Tajikistan is a country in transition from a post-Soviet legacy and a post-conflict situation towards democracy and market economy. Legal reform is one of the cornerstones of transition; hence Switzerland decided to continue its support to the area of Rule of Law.

From the wealth of experience gained by legal aid centers it can be seen that the administrative and judicial system does not adequately respond to the needs of citizens. The main idea of the future Rule of Law domain of intervention is therefore to make the system more responsive to the needs of citizens, to link bottom-up concerns with adequate top-down responses. The implementation gaps, the obstacles encountered in the real life of citizens and particularly in the family law, the issues of concern of citizens should make their way to the State authorities responsible for services, with a view to feeding reform processes; improve effective implementation of laws and access to rights.

The tendered project will be the flagship of the SDC Rule of Law domain of intervention in Tajikistan. The project is conceived to be implemented during a first operational phase lasting four years. The project implementation is scheduled to start in November 2012 with a one year inception period during which the selected implementing agency will have to define an intervention model in line with the overal program results framework.

The project structure shall comprise the following components: — Support legal aid centers in providing quality legal aid and in identifying key issues for reform encountered in their practices.

— Provide support to the organizational and institutional development of local NGOs and develop their capacities in analyzing the issues, in translating them into proposals for legal reform, in lobbying,

— Support the establishment of a dialogue platform between practitioners including key Ministries, the judiciary actors, civil society organizations on improvement of current procedures and practices,

— Support State authorities and help to build their capacities in responding to the concerns identified, and implementing the existing commitments in the family justice and the action plan for legal reform,

— Ensure an effective monitoring of the reform process and the judicial and administrative procedures and practices.

SDC is looking for an implementing agency with solid experience, strong capacities and substantive expertise in: project management; legal and judiciary reform; facilitation; institutional development and empowerment of local actors; and with political sensitivity and analytical skills. The connections and the legitimacy of the implementing agency within the Rule of Law area in Tajikistan are crucial for trustful relationship with national stakeholders and the establishment of alliances with other projects and donors.