Proposal Writing Consultant – Access to Justice, Africa

Background

The Carter Center is an independent, non-partisan, non-profit organization that seeks to prevent and resolve conflicts, enhance freedom and democracy, prevent disease, and improve mental health care. The Carter Center’s Rule of Law Program (RLP) advances effective, accessible, and inclusive justice by fostering transparent and accountable relationships between people and their governing institutions.

RLP’s Access to Justice, Africa initiative works to advance people-centered justice in Africa, including through social accountability and collective action, gender equality/equity, diversion and deflection, and/or transitional justice.

Since 2022, RLP has been implementing programming in Sierra Leone that seeks to increase gender equality and inclusion in the country’s justice sector; better understand the cultural, structural, and legal barriers women face in accessing information; and improve access to support services for survivors of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) through data harmonization and sharing. In line with the Center’s implementation philosophy, this work includes collaborative partnerships with a variety of government entities, civil society organizations, and individuals, and incorporates a broad spectrum of technical assistance, capacity building, advocacy, and policymaking activities.

Since 2023, RLP has also implemented programming in The Gambia, supporting the government and civil society in advancing transitional justice following the fall of the Yahya Jammeh regime. RLP supported government and civil society stakeholders in increasing citizen understanding of transitional justice processes in The Gambia, including the drafting and socialization of legislation to establish a Special Prosecutor’s Office. This led to higher levels of justice sector communications and engagement with citizens on transitional justice processes.

Work in Sierra Leone, The Gambia, and across the West African region is informed by lessons learned implementing RLP programming in Liberia from 2006 to 2023.

To structure and streamline its programming efforts in Sierra Leone, as well as replicate or tailor successful approaches in additional countries if needed, RLP is developing three concept notes to build off previous successes and guide its future work in Sierra Leone. These concept notes will include and/or incorporate a comprehensive design that touches on contextual background information; theories of change; activities; expected outcomes; evidence of intervention effectiveness; and Carter Center value-adds. RLP will use these general concept notes to inform targeted donor concept notes and proposals.

Purpose

RLP seeks to hire a strategy and proposal writing consultant with demonstrable experience in developing and drafting long-term, multifaceted project proposals through a collaborative process with key stakeholders, including but not limited to potential local implementing partners, colleagues in monitoring, evaluation, and learning, as well as finance/budget team members. Ultimately, the consultant will lead in developing and drafting the concept notes, with significant design input and direction from RLP staff. RLP will use these concept notes to seek funding and guide the implementation of future programming in Sierra Leone.

Additionally, in the event RLP is asked to develop a full proposal for any of its recently submitted concept notes, the team would consider additional proposal-writing support from the consultant to complete that proposal. Any proposal would be developed in conjunction with the same actors listed above.

An ideal consultant will have significant experience in the following areas:

• Identifying underlying programmatic logic.
• Connecting separate but related streams of programming in a cohesive and strategic way.
• Facilitating brainstorming sessions that identify key through lines and programmatic activities, generating consensus on them, and distilling them into compelling approaches to craft proposal documents.
• Synthesizing previous programming and successes into a coherent narrative that persuasively showcases value adds unique to The Carter Center, strengthening proposal documents.
• Evaluating the donor landscape in West Africa.

Key Activities and Outputs

• Develop a work plan to structure the consultant’s overall approach and ensure remaining activities are completed and outputs are delivered.
• Review draft concept note(s) and other relevant ATJ Africa programming documents/reports developed by RLP to identify key elements to include in the regional strategy document.
  • Key elements include contextual information, goals, objectives/outcomes, activities, intended results, and stakeholders.
• Conduct desk research on the decriminalization of poverty, especially in ways pertinent to programming in Sierra Leone, to inform one of the three concept notes as well as any spot desk research needed to complete the other two (RLP has already conducted significant desk research on SGBV and gender integration topics, which will likely need only minor addition).
  • Draft a summary report of no more than five (5) pages that highlights key takeaways and other insights from the research on decriminalization of poverty, identifies areas of overlap or relation to previous RLP work and programming documents mentioned above, and includes citations to primary sources.
• Conduct a workshop with representatives of The Carter Center and its local partners to generate consensus and inform the design and content of the strategy document.
  • Facilitate the team’s identification of gaps or opportunities where The Carter Center can provide added value.
  • Draft a summary report for the workshop (approx. 2-3 pages), highlighting key decisions, program logic, and other relevant takeaways.
• Draft three (3) concept notes using a provided template, existing concept notes, desk research, and results from the workshop.
• Revise or otherwise finalize the concept notes after review and with RLP support.
• Any other similar and related tasks necessary to fulfill the above-listed activities.

Potential Additional Activity and Deliverable

If RLP is invited to submit a full proposal for one of its concept notes or another funding opportunity arises, and RLP determines a need for additional support, RLP and the consultant would negotiate for an amended scope of the consultancy to include additional deliverables.

Deliverables

General

• Work plan submitted and approved by the Carter Center’s RLP team.

Desk Research

• Completed and approved desk research report of no more than five (5) pages on the decriminalization of poverty in Sierra Leone.

Concept Notes

• Completed interactive and participatory design workshop with associated summary report (5-6 pages).
• Three (3) completed and approved concept notes that are not more than five (5) pages, using a template and examples provided as guides.

Please view the Terms of Reference on our website to review the proposed workplan. This workplan is available here.

Timeframe

The anticipated timeframe is July 1, 2025, through August 31, 2025.

Qualifications:

• Demonstrated substantive (5-7 years) of experience with grant writing or proposal writing.
• Deep working knowledge of Sierra Leone or West Africa, including in technical areas like people-centered justice principles, sexual and gender-based violence initiatives, the transitional justice process, is strongly preferred.
• Experience in project design and implementation.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills.

Shortlisted vendors may be required to submit additional documentation, respond to further questions, or take part in a virtual interview at the Carter Center’s discretion