Terms of Reference: For a Consultant to develop a Human Rights-based Peace Dialogue Facilitation Manual 15 views

Terms of Reference: For a Consultant to develop a Human Rights-based Peace Dialogue Facilitation Manual

1. Background

The Center for Advancement of Rights and Democracy (CARD) is a board-led, not-for-profit organization registered in Ethiopia under the Civil Societies Proclamation No. 1113/2019 with registry number 4307. CARD envisions an Ethiopia where democratic culture flourishes on the basis of human rights values. Its mission is to empower citizens and civic groups to promote and defend human rights and contribute to the building of democratic culture.

CARD has been actively engaged in peace building and other initiatives aimed at promoting social cohesion and stability. Through various programs and community based interventions, it has contributed to fostering dialogue, conflict resolution, and capacity-building efforts among the youth.

Despite the progress achieved, significant challenges remain. There is still a substantial need for continued work in the areas of peace building, human rights promotion, conflict prevention and social justice.

In response to these challenges, CARD, with support from Partner Organization, implemented the “Inter-Regional Human Rights-Based Dialogue for Peace” initiative, which brought together youth from Oromia, Amhara, and Tigray to engage in structured and inclusive dialogue processes grounded in human rights principles. The initiative demonstrated the importance and effectiveness of human rights-based dialogue (HRBD) in rebuilding trust, countering harmful narratives, and strengthening youth engagement in peace building.

Building on lessons learned from the first phase, CARD is implementing the continuation project titled “Inter-Regional Human Rights-Based Dialogue for Peace II” from April to September 2026. One of the key components of the project is the development of a practical, inclusive, and conflict sensitive Human Rights-Based Peace Dialogue Facilitation Manual to strengthen the capacity of youth peace ambassadors and facilitators engaged in community level and inter-regional peace dialogue initiatives.

To this end, CARD seeks to hire a qualified consultant to develop the Human Rights-Based Peace Dialogue Facilitation Manual in a participatory way, consulting both CARD and youth stakeholders.

1. Objective of the Assignment

The primary objective of this assignment is to develop a user-friendly, action-based, culturally sensitive, and legally grounded HR-Based Peace Dialogue Facilitation Manual.

The manual will serve as a practical resource for community leaders, civil society actors, and peace facilitators and practitioners, providing them with the skills, methodology, and tools needed to guide dialogues and peacebuilding initiatives, especially among youth, through a human rights lens.

1. Scope of Work

The consultant will be expected to undertake the following tasks:

1. Inception Phase & Desk Review

• Review relevant existing peace dialogue manuals and resources, participatory youth peace and dialogue methodologies and best practices, international human rights frameworks, national laws, and international best practices.
• Prepare and submit an inception report outlining methodology, proposed structure of the manual, and detailed work plan including timeline, milestones, responsibilities
  1. Stakeholder Consultation
• Conduct consultations with key stakeholders, including human rights defenders, peacebuilders and practitioners, youth representatives, and community leaders.
• Identify gaps, needs, and context-specific challenges and best practices to inform manual development.

1. Drafting the Manual

The manual is expected to promote participatory learning approaches, conflict-sensitive facilitation methods, inclusive engagement, and action-oriented dialogye processes that empower youth as agents of peace. The manual should provide practical guidance, tools, methodologies, facilitation techniques, exercises, and action planning. The manual should integrate conflict sensitivity, inclusion, gender sensitivity/responsiveness, and safeguarding considerations.

Develop a comprehensive draft manual including:

• Linkages between Human Rights and peace building
• Youth-centered dialogue as a participatory peacebuilding methodology
• Do No Harm principles, conflict sensitivity, and neutrality guidelines
• Inclusive peace (gender, youth, marginalized groups)
• Safeguarding considerations and trauma-informed and psychosocially sensitive facilitation approaches
• Step-by-step facilitation approaches and participatory dialogue methodologies
• Conflict analysis tools and facilitation frameworks
• Practical exercises, case studies, and role-play scenarios
• Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) tools for assessing dialogue outcomes and collecting lessons learned as well as stories of change.
  1. Validation and Finalization
• Incorporate feedback from CARD and partner Organisation into the draft.
• Produce a final, high-quality, print-ready manual in English.

1. Key Deliverables

The consultant is expected to deliver the following:

1. Inception Report: Detailing the proposed methodology, work plan, and a preliminary outline of the manual.
2. Desk Review
3. First Draft of the Manual: For internal review and feedback
4. Final Manual: A polished, comprehensive, and finalized practice-oriented document incorporating all feedback.
5. Training Package, including:

• PowerPoint presentations
• Facilitator handouts
• Quick reference guides. Timeline and Duration

The assignment is expected to take a total of 15 working days, from June 9 to June 23, 2026.

Management

• The consultant will work closely with CARD’s Project Team in consultation with the Partner Organisation team.
• The consultant will report directly to the Project Manager.

Required Qualification and Experience

The consultant should possess the following qualifications and competencies:

Education

• Advanced university degree in Peace and Conflict Studies, Human Rights, Political Science, Sociology, Law, International Relations, Psychology, Development Studies, or related fields.

Experience

• Minimum of 5 years of demonstrated experience in peacebuilding, dialogue facilitation, human rights, conflict transformation, or related areas;
• Proven experience in developing training manuals, facilitation guides, or curriculum materials;
• Strong understanding of Ethiopia’s conflict dynamics and peacebuilding context;
• Demonstrated expertise in human rights-based approaches, gender sensitive/responsive programming, and conflict-sensitive facilitation;
• Experience working with youth, civil society organizations, and community level peace initiatives;
• Proven understanding of youth engagement, adult learning methodologies, and participatory approaches;
• Familiarity with trauma-informed and psychosocially sensitive facilitation approaches is an asset.

Skills and Competencies

• Excellent research, analytical and writing skills;
• Strong facilitation and communication skills;
• Ability to produce high-quality deliverables within agreed timelines;
• Fluency in English is required; knowledge of local languages is an advantage.