1.0 Organizational background:
Centre for Domestic Training and Development is a National, Non-Governmental Women Rights Organization that works towards better human rights and employment outcomes for Domestic Workers, especially girls and women in Kenya, through advocacy, skills training, job placement, education and protection. Established in 2001, CDTD’s mandate is to equip unskilled women and prospective local and migrant domestic workers from vulnerable and disadvantaged backgrounds with transitional skills for survival and employment. CDTD implements numerous programs to mitigate the vulnerabilities faced by girls and young women at risk of abuse and exploitation, while creating opportunities for them to recover and reintegrate into society. Over the years, CDTD’s holistic programming has benefitted child and adult victims and survivors drawn from: Abusive Domestic Work, Worst forms of child labor (WFCL), SGBV – Sexual and Gender Based Violence; illegal migration; refugees and asylum seekers; forced migration, local and cross-border trafficking settings among others.
CDTD has endeavoured to dignify domestic work using a five-pronged approach of Protection, Skills Training, Economic Empowerment, Mobilization, and Advocacy. To counter the gross abuse of human rights in the Domestic Labour Sub-sector, CDTD equips the youths and young women not only with skills but also empowers them with information on their rights and obligations so that they can negotiate fair terms and conditions of employment.
2.0 Project background:
In March 2023, CDTD was selected as a beneficiary of the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) – Salama HUB Project to implement a project on promotion of free movement and protection of unskilled migrant workers including women domestic workers, within the EAC through the EAC Secretariat and other relevant stakeholders.
AFSC is a Quaker organization that includes people of various faiths who are committed to social justice, peace, and humanitarian service. AFSC has more than 100 years of experience building peace in communities worldwide and works in the following ways: accompaniment, lobbying, quiet diplomacy, economic development, and humanitarian assistance. It seeks to change situations and systems that lead to violence.
The Salama Hub Project, based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia is a Consortium between the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) and All Africa Conference of Churches (AACC). It aims to ensure that African civil societies interact efficiently with institutional stakeholders in Africa, Europe, and America for peace and stability in the Horn of Africa region. It equips CSOs and FBOs with evidence through research and skills to positively influence conflict situations as well as policy development, thereby contributing to peace.
3.0 Background and Context
The Common Market is the second Regional Integration milestone of the East African Community (EAC), which has been in force since 2010, in line with the provisions of the EAC Treaty. More than 10 years after the coming into force of the East African Community (EAC) Common Market Protocol, the issue of free movement of labour is still contentious. Concerted advocacy by lobby groups such as the East African Employers Organisation (EAEO), the East African Trade Unions Confederation (EATUC) and others do not appear to have yielded much result. Towards the end of 2020, Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta asked Tanzania and Burundi to waive work permit charges in the spirit of EAC of allowing free movement of people and goods. With all the achievements above, there are policy gaps in the movement of unskilled labourers within the EAC.
The movement of unskilled migrant workers within the EAC community is criminalized for lack of proper documentation and they are discriminated against by nationality and literacy levels among other issues. The aforementioned EAC agreement is aimed at allowing free movement of labour and harnessing the benefits of migration to spur development. While this might be an advantage to the skilled laborers, it does not work to the benefit of the unskilled workers, in to a bigger extent, women in domestic labour.
CDTD aspires to infuse a debate on unskilled labour migration within the EAC into local and regional processes that will formulate policies and guidelines to optimize the benefits of labour migration to migrant domestic workers. CDTD intends to engage the EAC Secretariat and other relevant stakeholders to revitalize a conversation around the free movement of unskilled workers across the EAC and ensure protection and fair treatment at their workplaces
Free movement of workers across the region cannot succeed without support from the EAC Secretariat, the East African Employers Organisation (EAEO), the East African Trade Unions Confederation (EATUC) and like-minded Civil Society Organizations, Individuals and other partners across the region. CDTD seeks to engage and build on advocacy work by these groups to put more force and focus in ensuring free labour movement within EAC especially for unskilled labourers including domestic workers.
The EAC Secretariat organized a forum of Ministers responsible for Labour and Employment on 28th October 2021 to review progress made in the implementation of recommendations of the previous ministers’ meetings including issues such as social security benefits; free movement of labour and rights of establishment and residence; labour migration; youth employment; and the ILO convention 190.
According to a press release by the EAC Secretariat after an extensive deliberation forum between the EA and the EATUC on strengthening labour, employment and migration agenda on immigration and labour seeking to address labour-mobility issues in 19th November, 2021, East African workers and laborers were set to benefit through prompt intervention of challenges affecting labor mobility and employment, following a commitment to operationalize a regional technical working group (RTWG).
The two organizations committed to operationalize a RTWG that would address matters and challenges affecting labour mobility in the region and implementation of the Joint Programme for the exchange of young workers amongst the EAC Partner States. The move followed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) set to guide the process, endorsed by the fifth Forum of EAC Ministers responsible for Labour and Employment meeting in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, held on 29 October 2021.
4.0 Assignment Objectives:
It is on this background that CDTD is seeking the services of a qualified consultant or individual to support in facilitation of virtual and hybrid labour migration forums for East Africa regional stakeholders in labour migration in April and May respectively to;
- Deliberate on issues surrounding unskilled migrant workers including limitations to their movements within the EAC and access to legal & arbitration services during employment including effective complaints mechanisms.
- Forge a way forward to address the challenges and enabling mechanism for enabling unskilled migrant workers including women domestic workers to access opportunities for up-skilling and re-skilling their capabilities.
- Review the progress towards implementation of the recommendations of the reports of the forum of Ministers responsible for labour and employment, the progress in the implementation of the work of the Technical Working Group and the Memorandum of Understanding with a bias on the unskilled migrant workers.
4.5 Project deliverables:
In a bid to have the virtual and hybrid meetings implemented, the consultant will be expected to;
- Facilitate in a high level virtual EAC stakeholders’ in labour migration forum which will be aiming at deliberating on issues surrounding unskilled migrant workers including limitations to their movements within the EAC and access to legal & arbitration services during employment including effective complaints mechanisms.
- Produce a detailed report of the virtual meeting showing a way forward to address the issues and coming up with mechanisms for enabling unskilled migrant workers including women domestic workers to access opportunities for up-skilling and re-skilling their capabilities.
- Facilitate in a hybrid virtual consultative forum with the EAC Secretariat and the aforementioned stakeholders to;
- Provide feedback and recommendations of the virtual stakeholders meeting.
- Review the progress towards implementation of the recommendations of the reports of the forum of Ministers responsible for labour and employment, the progress in the implementation of the work of the Technical Working Group and the Memorandum of Understanding with a bias on the unskilled migrant workers.
- Produce a detailed report of the hybrid virtual consultative forum with the EAC and stakeholders in labour migration with recommendations and a way forward within 7 days of the meeting.
5.0 Duration and timelines:
The virtual meeting will take place within 3 hours while the hybrid meeting will be for a half day.
6.0 Qualifications and competencies:
- Master’s degree or higher in Migration Studies, Gender Studies, Public Policy, International Affairs, Development, Economics, or other fields of Social Science. A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.
- At least 5 years’ work experience relevant to labor migration and gender and development in the Kenyan Context.
- Previous work with UN agencies or other international organizations an advantage.
- Sound Knowledge of the EAC Common market.
- Ability to communicate fluently and write in English.
- Proven experience in the conducting facilitations and moderation of workshops within an NGO and or Civil Society Setting in Kenya.
- Excellent communication skills including in presentations and report writing.
- Excellent spoken and written English.
- Experience in leading and facilitating participatory processes
- Ability to interpret, analyze, and synthesize information
7.0 Payment and submissions:
CDTD will finance the cost of the consultancy to undertake the work. The amount to be paid will be negotiated with the consultant based on their proposed budgets. 60% payment shall be done upon contracting after a successful selection process and the balance shall be settled after approval of a training report.
How to apply
For the selection and the award of the contract purposes, eligible consultants with relevant experience in conducting a similar exercise should send their detailed proposals together with their resume to the undersigned via email to procurement @ cdtd.org not later than 26th** April 2023**, 10.00 am (EAT). Only proposals from qualified consultants will be considered.
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