the role of UNDP been? What has the level of stakeholders’ participation been?  Determine whether or not there is consensus among UNDP actors, partners and stakeholders on the partnership strategy  Determine whether UNDP’s partnership strategy has been appropriate and effective; UNDP’s capacity with regard to management of partnerships; UNDP’s ability to bring together various partners across sectoral lines to address governance concerns in a holistic manner  Analyze how partnerships have been formed and how they performed  Examine how the partnership affected the achievement of or progress towards the Outcome D METHODOLOGY AND EVALUATION APPROACH An overall guidance on outcome evaluation methodology can be found in the UNDP Handbook on Monitoring and Evaluating for Results and the UNDP Guidelines for Outcome Evaluators The evaluators are expected to come up with a suitable methodology for this outcome evaluation based on the guidance given in these two documents It is suggested that the evaluators make the evaluation process participatory through consultations with key stakeholders in order to utilize existing information, examine local sources of knowledge and to enhance awareness about and mainstreaming results-based management During the outcome evaluation, the evaluators are expected to apply the following approaches for data collection and analysis: Page 36 of 41 Final report of May 2009 External Outcome Evaluation – Access to Justice and Human Rights       Desk review of relevant documents (project documents with amendments made, review reports -midterm/final, donor-specific, etc); Discussions with the Senior Management and programme staff of UNDP Country Office; Briefing and debriefing sessions with UNDP and the Implementations Partners, as well as with other donors and partners; Interviews (including gathering the information on what the partners have achieved with regard to the outcome and what strategies they have used) with partners, stakeholders and other donors; Field visits to selected project sites and discussions with project teams, project beneficiaries; Consultation meetings E EVALUATION TEAM Members of the mission must not have been associated with the project’s formulation, implementation or monitoring It is proposed that an international consultant leads the mission, assisted by two experienced national consultants The international consultant should be fluent in English, have an advanced university degree and at least eight years of work experience in the field of rule of law and human rights, participatory planning for sustainable development, including participatory monitoring and evaluation, sound knowledge about results-based management (especially results-oriented monitoring and evaluation), previous experience in conducting similar evaluations and excellent writing and analytical skills The team leader will take the overall responsibility for the quality and timely submission of the evaluation reports to the UNDP Country Office Specifically, the team leader will perform the following tasks:       Lead and manage the evaluation mission; Design the detailed evaluation scope and methodology (including the methods for data collection and analysis) for the report; Decide the division of labour within the evaluation team; Conduct an analysis of the outcome, outputs and partnership strategy (as per the scope of the evaluation described above) for the report; Draft related parts of the evaluation reports; and Finalize the whole evaluation report The other consultants should have advanced university degrees and at least five years work experience in the areas of human rights Each consultant should have sound knowledge and understanding of local development in Ghana, and have experience in conducting evaluation S/He will perform the following:      Review documents; Participate in the design of the evaluation methodology; Conduct an analysis of the outcome, outputs and partnership strategy (as per the scope of the evaluation described above); Draft related parts of the evaluation report; and, Assist Team leader in finalizing document through incorporating suggestions received on draft related to his/her assigned sections Page 37 of 41 Final report of May 2009 External Outcome Evaluation – Access to Justice and Human Rights Proposed Evaluation Mission Schedule (25 working days between st September 2008 – 31st October, 2008) Activity Desk review, Evaluation design and workplan (Inception report) Field visits, interviews with partners, and key stakeholders Drafting of the evaluation reports Debriefing with UNDP Debriefing with partners Finalization of the evaluation reports (incorporating comments received on first drafts) Total No of Working Days Responsible party Timeframe/Deadline Evaluation team days Evaluation team 10 days Evaluation team days Evaluation team Partners and the Evaluation team Evaluation team Half day Half day days 25 F KEY DELIVERABLES 1) 2) 3) 4) An Inception report Debriefing of UNDP and partners Draft report before the lead consultant leaves Ghana A comprehensive analytical report in English – the key product expected from this outcome evaluation (Hard copy and a soft copy in MS Word and Acrobat reader) that should, at least, include the following contents:      EXECUTIVE SUMMARY INTRODUCTION The Development Context EVALUATION METHODOLOGY FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS Status of the outcome Factors affecting the outcome UNDP contributions to the outcome through outputs UNDP partnership strategy Rating of progress on outcomes and outputs   LESSONS LEARNED RECOMMENDATIONS * ANNEXES: TOR, field visits, people interviewed, documents reviewed, etc Reference Materials The evaluators should study the following documents: UNDP Handbook on Monitoring and Evaluating for Results UNDP Guidelines for Outcome Evaluators Page 38 of 41 Final report of May 2009 External Outcome Evaluation – Access to Justice and Human Rights UNDP Results-Based Management: Technical Note United Nations Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF) for Ghana (2006-2010) Country Programme Action Plan (CPAP) (2006-2010) Project Documents and relevant reports Other documents and materials related to the outcome to be evaluated (from the government, donors, etc.) G REPORTING The consultant(s) will be reporting directly to UNDP senior management a) An inception report b) A Draft Report, and c) The Final Report H DURATION OF ASSIGNMENT The assignment should be executed within a period of one month (25 working man-days) I FEE The international and national consultants will be recruited and paid in accordance with UN conditions and procedures J TEAMS OF PAYMENT 20% - Upon submission and acceptance of an inception report, indicating preparations made and how the assignment is going to be executed 30% - On submission and acceptance of Draft Final Report 50% - On submission and acceptance of Final Report Annex I List of key partners with which UNDP is currently working in achieving development results in the area of access to justice and human rights protection:      Judicial Service Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) Ministry of Justice Legal Aid Scheme Ghana Prisons Service II Indicative list of other UNDP collaborations that may have also contributed to the achievement of the Outcome:  Parliament  National Commission on Civic Education (NCCE)  National Media Commission (NMC) Page 39 of 41 Final report of May 2009 External Outcome Evaluation – Access to Justice and Human Rights  Police Service  Centre for Public Interest Law (CEPIL)  Ghana Journalist Association (GJA)  Ministry of Women and Children Affairs  Ministry of Interior * This list does not suggest that the evaluators should assess each one of the projects; rather, this is to show possible existing linkages which may have contributed to the outcome V About the consultants Stéphane Jeannet Stéphane Jeannet has 17 years of international professional experience in the fields of human rights, development and humanitarian affairs He holds a Master’s Degree in Law (LL.M.) in International Human Rights Law from the University of Essex and a MA from the Graduate Institute of International Studies in Geneva Stéphane Jeannet has held positions as a human rights officer and investigator for the United Nations (OHCHR and DPA) and as a legal adviser and protection delegate for the ICRC He represented ICRC in a number of negotiations at the UN in Geneva and New York Since 2001 he has completed 50 contracts as a consultant and has carried out 32 evaluations of projects, programmes and organisations, mostly as team/project leader He has also coached the development of strategies for several organisations His recent work has concerned mainly human rights, access to justice, governance and communication He is also experienced in issues related to international security He has conducted 60 missions covering 36 developing countries Tuinese Edward Amuzu Tuinese Edward Amuzu has eight (8) years of professional experience in the fields of law, access to justice and human rights He holds a Master of Laws (LL.M.) in International Human Rights Law with distinction from the Indiana University School of Law, Indianapolis in August 2006 He is also a graduate of the University of Ghana, Legon He was awarded a Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.) degree by the University of Ghana in June 1999 He was awarded a certificate to practice law in Ghana by the Ghana School of Law, Accra and called to the Bar in October 2001 Tuinese Edward Amuzu has held positions as an assistant State Attorney at the Office of the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Ghana where he undertook his National Service He worked in private legal practice with Binewoatsor and Associates, a private law firm in Accra He has held the position of Legal Officer, Director of Legal Services, Associate Executive Director and the Executive Director of the Legal Resources Centre where he is involved in building human rights capacity for individuals, groups, community based organizations and other non governmental organizations Mr Amuzu has worked with the LRC since June 2003 Page 40 of 41 Final report of May 2009 External Outcome Evaluation – Access to Justice and Human Rights Mr Amuzu has served as a National Consultant to United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the International Labour Organization (ILO) on human rights related issues Mr Amuzu has participated in several National and International Seminars / Conferences on access to Justice and Human Rights including a workshop organized in Vienna, Austria by the American Bar Association on access to Justice and the rule of law in July 2008 Mr Amuzu has participated in several evaluations of non-governmental organizations and community based organizations the LRC works with David Ofori-Ayeh Page 41 of 41 Final report of May 2009 ... 41 Final Report of 27 April 2009 External Outcome Evaluation – Access to Justice and Human Rights INTRODUCTION 1.1 Outcome to be evaluated and objectives of the evaluation According to the evaluation. .. confront people in their quest to gain access to justice and the effects of limited or no access to justice can be damning indeed.4 Any examination of the state of access to justice must necessarily... with regard to human rights and access to justice, the UNDP should indeed have developed an inception Page 15 of 41 Final report of May 2009 External Outcome Evaluation – Access to Justice and