Save Somali Women and Children (SSWC)
Job Description
VACANCY AT A GLANCE
Duty Station: Dhobley, Lower Juba
Duration: 30 days
Application Deadline: 9th July
Expected Start Date: 19th July 2026
Contract Type: Individual / Company Consultant
BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT
Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C) and Child, Early and Forced Marriage (CEFM) remain prevalent harmful practices in Somalia, despite ongoing efforts by the Federal Government, Jubaland State authorities, civil society organizations, and development partners to eliminate them. These practices violate the rights of women and girls, expose survivors to significant health, protection, and psychosocial risks, and undermine their access to education, justice, and economic opportunities.
In Dhobley District, Jubaland State, harmful practices continue to be driven by deeply rooted social norms, limited awareness of legal frameworks, and weak enforcement mechanisms. While Somalia has made progress in strengthening policies and legal frameworks to protect women and children, there remains a need to enhance the capacity of justice and law enforcement institutions to effectively interpret, implement, and enforce these laws.
Judiciary personnel, police officers, and local authorities play a critical role in preventing harmful practices, protecting survivors, facilitating referrals, and ensuring accountability for perpetrators. However, the absence of standardized, context-specific training materials has limited the consistent application of legal provisions and survivor-centered approaches.
To address this gap, SSWC seeks to engage a consultant to develop practical, user-friendly training manuals on FGM/C and CEFM laws tailored for the judiciary, police, and local authorities in Dhobley District. The manuals will strengthen the knowledge and capacity of frontline duty bearers to effectively prevent, respond to, and enforce laws related to harmful practices in line with national and state legal frameworks and international human rights standards.
OBJECTIVES OF THE CONSULTANCY
Overall Objective:
To develop standardized, practical, and user-friendly training manuals on FGM/C and Child, Early and Forced Marriage (CEFM) laws to strengthen the capacity of the judiciary, police, and local authorities in preventing, responding to, and enforcing laws against harmful practices in Dhobley District, Jubaland.
Specific Objectives:
· Review existing legal, policy, and training materials on FGM/C, CEFM, and related protection issues.
· Develop tailored training manuals for the judiciary, police, and local authorities, reflecting their respective roles and responsibilities.
· Integrate national and Jubaland legal frameworks, survivor-centered approaches, referral pathways, and human rights principles into the manuals.
· Validate the training manuals with relevant stakeholders and incorporate feedback before finalization.
· Produce final training manuals that can be used for capacity building and future training initiatives.
SCOPE OF WORK AND KEY DELIVERABLES
| Deliverable | Description |
| Inception Report | Work plan, methodology, and implementation schedule. |
| Training Needs Assessment Summary | Summary of findings from the document review and stakeholder consultations. |
| Draft Training Manuals | Draft manuals on FGM/C and CEFM laws for the judiciary, police, and local authorities. |
| Validation Workshop Report | Summary of stakeholder feedback and recommendations. |
| Final Training Manuals | Final manuals incorporating stakeholder feedback, submitted in editable and PDF formats. |
| Final Consultancy Report | Comprehensive report summarizing activities, outputs, and recommendations. |
METHODOLOGY
The consultant is expected to employ a rigorous, participatory methodology:
• Desk Review: Comprehensive analysis of national legislation, regional and international human rights instruments, court judgments, police procedural manuals, and existing training materials.
• Key Informant Interviews: Semi-structured interviews with judicial officers, police investigators, prosecutors, local authority leaders, CSO legal advocates, and survivor representatives.
• Focus Group Discussions: With police gender desks, court users’ committees, and community child protection committees.
• Case File Analysis: Review of anonymized FGM/CEFM case files to identify procedural gaps and good practices.
• Comparative Analysis: Review of best-practice training manuals from Kenya, Egypt, Sudan, and other relevant jurisdictions.
• Participatory Validation: Workshops with all stakeholder groups to ensure accuracy, cultural appropriateness, and practical utility.
All research must adhere to ethical standards for research involving vulnerable populations, including informed consent, confidentiality, and child safeguarding protocols approved by SSWC’s Ethics Review Board.
QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE
· An advanced university degree (master’s preferred) in Law, Human Rights, Social Sciences, Gender Studies, Public Administration, or a related field.
· At least 5 years of professional experience in legal and/or protection programming, preferably related to FGM/C, CEFM, GBV, or child protection.
· Proven experience in developing training manuals, legal guides, or capacity-building materials for justice sector actors.
· Experience working with judiciary, police, or local government institutions in Somalia or similar fragile contexts is highly desirable.
· Strong understanding of national and international legal frameworks on women’s and children’s rights.
· Excellent analytical, writing, and communication skills in English; knowledge of Somali is an added advantage.
Technical Competencies:
· Strong knowledge of FGM/C, CEFM, GBV, and child protection legal frameworks at national and international levels.
· Demonstrated experience in developing training manuals, legal guides, and capacity-building tools for justice sector actors.
· Good understanding of the roles of judiciary, police, and local authorities in law enforcement and protection systems.
· Strong stakeholder engagement and facilitation skills, particularly with government and justice institutions.
· Excellent analytical, writing, and communication skills, with the ability to simplify complex legal concepts into practical training materials.
Language Requirements:
· Fluency in English (written and spoken) is required.
· Working knowledge of Somali is highly desirable and considered an added advantage.
Desirable:
· Experience working in Somalia or similar fragile and humanitarian contexts.
· Previous engagement with judiciary, police, or local government institutions.
· Experience in FGM/C, CEFM, GBV, or child protection programmes.
· Familiarity with legal training delivery and justice sector capacity building.
· Knowledge of Somali language and local context.
EVALUATION CRITERIA
| Criteria | Weight |
| Relevant legal expertise and qualifications | 30% |
| Proven experience in similar manual development assignments (with samples and references) | 25% |
| Technical approach and methodology | 20% |
| Understanding of the local legal pluralism and justice context | 15% |
| Financial proposal (value for money) | 10% |
| TOTAL | 100% |
SUPERVISION AND REPORTING
The consultant will report to the Head of Programs / Project Officer at [SSWC], with technical guidance from the Legal Advisor and the Government Focal Point at the Ministry of Justice. A Technical Working Group comprising representatives from the judiciary, police, local government, and CSOs will provide strategic oversight and validation.
LOGISTICAL ARRANGEMENTS
· Consultancy will be conducted in Dhobley District, Jubaland, Somalia on FGM/CEFM training manuals for judiciary, police, and local authorities.
· Consultant will work under the implementing organization with relevant government coordination.
· Organization will support stakeholder access and validation meetings.
· Consultant will lead all technical work (review, drafting, finalization).
· Consultant provides own equipment/software.
· Travel, accommodation, and logistics per contract.
· Validation and security coordinated with local authorities.
PAYMENT SCHEDULE
| Deliverable | Percentage | |
| Upon submission and approval of the inception report and work plan | 30% | |
| Upon submission of draft training manuals and completion of validation workshop | 40% | |
| Upon submission and approval of final training manuals and final consultancy report | 30% | |
HOW TO APPLY
Interested candidates should submit the following documents in English by 9th July 2026, 23:59 hrs to hr@sswc-som.org and cc mistaosman@gmail.com with the subject line:
“Consultancy 002 – FGM/CEFM Training Manuals for Justice Sector – [Your Name]”
1. Curriculum Vitae (CV) highlighting relevant legal and training experience (maximum 5 pages).
2. Technical Proposal (maximum 10 pages) outlining: understanding of the assignment and the justice sector context; proposed methodology, including stakeholder engagement and validation approach; sample of previous training manual or curriculum developed (minimum 10 pages or link); three professional references with contact details.
3. Financial Proposal in [Currency] indicating daily consultancy fee and any other anticipated costs.
4. Cover Letter (maximum 1 page) explaining motivation and suitability.
SSWC is an equal opportunity employer. We strongly encourage applications from women, persons with disabilities, and candidates from diverse backgrounds.
To apply for this job email your details to hr@sswc-som.org