Accelerating Access to Justice for Human Development: Strengthening Responsive Governing Institutions

1. Accelerating Access to Justice for Human Development: Strengthening Responsive Governing Institutions

2. UNDP’s Strategic Plan 2008-2011 • UNDP Strategic Plan Focus Area 2: Democratic governance, • GOAL: To strengthen national and local capacities for democratic governance, building upon the principles of the Millennium Declaration and the World Summit Outcome Document. • UNDP SP Outcome 6: “Effective, responsive, accessible and fair justice systems promoting the rule of law, including both formal and informal processes, with due consideration to the rights of the poor, women and vulnerable groups”.

3. External changes UN inter-agency Rule of Law Coordination and Resource Group; Principal level; OHCHR, UNODC, UNICEF, UNIFEM, OLA, UNHCR, DPA Working-expert level Rule of law unit in the DSG’s office

4. Policy Developments in the UN re the Rule of law • The “Rule of Law” is a concept at the very heart of the Organization’s mission. • For the United Nations,” justice” is an ideal of accountability and fairness in the protection and vindication of rights and the prevention and punishment of wrongs. From the report; Rule of Law and Transitional Justice in Conflict and Post-Conflict Societies Report of the Secretary-General (S/2004/616 of 23 August 2004)

5. Rule of law guidance note 2008 • Base assistance on international norms and standards • Take account of the political context • Base assistance on the unique country context • Advance human rights and gender justice • Ensure national ownership • Support national reform constituencies • Ensure coherent and comprehensive strategic approach • Engage in effective coordination and partnership

6. Framework for strengthening the rule of law • A constitution or equivalent • A legal framework, and the implementation thereof • An electoral system • Institutions of justice , governance, security and human rights • Transitional justice processes and mechanisms • A public and civil society that contributes to strengthening the rule of law and holds public officials and institutions accountable

7. Internal changes • Senior Management decision in 2005 - a cross practice unit BCPR and BDP/DGG on JSSR • BCPR set up a JSSR unit in 2007 and crafted a global programme • Cross practice unit in the making

8. Global rule of law and justice programmes • Strengthening the Rule of Law in Conflict and Post Conflict situations (managed by BCPR) (approved) • Accelerating Access to Justice and the Rule of Law for Human Development innon-crisis and long term development settings (managed by DGG/BDP) (still in the making).

9. Justice and Rule of Law - global Mapping 2006-07 – Objective: To complement concurrent UNDP mapping initiatives such as the UNDP Primer on Gender and Justice Programming: Sarah Douglas (2006) “Equitable Access to Justice for Women and Men: A UNDP Primer on Gender and Justice Programming”, the questionnaire regarding anti-corruption launched by BDP, and the Human Rights World Map prepared by the Oslo Governance Centre (OGC)

10. Coverage • Electronic survey with general and specific questions on justice and rule of law programming at UNDP Country and Regional Offices 2006/2007 • Desk review of DGTTF programmes 2002-2006 • fifty-eight Country Offices from all five regions • two Regional Offices and one SURF • thus, 70% of the total of about eighty-six offices active in access to justice and rule of law programming provided feedback

11. Respondents • Africa (15 respondents) Burundi, Chad, Congo, Congo Democratic Republic, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Mauritania, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Swaziland, Tanzania, and Togo • Arab States (9 respondents) Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Libya, Occupied Palestinian Territories, Somalia, Syria, Yemen; SURF Arab States • Asia-Pacific (14 respondents) Afghanistan, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Iran, Laos, Maldives, Mongolia, Nepal, Pakistan, Timor Leste, and the Pacific Sub-Regional Centre • Eastern Europe / CIS (10 respondents) Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kyrgyz Republic, Romania, Russian Federation, Serbia, Tajikistan, Turkey, Uzbekistan • Latin America and the Caribbean (13 respondents) Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, El Salvador, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Panama, Paraguay, Trinidad & Tobago, Venezuela, and the Regional Bureau (RBLAC)

12. Regional demand and funding • respondents from Africa, the Arab States, and Asia-Pacific demonstrated strongest justice programming in terms of number and variety of activities • programmes with most funding (3 millions USD and above) are almost exclusively located in Africa, the Arab States, and Asia-Pacific • average duration of justice programmes is three years

13. Key lessons learned • dialogue building with stakeholders critical to ensure a comprehensive approach to justice programming • developing advocacy capacity for legal reform • solid understanding of local political dynamics • need to address gender disparities • coordination among donors and UN agencies • selection of civil society groups critical for successful implementation

14. Drivers of future UNDP justice programming • Successful program delivery/pilot projects • Significance of justice for democratic governance • Internal restructuring • EU accession • Alternative justice mechanisms • Conflict prevention • Legal Empowerment of the Poor project • National ownership

15. Partners in the field - coordination • Bilateral donors (AECI, Belgium, CIDA, DANIDA, DFID, Euras Holding, Finland, France, Japan, Norway and the Norwegian oil company Statoil, Portugal, RNE, SDC, SIDA, USAID) • Multilateral donos (UNICEF, OHCHR, UNODC, DPKO, UNIFEM, UNHCR) • IFIs (ADB, IADB, WB) • National and local donors (Ministries of Interior, Ministries of Justice, NGOs)

16. Accelerating Access to Justice for Human Development Programme: • Main objective: accelerate access to justice for the advancement of human development • Specific objectives: • To increase the capacity of national partners in Governments and Justice Sector Institutions to embark on the design and implementation of long term justice system reform programmes and corresponding strategic plans including the budgetary and costing process and legislative reform processes. • To strengthen the capacity of UNDP Country Offices in supporting national partners in the process of justice system and legislative reform through the production of policy documents and practical guidance tools. • To strengthen the capacity both quantitatively and qualitatively of national institutions focusing on legal and judicial training including regional and south-south cooperation.

17. Outcomes and outputs • With Regional Bureaux, BCPR, BRSP and Regional Centres/SURFs as main corporate partners, the Global Programme aims at strengthening the knowledge base through the production of guiding tools and policies in order to assist UNDP’s national partners and the Country Offices to embark on solid long term justice sector reform programmes that promote access to justice, legal empowerment and the rule of law for the poor and disadvantaged. • The main outputs of the programme will be knowledge production and management supplemented by operational and programming engagement in selected countries based on defined criteria. • The programme finally aims at equipping UNDP in becoming an active contributor to the global debate on access to justice, rule of law and security issues. The programme will produce lessons learned and identify best practices based on UNDP’s experiences at the country and regional level.

18. The Legal Empowerment of the Poor Agenda • Extending legal protections and property rights • Bottom up approach • The complexity of overhauling legal systems

19. Making the Law Work for everyoneReport of the Commission on Legal Empowerment of the Poor • Four billion people around the world are robbed of the chance to better their lives and climb out of poverty, because they are excluded from the rule of law • The remedy for exclusion is inclusion

20. The Commission on Legal Empowerment of the Poor Co-Chaired by Madeleine Albright and Hernando de Soto Comprised of 25 Commissioners, including former heads of state and government, cabinet ministers, jurists, economic researchers, and other senior policy-makers from the North, South, East and West. Holding diverse views but agreeing on the imperative of finding better ways to fight poverty and exclusion.

21. Commission Findings • Most of the poor do not live under the shelter of the law, but far from the law’s protection and the opportunities it affords. • They are vulnerable to abuse by authorities who discriminate, seek bribes, or take the side of powerful interests against them. • The law is the platform on which rest the vital institutions of society. • No modern market economy can function without law and • To be legitimate, power itself must submit to the law.

22. The Four Pillars of Legal Empowerment of the Poor • Access to Justice and Rule of Law • Property Rights • Labour Rights • Business Rights

23. Access to Justice • Reforming the law on paper is not enough to change how the poor experience it day to day. • Even the best regulations do not help the poor if the institutions enforcing them are ineffective, corrupt or captured by elites. • It is vitally important to reform public institutions and remove the legal and administrative barriers that prevent the poor from securing their rights and interests.

24. Property Rights • Property rights are fundamental to the life and operation of society and so their reform cannot be neglected. • Protecting existing assets is the first concern of the poor. Measures to achieve such protection will empower poor people, secure their livelihoods and make investments in their future more attractive. • Ensuring that property reforms do not weaken women’s rights and indigenous or pastoralist groups’ communal rights is notoriously difficult

25. Labour Rights • A well-designed system of labour rights should provide both protection and opportunity. • Most workers have basic rights and protections in theory, but not in practice. They do not benefit from labour laws and bargaining arrangements. They are typically denied access to state or employer benefits and social security. • Recognition and enforcement of the rights of individual workers and of their organizations is critical for breaking the cycle of poverty. .

26. Business Rights • Most of the world’s poor entrepreneurs operate informally and are particularly vulnerable to the vagaries of corruption and violence of criminals and officials. • Legal registration can dramatically improve the profitability of informal businesses by increasing their access to capital, enter into legally binding contracts and to contain personal risk through asset shielding

27. A Comprehensive Approach • Good things go together - the four pillars of Legal Empowerment reinforce each other. • The gender dimension needs critical attention in all four domains, as do indigenous peoples’ rights and customary law. • The poor are not the object of Legal Empowerment but the co-designers and facilitators of it.

28. Reform Options: Justice • Improved identity registration systems • Affordable and accessible systems of alternative dispute resolution. • Legal simplification and standardization and legal literacy campaigns targeting the poor. • Stronger legal aid systems and expanded legal service cadres with paralegals and law students. • Structural reform enabling community-based groups to pool legal risks.

29. Reform Options:Property • Institutionalize a property rights system that brings the extralegal economy into the formal economy. • Promote a property rights system that will recognize real and immoveable property bought by men as the co-property of their wives, as well as clear inheritance rules. • Create a functioning market for the exchange of assets that is transparent and accountable. • Ensure that all owners have access to the same rights and standards. • Reinforce property rights through public policies, such as access to housing and low interest loans.

30. Reform Options: Property (2) • Legal guidelines for forced relocation, including fair compensation. • Recognition of a variety of land tenure, including customary rights and indigenous peoples’ rights including their standardisation and integration of these practices into the legal system. • State land audits with findings published to discourage illegal taking possession of public land. • Simplified procedures to register and transfer land and property.

31. Reform Options: Labour Rights • Fundamental rights at work, especially freedom of association, collective bargaining and non-discrimination. • Improved quality of labour regulation and its enforcement. • Inclusive approaches to social protection, delinked from the employment relationship. • Labour rights (health and safety, hours of work, minimum income) extended to workers in the informal economy. • More opportunities for education, training and retraining

32. Reform Options: Business Rights • Appropriate legal and regulatory frameworks, including enforceable commercial contracts, private property rights, use of public space. • Fair commercial transactions between informal enterprises and formal firms. Financial, business development, and marketing services for informal enterprises. • Micro business incentives, including government procurement, tax rebates, and subsidies. Social protection for informal entrepreneurs.

33. The Commission calls on the United Nations to • Establish a Global Legal Empowerment “Open Access” Arena • Support Regional Compacts on Legal Empowerment of the Poor • Provide Support to Legal Empowerment at the Country Level • Fund Knowledge Accumulation and Learning

34. Innovative Mechanisms for Legal Empowerment Support • Norm setting through a Global Legal Empowerment Compact • Defenders of the Poor • Knowledge clearinghouse on Legal Empowerment • Public-private partnerships for Legal Empowerment • Initiative to promote grassroots knowledge and social innovation • Observance of an International Day for Legal Empowerment of the Poor