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PROGRAM COORDINATOR -WEST AFRICA PUBLIC INTEREST LITIGATION CENTRE (WAPILC)

TERMS OF REFERENCE

OVERVIEW

The OPEN SOCIETY INITIATIVE FOR WEST AFRICA (OSIWA) is dedicated to supporting the creation of open societies in West Africa marked by functioning democracy, good governance, the rule of law, basic freedoms, and widespread civic participation. OSIWA believes that it best serves by sustaining catalytic and innovative initiatives that add value to the efforts of West Africa's civil society. OSIWA seeks to collaborate with advocacy groups, like-minded foundations, governments and donors. OSIWA further recognizes the importance of incorporating global developments in building open societies and seeks a greater commitment to the region by rich nations. OSIWA is seeking a dynamic individual as a PROGRAM COORDINATOR for its West Africa Public Interest Litigation Centre (WAPILC) in its Abuja, Nigeria office who will be able to advance our mission by using legal advocacy and strategic litigation skills. WAPILC envisions a West African community where citizens have greater access to justice through the development of effective capacities and implementable jurisprudence by means of Public Interest Litigation (PIL). To this end, WAPILC aims to promote human rights, improve rule of law and access to justice for citizens of the sub-region by initiating and supporting Public Interest Litigation (PIL) when necessary, to hold public officials accountable for acting contrary to the public interest or to reform anti-democratic policies in national, sub-regional, and regional courts and other adjudicatory fora. Accountability The Program Coordinator will be accountable to the Executive Director and the OSIWA Board of Directors.

Description

Under the supervision of the Executive Director, and with the guidance of the OSIWA Board of Directors and a Legal Technical Committee, the Program Coordinator will assume the overall supervision, coordination and day-to-day leadership and management role of the Centre. The position of the Program Coordinator is key both in the development of the program mandate and the realization of the institutional objectives set by the OSIWA Board. S/he will assess, develop and refine the strategic direction and implementation of activities, oversee the provision of legal assistance and litigation, research, production and dissemination of resource publications.

Roles and Responsibilities

Capacity Building

. Identify and incorporate opportunities for legal capacity development/training of partners and local PIL organizations;

Because Accountability Counts!

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FOR:

Benin - Burkina Faso - Cameroon - Cape Verde - Chad - Côte d'Ivoire - Ghana - Guinea - Guinea Bissau - Liberia - Mali - Mauritania - Niger - Nigeria - Senegal - Sierra Leone - Togo -The Gambia

The Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA) is a private operating and grant making Foundation which supports and advocates for initiatives that promote Open Society values in West Africa. It is dedicated to promoting a West African society where transparency and accountability in governance, basic freedoms and the empowerment of citizen prevail. OSIWA’s principal aim/niche is to build capacity of West African civil society and government institutions through support to catalytic and innovative initiatives and to advocate for Open Society ideals. OSIWA’s strategy combines three methodological approaches in its programs: grants to NGOs to execute projects, implementation of internally generated initiatives with partners; and proactive advocacy based on its experience of the terrain, aimed at policy reform at the national and sub-regional levels

JOB DESCRIPTION

OSIWA is dedicated to supporting the creation of open societies in West Africa marked by functioning democracy, good governance, the rule of law, basic freedoms, and widespread civic participation. OSIWA believes that it best serves by sustaining catalytic and innovative initiatives that add value to the efforts of West Africa's civil society. OSIWA seeks to collaborate with advocacy groups, like-minded foundations, governments and donors. OSIWA further recognizes the importance of incorporating global developments in building open societies and seeks a greater commitment to the region by rich nations. OSIWA serves the 15 members of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), as well as Cameroon, Chad and Mauritania. The Open Society Justice Initiative, an operational program of the Open Society Institute (OSI), pursues law reform activities grounded in the protection of human rights, and contributes to the development of legal capacity for open societies worldwide. The Justice Initiative combines litigation, legal advocacy, technical assistance, and the dissemination of knowledge to secure advances in the following priority areas: national criminal justice, international justice, freedom of information and expression, and equality and citizenship. Its offices are in Abuja, Budapest, London, New York and Washington DC.

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