Consultant to Review and Revise Kenya National Police Service SOPs on Gender, Children & Human Rights at UN Women

Description of Responsibilities/ Scope of Work

Under direct supervision of the EVAWG Programme Manager, and overall guidance of the Task Force under the State Department for Gender and Affirmative Action and the Directorate of Gender and Children Affairs, Ministry of Interior and National Administration, the consultant will undertake (but not be limited to) the following tasks:

Inception Phase

• Participate in an inception meeting with UN Women and the Task Force to clarify expectations, methodology, scope and timelines.
• Review all relevant documentation, including:
• Existing Kenya National Police SOPs and Service Standing Orders;
• Relevant legislation (e.g. Constitution of Kenya, NPS Act, Sexual Offences Act, Children Act, Protection Against Domestic Violence Act, Victim Protection Act, etc.
• National policy frameworks (e.g. GBV, VAC, gender, policing and justice policies);
• Existing guidelines, circulars and directives relating to GBV, VAC and human rights in policing;
• Previous assessments, evaluations or reviews related to police procedures on GBV/VAC/human rights.

Prepare an Inception Report setting out:

• Understanding of the assignment;
• Proposed methodology and tools;
• Detailed work plan, including key milestones and deliverable dates within the 20 working days.

Desk Review and Technical Analysis

• Conduct a detailed technical review of the existing SOPs and related instruments, assessing:
• Legal and policy alignment (national, regional and international);
• Coherence and consistency across units and thematic areas (e.g. GBV, VAC, child-friendly procedures, referrals);
• Operational clarity and practicality for use at station and field level;
• Integration of human rights, survivor-centred and child-sensitive approaches;
• Map gaps, inconsistencies, duplications, terminology issues and outdated provisions.
• Identify areas where new or strengthened SOPs may be required (e.g. digital evidence in GBV/VAC cases, online exploitation of children, coordinated case management, interface with health and justice actors, etc., depending on the material provided).

Stakeholder Consultations

• In collaboration with UN Women and the Task Force, develop a stakeholder consultation plan.

Conduct focused consultations (virtual and/or in-person) with:

• Relevant NPS directorates/units (including gender and child desks where applicable);
• The State Department for Gender and Affirmative Action;
• The Directorate of Gender and Children Affairs, Ministry of Interior;
• Other government actors as relevant (e.g. ODPP, Judiciary, Children’s Department, Health facilities, etc.);
• Oversight and support institutions (as relevant);
• Civil society organizations, survivor support services and child protection actors, where appropriate.
• Document key findings, recommendations and practical challenges identified by stakeholders to inform revisions.

Drafting and Revision of the SOPs

• Prepare a Draft Technical Review and Recommendations Report summarizing key findings from the desk review and consultations, and recommending structural and content changes to the SOPs.
• Draft revised SOPs (or provide an annotated version of existing SOPs), ensuring:
• Clear, step-by-step procedures for key processes (e.g. survivor reception, initial response, statement taking, evidence handling, referrals, protection measures);
• Clear roles and responsibilities at all levels;
• Integration of appropriate referral pathways and inter-agency coordination mechanisms;
• Inclusion of practical tools such as checklists, forms, flow charts and templates, where useful;
• Use of simple, clear and accessible language that can be easily understood and applied by officers.
• Propose improvements to the structure, layout and presentation of the SOPs to enhance accessibility and training use.

Validation and Finalization

• Present the draft findings and revised SOPs to the Task Force and key stakeholders during at least one technical validation meeting/workshop.
• Facilitate discussions, capture feedback and support consensus-building on key provisions.
• Incorporate agreed inputs and submit:
• Final Technical Review and Recommendations Report;
• Final Revised SOPs in editable format (and any annexes/tools).

Required Qualifications

The consultant should meet the following minimum requirements:

Education and Certification:

• Advanced university degree in Law, Criminology, Security/Police Studies, Human Rights, Gender and development or a related field is required.
• A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Experience:

• At least 7 years of relevant professional experience in one or more of the following:
• Police reform, security sector governance, or criminal justice sector;
• Development, review and drafting of SOPs, guidelines or policies for law enforcement or justice institutions;
• Gender-based violence, violence against children, human rights and/or access to justice programming.