Highlights of Work 2012
Published by: International Development Law Organization (IDLO) Viale Vaticano, 106 00165 | Rome, Italy Tel: +39 06 40403200 | Fax: +39 06 40403232 | Email: idlo@idlo.int United Nations Permanent Representation Uganda House | 336 East 45th Street | 11th Floor | New York, NY | 10017 Tel: +1 212 867 9707 | Fax: +1 212 867 9719 Copyright Š 2013, International Development Law Organization (IDLO). All rights reserved.
I have never felt prouder of our work than the day we received this spontaneous email from Somali refugees in Kenya. It said, “We are the…Community Leaders living in Kakuma camp and we would like to express gratitude for the service you provide the Somali people as a whole.” As this report makes clear, Somalia was just one of many partner countries in 2012. But it may be the best example of how changing laws at the top transforms lives at the bottom. The nation’s Provisional Constitution, drafted and promoted with IDLO support, creates both a framework for reconstruction and tangible new rights for Somalis – including a ban on female genital mutilation. IDLO is growing in both size and scope. With transition gathering pace in Afghanistan, 2013 is the year when our efforts to build capacity in that country’s justice sector move into a whole new gear. Thousands of legal professionals stand to benefit – and through them, we hope, millions of justice-starved Afghan citizens. The rule of law is about creating a culture of justice, even in the most challenging post-conflict environments. And as we make this our goal, the words of the refugees of Kakuma will continue to inspire us. Irene Khan, Director-General, IDLO
PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS
In 2012, IDLO worked on legal and regulatory change in three main areas: 1. Peacebuilding 2. Social development 3. Economic growth & trade
Within each area, we prioritized themes by their potential to achieve development aims. The crosscutting themes of gender and human rights were increasingly built into our programming.
IDLO in 2012 We have: 
Continued to strengthen the rule of law, rights and good governance in developing countries, transition nations and postconflict states

Offered legal expertise, resources and professional support to governments, multilateral partners and civil society organizations

Conducted research and advocacy at the national and international levels
In December 2012, IDLO was implementing 56 projects around the world; an almost three-fold increase in just two years. In 2012, IDLO had its headquarters in Rome, a liaison office for the United Nations in New York, and country offices in Afghanistan, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Somalia (based in Nairobi), South Sudan and Tajikistan.
Peacebuilding
Afghanistan Kenya Kyrgyzstan Somalia South Sudan Tajikistan
Afghanistan “I’m illiterate. When I didn’t have a lawyer it was like walking in the night, when I have a lawyer it’s like walking in the day.” LAOA client
©IDLO/Paul Hutchings
IDLO in Afghanistan IDLO has been working to strengthen the justice sector and judiciary in Afghanistan since 2002, implementing programs funded by multiple donors, including Canada, France, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, the US and the World Bank.
In 2012, IDLO stepped up a program to build specialized Violence Against Women units, which investigate and prosecute crimes of violence against women and girls. Another project supported the interaction between formal and informal justice sectors in Afghanistan.
Barely 18, Lal Bibi was kidnapped and raped by four policemen. Her case was referred to an IDLO-supported Violence Against Women unit in Kabul. In November 2012 a judge jailed all four defendants for 16 years each.
ŠIDLO/Paul Hutchings
South Sudan “This chance that IDLO has given us is a great blessing. I could hardly speak in English when I came for the training, but now I am confident. It is so liberating.”
Judge Muna Muna Mohamed ©UN Photo/Tim McKulka
IDLO in South Sudan As South Sudan transitions to a system of common law, IDLO implemented a program for training judges at the High Court and County Court Levels, increasing their capacity to safeguard procedural legal rights, apply substantive laws and articulate judicial reasoning.
IDLO in Somalia IDLO helped draft Somalia’s Provisional Constitution and strengthened public support for it by ensuring the consultation of Somali refugees. The Constitution gives equal rights to all before the law, outlaws child marriage and bans female genital mutilation.
“We are the Somali Refugee Community Leaders living in Kakuma Refugee Camp. We would like to express gratitude for the service you provide the Somali people as a whole, particularly the seminar you have given us (refugees) about the draft of the Somali Constitution.”
Somalia
©UN Photo/Stuart Price
“The CIC* has the vision for a united, peaceful, and prosperous Kenya, in which all citizens, including leaders, respect the rule of law, uphold national values and live by the constitution.”
Charles Nyachae CIC Chairperson
Kenya
* Commission for the Implementation of the Constitution ©Flickr/David Watterson
IDLO in Kenya IDLO supported the Committee of Experts in the design of the 2010 Kenyan Constitution. IDLO provided the key agencies responsible for its implementation with technical legal assistance and worked to strengthen the capacity of key institutions and the judiciary.
IDLO in Kyrgyzstan IDLO assisted the Supreme Court, Council of Judges and Judicial Training Center to establish and institutionalize a well-functioning Judicial Candidate Training Program. IDLO trained 400 sitting and newly-appointed judges on commercial law and civil trial judicial skills, and developed legal resources, such as bench books in Russian and Kyrgyz.
Kyrgyzstan
“Rule of law is an economic enabler and multiplier of success.”
Irene Khan
Social Development
Middle East and North Africa Papua New Guinea
HIV and Health Law Program In 2012, IDLO contributed legal policy for an effective response to HIV and AIDS. Partnering with local organizations and grassroots actors, IDLO supported HIVrelated initiatives in 23 countries. IDLO’s toolkit, Scaling up HIVrelated Legal Services, was published in four languages.
Health Law Program Impact 7752
735
HIV legal service clients assisted
426
Participants at IDLO seminars and consultations on HIV
866
Lawyers and activists trained on HIV law
People reached on HIV law through outreach and activities
Economic Growth and Trade
Colombia Ecuador Guatemala Mexico Vietnam
Green Economy In 2012, IDLO worked to strengthen laws, institutions and regulatory frameworks surrounding the green economy. Strengthening the green economy promotes the development of sustainable goods and services that address ecological and social challenges. In this way, IDLO helps to achieve a more equitable distribution of benefits from international contracts.
The Legal Guidebook for Green
Development Strategies
provided user-friendly guidance for policy-makers at all levels on how to select and use legal instruments to adequately finance and implement green development strategies.
ŠIDLO/Sheila McKinnon
Empowering Local Communities and Young Lawyers “I have become part of the history of my country, helping make stronger laws on climate change. Thank you IDLO.” Zipporah Nyambura Ngige, a member of IDLO’s Kenya Climate Law Working Group, grew up in Northern Kenya, where frequent droughts exposed her to the realities of climate change.
“This memorable opportunity was a lesson. I learned to work with a talented team, and thanks can’t convey the gratitude I feel for all these precious moments.” Guy Jules Kounga, a native of Bandjoun, Cameroon, joined IDLO’s Green Economy Law working group and traveled with IDLO to COP 11.
IDLO @ THE UN
UN General Assembly High Level Segment and Sixth Committee Doha Climate Change Conference Rio +20 COP11 Convention on Biodiversity
In 2012, IDLO participated in key international meetings, such as the Rio+20 UN Conference on Sustainable Development. It was the only Permanent Observer to the United Nations, apart from the European Union, to address the UN General Assembly’s High-Level Meeting on the Rule of Law.
Rio +20
“There can be no sustainability without justice and equity.”
IDLO Statement on the Rio+20 outcomes
©Flickr/Fizzr
United Nations General Assembly 2012 “There is a global crisis of the rule of law. Across the world, people are demanding greater participation in political processes, accountability, and respect for human rights and human dignity.� Irene Khan IDLO Director-General
IDLO’s Pledge at the 2012 United Nations General Assembly We pledge to undertake a global survey of the role of women in justice sector institutions and to analyze the legal barriers to women’s access to justice, with a timetable geared to the elaboration of the post-2015 Development Agenda. We will work to ensure that women’s increased participation in the justice system and legal reforms to enhance women’s rights are accorded due priority.
FINANCIAL DATA
Contract Value of IDLO Programs
€ 18.7 million 20 projects
€ 39 million
56 projects
December 2010 December 2012
IDLO Final Statement 2012
€34.2m €1.7m
IDLO Funding Sources Foundations & Others 30
25
Multilateral Financial Institutions
20
UN Agencies
15
European Commission
10
Bilateral Development Cooperation Agencies
5
0
2010
2011
2012
IDLO’S GOVERNANCE & LEADERSHIP
November 2011 - November 2012
Governance Assembly of Parties (25 governments and 1 multilateral organization) Presidency: USA Vice-Presidencies: Italy and Kuwait
Standing Committee USA, Italy, Kuwait, Ecuador Chair and Vice-Chair of the Board of Advisors
Audit & Finance Committee
Chair: The Netherlands China, Kenya, Jordan, the Philippines
Board of Advisers (9 members) Chair: Professor Alfredo Tadiar (Philippines) Vice-Chair: Professor Jan Michiel Otto (Netherlands)
Member Parties Australia Austria Bulgaria Burkina Faso China Ecuador Egypt El Salvador France Italy Jordan Kenya Kuwait
Mozambique Netherlands Norway OFID Paraguay Peru Philippines Romania Senegal Sudan Turkey Tunisia USA
Advisory Council Abdel-Latif Al-Hamad: Chairman
and CEO, Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development Abdou Diouf: Former President of the Republic of Senegal William H. Gates Sr.: Co-Chair, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Thomas Pickering: Former United States Ambassador and Under Secretary of State Mary Robinson: Former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Albie Sachs: Former Justice, Constitutional Court of South Africa
Expanding Membership El Salvador became a Member Party of IDLO in March 2012.
“The rule of law and good governance are a high priority for my country. We look forward to making a significant contribution to the progress of IDLO’s work.” Maria Eulalia Jimenez Minister Counselor of El Salvador’s Embassy in Rome ©Flickr/F-sosa
2012 was Irene Khan’s first full year as Director-General of IDLO, following her election by the Assembly of Parties in November 2011.
LOOKING AHEAD
New Strategic Plan On December 13, 2012, IDLO’s Director-General presented the new Strategic Plan for 2013-2016 to the Assembly of Parties. The Plan aims to strengthen: Focus. Making clear choices based on IDLO’s comparative advantage to deliver measurable results
Reform. Improving IDLO’s organizational systems and structures so that it can do more and better Resources. Broadening IDLO’s donor base and increasing its predictable and flexible income to achieve financial sustainability
IDLO seeks to:
Help build well-functioning, responsive legal institutions Enhance access to justice by empowering people to claim their rights Strengthen legal systems that enable fair, sustainable development outcomes
IDLO strives to be:
A thought leader on the rule of law A partner of choice for international and national actors A center of excellence for legal technical assistance and capacity development
The International Development Law Organization (IDLO) enables governments and empowers people to reform laws and strengthen institutions to promote peace, justice, sustainable development and economic opportunity. www.idlo.int @IDLOnews